Between vision and barriers: a qualitative study on school leadership and ESD implementation in Germany

This study explores how school leaders in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, perceive and enact their role in the implementation of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) within the framework of the Whole School Approach (WSA). Using a qualitative research design, we conducted semi-structured interviews with eleven school leaders from various school types. Thematic analysis identified five core dimensions shaping ESD implementation—vision, leadership, curriculum, resources, and communication—derived from the WSA and strongly reflected in participants’ narratives. In addition, an inductively identified cross-cutting theme—leaders’ understanding of ESD—emerged as central to how they engaged with all other dimensions. A notable contribution of this study is its nuanced documentation of leadership as a balancing act between aspiration, delegation, and constraint navigation. While school leaders expressed openness to sustainability, their engagement was often fragmented and environmentally focused. The study highlights the gap between policy ambition and school-level practice and underscores the need for leadership development, institutional support, and structural flexibility to realize the holistic aims of the WSA.