Global Patterns and Regional Disparities in Green Curriculum Adoption: A Systematic Review of SDG Integration in Higher Education

Global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have encouraged higher education institutions to embed sustainability principles into curriculum design and implementation. Nevertheless, Green Curriculum adoption remains uneven across regions, and comparative evidence regarding its global development is still fragmented. This study examined publication trends, geographical distribution, innovation patterns, and institutional challenges related to Green Curriculum and SDG integration in higher education from 2015 to 2025. A Systematic Literature Review combined with a scoping review approach was conducted following the PRISMA 2020 framework. Data were collected from Scopus, ERIC, and ScienceDirect, resulting in 113 eligible peer-reviewed articles. Descriptive analysis, thematic synthesis, and bibliometric mapping using VOSviewer were applied to identify research growth, regional contributions, intellectual structures, and implementation pathways. The findings reveal two dominant patterns: technology-driven approaches in developed countries and community-based approaches in developing countries. Western countries contributed the largest publication volume, whereas countries such as China, Indonesia, and Brazil demonstrated increasing but uneven growth. Persistent barriers included limited funding, weak policy support, inadequate institutional readiness, and insufficient faculty capacity, particularly in the Global South. The study concludes that effective Green Curriculum transformation requires balanced integration of technological innovation, community participation, contextual adaptation, and stronger institutional governance to ensure equitable and sustainable SDG implementation in higher education.