From sustainable campuses to regenerative governance. A design perspective on participation and institutional learning in the Pays de la Loire university ecosystem

Universities are increasingly recognised as laboratories for socio-ecological transition, yet higher education sustainability frameworks in France remain largely managerial, privileging compliance and infrastructure over participation. This paper examines how three national and regional instruments, including the Plan Climat–Biodiversité, the Note de cadrage TEDS, and the SRESRI 2021–2027, are translated into governance practices within two university campus ecosystems in the Pays de la Loire region: Chantrerie (Nantes) and Belle-Beille (Angers). Adopting a systemic design perspective, the study conceptualises governance as a process mediated through design practices involving feedback, coordination, and institutional learning. Through a comparative analysis of these models, it identifies gaps in stakeholder participation and proposes design-supported mechanisms for regenerative governance. By bridging sociological theories of bureaucracy with systemic design and sustainability research, the paper positions universities as meso-level laboratories that translate transition missions into inclusive, reflexive, and regenerative institutional cultures.