QS World University Rankings: Sustainable Development Goals

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), established in 2015, are the culmination of decades of work on pushing forward a global commitment to tackling the biggest issues facing our world. All 193 member states adopted these ambitious plans.

The UN states that they are “a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice”.

Researchers have been increasingly highlighting the role that universities can take in forwarding this agenda. Jardali et al. (2018) write: “Universities are uniquely placed to lead the cross-sectoral implementation of the SDGs and advance the 2030 agenda”.

A 2019 report by QS found that 94 percent of prospective international students thought that universities should be doing more to be environmentally sustainable. In 2021, Forbes argued Gen Z are emerging as the ”sustainability generation”, and it is this generation who predominantly occupy the ‘prospective international student’ audience that QS speaks to in 2022.

There are many ways to assess a university’s commitment to advancing Sustainable Development Goals, from their on-campus policies to their strategic planning. Research is pivotal in advancing any of the SDGs – everything that has happened and will happen to alleviate climate change, reduce inequality, clean our waters or stop hunger will come as a result of research.

From economics to biochemistry, public policy to queer theory – researchers from across the academic spectrum must bring their fields together to meet the UN’s call.