Building a Sustainable Future through Higher Education Partnerships

Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Future of Teaching and Education, 2024

Year: 2024

DOI:

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Building a Sustainable Future through Higher Education Partnerships

Pavana Kiranmai Chepuri

ABSTRACT:

In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs aim to balance social, economic, and environmental sustainability and transform the world by 2030. However, the question remains whether the 17 SDGs can be achieved by 2030 as planned. To address this question, two approaches can be taken:

1. Analyzing Individual vs. Team Efforts: identifying whether individual efforts or collective efforts by teams can be more effective in achieving the SDGs; and
2. Setting Limited Goals for Institutions: identifying specific goals that institutions can realistically achieve to contribute towards achieving the 17 SDGs.

The aim of this is to propose a strategy for achieving the 17 SDGs by forming a Consortium of Universities. The objectives are to identify the focus areas and assess the external factors affecting the SDGs in different countries, assign three SDGs to each partner university, and work towards poverty alleviation, mental health, and education. The consortium approach can bring together universities from different regions and countries to work towards achieving the SDGs collectively. The proposed strategy is to form a Consortium of Universities, wherein each partner university will be assigned three SDGs after assessing the factors in their respective countries. A University can develop a matrix to identify the focus areas and assess external factors such as extreme poverty conditions, culture, lack of access to education due to poverty, etc. For example: Woxsen works on SDGs 1, 3, and 4, as the commitment should be towards poverty alleviation, mental health, and education. This approach can ensure that the efforts are coordinated, and there is a significant impact with minimum effort. Finally, the 2030 Agenda and its 17 SDGs are a critical global initiative aimed at promoting social, economic, and environmental sustainability. However, achieving these goals by 2030 requires a coordinated effort and a focused strategy. The proposed strategy of forming a Consortium of Universities is an innovative approach that can help achieve the SDGs by leveraging the expertise and resources of partner universities. With such collaborative efforts, it is possible to achieve the SDGs by 2030, paving the way for a sustainable and prosperous future for all.

keywords: Sustainable Development; strategy; consortium; higher education; partnerships