AAU among the worlds best universities on un sustainable development goals
News
Published online: 21.09.2022
Aalborg University (AAU) is once again at the top of the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, the most recognized list of universities' contributions to achieving the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals. AAU continues to occupy first place on the SDG for quality education and is in the top 50 on six out of the 17 SDGs.
By Troels Gubi, Aalborg University Library. Translated by LeeAnn Iovanni, AAU Communication
Aalborg University (AAU) is in the international top class when it comes to universities' contributions to achieving the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals. For the third year in a row, the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, one of the world's most recognized ranking lists, ranks AAU as number one when it comes to ensuring and promoting quality education (SDG 4) that supports global sustainable development.
AAU is ranked in the top 50 on six of the 17 SDGs and is thus among the leading universities when it comes to contributing to a more sustainable world.
As part of the work on sustainability at AAU, the Executive Management last year adopted three climate goals for AAU, including that the university must be climate neutral by 2045.
According to Heidi Simone Kristensen, Assistant Professor in the Department of Planning whose research focuses on sustainability and circular economy, and editor of Aalborg University's sustainability report, the climate goals have been a significant factor in AAU moving from 101-200th in 2021 to 19th place in 2022 on SDG 13.
- AAU's climate targets reflect an ambitious vision for the university in the coming years. Both in terms of operations and in relation to the university's interaction with the surrounding community, as the climate goals are conditional on the university not being seen as an isolated entity, she says.
The rankings on the individual SDGs have meant that the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings has ranked AAU as number 31 in the world and number two in the EU in terms of the overall work on the SDGs.
AAU's participation in the ranking has required broad involvement at the university, since, in addition to research, the ranking assesses the universities' performance on the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals in a number of different areas, such as staff policies and water and energy consumption. Participation in the ranking has meant that efforts have been continuously identified and initiated in order to improve AAU's overall sustainability work.
AAU will also take part in next year's ranking, and the data collection has already begun and is expected to be completed in Q4 2022. You might therefore be contacted in order to identify research projects, policies or other data relevant to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
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