Co-Creating Change for Sustainability
The IAU was pleased to take part in the 2024 Higher Education Summit, held at the Università degli Studi di Padova under the theme “Co-Creating Change for Sustainability.” Organised in collaboration with the COPERNICUS Alliance, the Summit brought together academic leaders, practitioners, and students to explore transformative approaches to embedding sustainability in higher education.
Isabel Toman, IAU Programme Officer for Higher Education and Sustainable Development, led a Collective Intelligence Workshop titled “Different Paths, Same Destination? Working Jointly Towards a Whole-Institution Approach to Sustainable Development in Higher Education.”
The workshop focused on the concept of the Whole-Institution Approach (WIA) — a framework that emphasizes the integration of sustainable development into every facet of a higher education institution, including leadership and governance, curriculum, research, campus operations, community engagement, and institutional culture. Rather than treating sustainability as an isolated topic or the responsibility of a single office, WIA calls for collaborative, cross-cutting strategies that involve all stakeholders across the institution.
During the session, participants shared examples of good practices and discussed common barriers to implementation, such as siloed institutional structures, limited resources, and competing priorities. They explored tools for fostering internal collaboration, aligning sustainability goals with institutional missions, and using participatory processes to build commitment across faculties and departments.
Key takeaways included:
The importance of strong institutional leadership and clearly articulated sustainability strategies;
The value of student and staff engagement to build shared ownership of sustainability goals;
The need for mechanisms to track and evaluate progress across multiple dimensions of institutional activity.
In addition to facilitating this dynamic and interactive workshop, Isabel contributed to other parts of the programme, including learning labs and a site visit to the University’s sustainability farm, which showcased practical applications of sustainable practices within campus operations and the local community.
IAU’s participation in the Higher Education Summit aligns with its ongoing commitment to advancing the role of higher education in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Through its Global Cluster on Higher Education and Sustainable Development and other initiatives, the IAU continues to support universities worldwide in developing strategic, whole-institution approaches to sustainability.
