Zhejiang University: Joint Statement of Global University Leaders on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. Entering into the new decade, the sustainability of our planet remains severely challenged by numerous threats, ranging from natural disasters, climate change, pandemics, to inequality and unemployment, etc.
With less than 10 years left to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – which are at the heart of the 2030 Agenda – it is more important than ever for the global community to mobilise for collective resolve and accelerated action. With their unique advantages in generating knowledge, uniting stakeholders and enabling transformation, leading universities around the world should play an active and essential role in forging a sustainable future through dialogue, solidarity and collaboration.
On the occasion of the Virtual Forum on the Role of Universities in the 2030 Agenda held March 24, 2021, we as university leaders across different continents wish toreaffirm our commitment to the 2030 Agenda. We commit to the following elements of a shared vision:
• Imbedding sustainability across our activities, operations, monitoring and evaluation. Through unwavering examples, we will foster and promote sustainable development on and off campus.
• Enhancing competencies in SDGs by empowering our students, faculty and staff with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to understand and address the SDGs.
• Supporting a wider spectrum of research work needed to address global challenges, including blue-sky discovery and transdisciplinary research, and to better inform policy-making.
• Fostering innovative solutions for sustainable development by engaging multiple stakeholders, including government, civil society and the private sector.
• Leveraging technology and upholding open science where appropriate to facilitate sustainable partnerships and context-specific, problem-solving collaborations across borders.