The conference ‘Building a sustainable development brand’ (Budowanie marki zrównoważonego rozwoju – Polish name) organised by the Gdansk University of Technology is behind us. On 14 October 2024, during the panel ‘Presentations of good practices of universities in the field of SDGs’, one of the speakers was Barbara Pawlowska, PhD, DSc, Professor at the University of Gdansk.
The two-day event (14-15.10.2024) was addressed to university employees, especially those actively involved in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the research and analysis of rankings in this area.
The conference was opened by Prof. Dariusz Mikielewicz, PG Vice-Rector for Science, and Tomasz Lasek, an employee of the PG Rector’s Office, who chaired the entire event.
One of the main items on the agenda of the event was a presentation of good practices of universities in the implementation and realisation of sustainable development activities. It was attended by representatives of the Gdansk University of Technology, the Technical University of Lodz, the University of Gdansk, the University of Warsaw and the Adam Mikiewicz University in Poznan.
Barbara Pawłowska, PhD, DSc, Prof.UG, a researcher at the Department of Transport Economics of the Faculty of Economics of the UG, presented three examples of good practice in the area of sustainable development. The first of these was the Green University of Gdansk competition, in which 159 UG students and employees were involved in creating projects to work towards the ecological and social transformation of the campus. The five sustainable projects selected in the vote are already being implemented. Their total budget is more than PLN 80 000. The rules competition was linked to the Academic Citizens’ Budget. The second edition is planned for 2025.
As the second practice, a representative of the University of Gdańsk presented the Sustainable Development Day at UG. This cyclical event, organised as part of the European Sustainable Development Week, is mainly aimed at primary and secondary school students in the Pomeranian region. Every year, the University of Gdansk, in cooperation with academics from various scientific disciplines and students, prepares a rich programme consisting of mini-lectures and workshops designed to interest young people in topics such as zero waste, reducing emissions, healthy food, fighting consumerism, saving water or renewable energy.
“This year we are organising the sixth edition of the event under the motto ‘I respect resources – I don’t throw them away!’,” – says Barbara Pawłowska “It is part of the mission of the European Sustainable Development Week, which is to promote and support the idea of sustainable development in all areas of life and economic activity. The aim of our event is primarily to raise awareness and strengthen pro-environmental attitudes among young people.”
As a final example of good practice, a professor from the University of Gdańsk presented a diagnosis of the situation of women and the implementation of the ‘Gender Equality Implementation Plan at the University of Gdańsk. Equality measures for 2022-2023’. The plan aims to implement five objectives that are part of Goal 3 of the UG strategy: openness, social responsibility and university engagement. The objectives of the UG Gender Equality Plan focus on strengthening awareness of the importance of gender equality in the academic community, ensuring gender balance in decision-making and recruitment processes and academic career development, integrating a gender perspective into research and teaching, and introducing measures to support work-life balance.
As emphasised by Barbara Pawłowska these are not all the activities and initiatives undertaken in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals. The consistent and extensive implementation of activities related to the SDGs at the University of Gdańsk is a fact. This is evidenced, among other things, by its leading position among Polish universities in THE Impact Ranking 2024, which assesses the commitment of higher education institutions to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The University of Gdansk not only strengthened its ranking in the latest ranking, but was also ranked highest in Poland in terms of the implementation of Goal 5 Gender Equality (16th in the world).