Uniting the University around the UN SDGs - a UK case study

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) across the globe are increasingly engaging with the United Nations’ 2030 agenda expressed through the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that were agreed in September 2015. During the 2017/18 academic year, it became apparent to senior leaders of De Montfort University (DMU), United Kingdom, that the institution had much to offer towards the progress of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, and also much to gain from focusing on these. This paper offers an account of how this university has been strengthening its commitment to Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in particular over the past year, culminating in the UN SDGs having become the focus of the university’s new strategic plan for 2018-2023, announced in July 2018. The paper presents areas of existing good ESD practice at DMU drawing upon the university’s diverse student and staff body and its inclusive and collaborative ethos; this is formalized in the university’s vision and current strategic framework, revealing particular strengths in learning and civic contribution via real-world experiences. The paper adds to the literature on the assessment of sustainability activities of HEIs and factors affecting the take-up of sustainability as a priority in HEIs. It reveals the impact of visionary leadership by the university’s Vice-Chancellor and top down management, when merging with existing bottom-up activities of staff engaged at grassroots level, and documents areas of successful practice that may have value in similar institutions.