The United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a universal call to action to achieve a sustainable future and promote equality, human rights, and justice for all by 2030. The seventeen interlinked goals are a blueprint for building a better world, and universities are uniquely positioned for the challenge.
IUPUI’s preeminence in addressing the SDGs is reflected in the TIMES Higher Education Impact Rankings, where we are listed in the top ten of US universities and in the top 10% in the world. Our “whole of school” approach positions the goals at the very cornerstone of our university’s commitment to sustainability. From university operations, including classrooms and labs, as well as the campus grounds themselves, to office procedures and practices, faculty teaching, research and publication, study abroad programs, community engagement, international partnerships, and more, the SDGs are center stage in our efforts to make the world a better place.
We recognize the outstanding work of IUPUI faculty, staff and students by awarding units an SDG badge that alerts website visitors to that unit’s commitment to sustainable development.
The IUPUI Study Abroad office is committed to the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. International study provides an opportunity to challenge our thinking and build a sense of responsibility to the larger world. We recognize the environmental cost associated with travel and work to reduce the negative environmental impacts. See:
The IUPUI Event and Tourism Institute (ETI), part of the IUPUI School of Health and Human Sciences, is fully committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. A large area of focus for ETI is sustainable travel – there have been research projects focusing on sustainable travel for Generation Y and Z, tourism and sustainable development in the US, effects of tourism on climate change and natural resources, and tourism’s positive impact after climate disasters. Recently, ETI has also redesigned a course on Ecotourism. Members of ETI have also partnered with the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) to develop sustainable travel educational programs for corporate travelers and industry suppliers. A second area of focus for ETI is community-based travel. ETI’s 2023 Global Impact Research Grant (GIRG) project investigates the connection between Community-Based Travel (CBT) and the SDGs. Similarly, ETI is studying gender equality concerns within the travel industry, a significant issue within the industry. The findings will help influence corporate travel policies and procedures. Notably, ETI has interest in addressing the issues of social justice. Human trafficking is another concern in the travel industry and ETI is addressing this through projects, webinars, and awareness initiatives. The incorporation of service into this research benefits students, researchers, as well as the community.
Advocacy and Promotion Bao, V. & Liu-Lastres, B.(2022). "Gen Y&Z’s sustainable travel behaviors." Censtates and Western TTRA Joint-Conference, Chicago, Illinois.
Weaver, K. & Liu-Lastres, B. (2022). "Exploring the motivations and challenges for sustainability initiatives at a destination level: Practical implications for destination marketing and management organizations." Censtates and Western TTRA Joint-Conference, Chicago, Illinois.
Weaver, K. & Liu-Lastres, B. (2022). "Exploring DMOs’ Sustainable Planning in the United States." International Conference of Tourism and Travel Research Association, Victoria, Canada.
Since its establishment in 1879, the Indiana University School of Dentistry (IUSD) has pioneered oral and public health education, contributing to significant public health breakthroughs such as the invention of the first fluoride toothpaste and research in dental informatics. In order to meet the SDGs, IUSD’s Office for Global Engagement is actively involved in the pursuit of global development through the creation of multidisciplinary opportunities in partnership with global communities. From teaching, research, service programs, and projects, our efforts to promote oral health address SDGs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 16, and 17.
Examples of our efforts include: SDG 6: Ensure availability, and sustainable management, of water and sanitation for all. IUSD is actively engaged in addressing this sustainable development goal through various research and advancement initiatives. In this area, some of our projects are: 1. Ph.D. dissertation on water filtration systems, fluoride in water for caries prevention, and water insecurity in the US and Saudi Arabia. 2. Study on exposure to toxicants in water and salt in Mexico. This project, which is NIH funded, will include data on water availability, sanitation, and insecurity. 3. NIH award to study the effect of environmental toxicants on bone health in women in Mexico. The study will also include issues of sanitation, including toxicants in water.
The IUPUI Japanese Studies Program focuses on peace projects such as atomic bomb poster exhibitions, A-bomb survivors' testimonies, conferences, lectures, workshops, and related public events (SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). The Green Legacy Hiroshima project was established in Japan to spread the seeds of Hiroshima's A-Bomb survivor trees worldwide. IUPUI received a ginkgo sapling from Hiroshima via the One Sunny Day Initiative in Spring 2021. Along with raising this sapling at the Taylor Courtyard on the campus, IUPUI has also received 20 A-bomb survivor ginkgo seeds from the Green Legacy Hiroshima in March 2023—now in the IUPUI Greenhouse under the care of Ms. Dawn Bauman— which will eventually be shared with community partners such as schools, colleges, and parks.
EALC-E231 Japan: The Living Tradition is a course that introduces contemporary Japanese society and culture to IUPUI students. To understand the U.S. – Japan relationship, students explore the Pacific War (SDG 16) and Japanese Internment (SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities). They also explore the building of peace and organize the Garden for Peace event (SDG 15: Life of Land). In EALC-E384 East Asian Nationalism and Cultural Identity, students participate in special lectures such as A-bomb Survivor’s Testimony, A-bomb Poster Exhibition, and Peace lectures. Each student creates a “Peace Declaration’ in drawings, paintings, sculptures, poems, music, and short videos. At the end of the semester, they organize a peace event and present their “Peace Declaration”. A new course under development includes a study abroad component called “Sustaining World Peace through Community Engagement in Japan.” This program will allow students to experience Japanese peacebuilding activities, learn the meaning of peace in the context of Japanese culture and society, and make a lasting contribution to peacebuilding.
