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With the release of its second Sustainable Development Annual Report (2022/2023), A Sustainable Africa: Partnerships for Progress, Stellenbosch University (SU) proudly reflects on its contribution to both the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations (UN), with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and Agenda 2063 of the African Union (AU).
The report was compiled by the Sustainable Development Impact Hub (SDG/2063 Impact Hub), established late in 2021 to help SU become more systemically sustainable while contributing to the UN and AU’s agendas. It shows how the university has, within its five research areas – the natural environment, health and human security, social justice and development, human creativity and social innovation, and systems and technologies for the future – aligned with these agendas.
As a leading research-intensive university, SU’s Vision 2040 includes “advancing knowledge in service of society” and being a “proud African knowledge hub serving the continent through research, innovation and education”. “We are therefore committed to systemic sustainability, which includes people, places, economic prosperity, the environment, and responsible corporate governance,” says Professor Stan du Plessis, SU’s COO.
“Sustainable development is the underlying theme of both the UN and AU agendas, and SU is not only talking the talk – by contributing to research and policy-making on the continent and beyond – it is walking the walk at an institutional level with the successful implementation of various sustainability initiatives on all its campuses,” Du Plessis says. “Sustainable development is everyone’s responsibility and will only be possible through collaborative effort.”
SU’s ongoing endeavors to reduce its environmental impact – from the use of greywater for irrigation and three-bin waste recycling initiatives to the installation of PV systems – place it in a unique position to drive the sustainable development agenda nationally and throughout Africa.
- The Centralised Materials Recovery facility (MRF) on the Stellenbosch campus sorted and diverted more than 1 000 tonnes of waste away from landfill in 2023.
- With an annual diversion-away-from-landfill rate of 74%, SU is performing well above the 50% average reported by other universities.
- SU last year diverted and recycled more than 10.4 tonnes of e-waste.
The Policy Innovation Lab at SU’s School for Data Science and Computational Thinking is supporting the drafting of South Africa’s 2024 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) report that will be presented at the UN High-Level Political Forum in July in New York. SA is one of 44 countries presenting a report outlining their progress and challenges related to achieving the SDGs, says Professor Willem Fourie, who leads the Policy Innovation Lab.
Sustainability is woven into all aspects of teaching and learning at SU and in 2022, the University offered its first cross-cutting sustainability literacy course, the Future17 SDG Challenge, in collaboration with QS World Rankings and Exeter University in the UK.
Corina du Toit, Programme Manager: SDG/2063 Impact Hub and academic lead for the course, says: “The aim of the challenge, held annually, is to educate and equip students with the knowledge and skills to find innovative ways to turn sustainable development goals into reality.”
Of SU’s global stature in the sustainability sphere, Professor Hester Klopper, SU’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Strategy, Global and Corporate Affairs, says: “We set a high value on networks and opportunities where the university can engage with other stakeholders on research that has a local and global impact. As institutions of higher education have a pivotal role to play in contributing to SA attaining its SDGs.”
Through the Policy Innovation Lab, SU has also recently joined one of the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) and the Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities’ three new Africa-Europe Clusters of Research Excellence. These were established in response to the launch last year of the AU-EU Innovation Agenda for achieving the AU’s Agenda 2063. Each cluster addresses a key societal challenge and SU is part of the new cluster that focuses on the politics of sustainable development.
“By pursuing global sustainability through research for impact, teaching, sustainable campus practices and community engagement, SU is well placed to take a leading role in the promotion of sustainable development in Africa,” Klopper concludes.
This post and content is sponsored, written and produced by Stellenbosch University.
