University of Minnesota, in partnership with University of Buffalo, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK), IIT Bombay (IITB), and Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, a multicampus Indian university, is launching Sustainable GeoCommunities, a community-based program with the goal of solving problems that our global communities are facing today. Discussions are ongoing with other partners in the U.S. and India to continue expanding the reach of this program. The Sustainable GeoCommunities program will leverage the power of research to help local communities meet UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that try to create healthy, equitable, and prosperous conditions for people across the globe.
The Sustainable GeoCommunities program builds upon the understanding that basic problems affecting the daily lives of residents in a community are local in nature. Local scenarios related to geography, climate, natural resources, healthcare, educational institutions, employment opportunities, transportation, governance, wireless connectivity, and many other variables play a dominant role in determining quality of life.