Leave no one behind…

“A successful sustainable development agenda requires partnerships between governments, the private sector and civil society. These inclusive partnerships built upon principles and values, a shared vision, and shared goals that place people and the planet at the center, are needed at the global, regional, national and local level.”

- United Nations

ENGAGING WITH GLOBAL FRAMEWORKS

The Sustainable Development Solutions Network

In 2012, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) was launched and quickly grew and founded its global networks program; a membership-based alliance of top-tier knowledge-generating institutions focused on sustainable development, organized in national and regional clusters. In 2016, the SDSN established the SDG Academy which creates and curates free, open educational resources on sustainable development and offers them as a global public good. As of 2022, SDSN has over 1,600 members (including the UMN) in 47 networks across 137 countries.

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Formally launched in Fall 2016, the Aurora Universities Network is a network platform for European university leaders, administrators, academics, and students to learn from and with each other. While the UMN is not an official member of the network, due to our US location, our administrators and faculty members have been informally engaged in collaboration with the network over the last several years – particularly in relation to their sustainability and SDG focused work.

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IMPLEMENTING ON THE LOCAL LEVEL

Mapping the SDGs

Mapping the Sustainable Development Goals provides a tool that allows us to see an overview of “who is doing what and where” while strengthening synergies and improving coordination in support of the goals. While the United Nations has taken on this effort across international organizations, NGOs and other institutions based in Geneva–at the University several mapping projects have been undertaken at local/community scale with more planned for the future.

SDG Experts Database SDG Course List UMD Sustainability Portal

The Local2030 initiative brings together leaders from national, regional, and local governments, the United Nations, private sector, civil society, philanthropy and academia to collaboratively develop and implement solutions that advance the SDGs at the local level. The UMN SDG Initiative has partnered with this effort in a variety of ways including hosting a Global to local SDG webinar, working closely with Global Minnesota and other statewide collaborators, and working with the Brookings Institute and UN Foundation on their local leadership for SDGs project.

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This conversation circle seeks to connect stakeholders, identify opportunities, and document outcomes and impact related to transdisciplinary water work across the University system that fits within the SDGs. A particular focus will be placed on work that connects SDG water metrics to the UMN Strategic Plan and/or the Minnesota State Water Plan. Outcomes from this water circle could include data/metrics tracking tools, activity reports, and collaborative research opportunities.

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The SDG Initiative Webinar series provides a free, interactive opportunity to highlight and share the work of UMN SDG related research, outreach and education. In 2020, the webinar series focused on issues tied to inequality with a focus on Minnesota and included discussions on food insecurity, inequality in our communities, sustainable housing and access to clean water. In 2021, the focus shifted to highlighting existing research and outreach activities that are helping to lead to a more sustainable future.

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Public Engagement Footprint

In 2020, University of Minnesota Office for Public Engagement released an interactive system that helps communicate the University’s public impact. The interactive webpage uses a combination of ArcGIS Survey123 and ArcGIS Online and features a map with various filters, including the SDGs, that allows users to click for additional information on UMN outreach and engagement efforts.

Explore the Footprint

Partnerships & Outreach

Leave no one behind…

ENGAGING WITH GLOBAL FRAMEWORKS

IMPLEMENTING ON THE LOCAL LEVEL

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