Sydney University Business School commits to aligning teaching, research to SDGs

Sydney University Business School commits to aligning teaching, research to SDGs
08 / 05 / 2020
By Marwa Nassar - -

The Sydney University Business School announces commitment to align teaching and research to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on the back of national and global crises this year, including the Australian bushfires and the coronavirus pandemic.

The Business School has begun a comprehensive mapping of its teaching, research and operations against the UN SDGs.

This falls within the framework of its commitment to the UN’s Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME).

Professor Greg Whitwell, Business School Dean, committed to aligning all units of study, research and operations to the SDGs in the School’s new five-year strategy, called Business Not As Usual 2.0.

“Our purpose as a business school is wrapped up with the notion of responsible management, which is why we became a PRME signatory in 2016,” said Whitwell at the recent launch of the School’s second PRME Sharing Information on Progress Report.

“Business schools should be champions of the need to secure a sustainable and inclusive economy,”  Whitwell said.

“Business schools play a vital role in the preparation of our future leaders through management education, research, partnerships, and dialogue with business, civil society, and government. Business schools should also be champions of the need to secure a sustainable and inclusive economy,” Professor Whitwell concluded.

“This commitment is key in developing and equipping the next generation of business leaders with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively navigate the social inequity, climate and environmental challenges facing the world.”

Lead author of the report, Dr Anna Young-Ferris, said, “For too long the assumption underpinning the curriculum taught at business schools is that the fundamental responsibility of businesses is to maximize profits and to give primacy to shareholders.”

“The SDGs give us a platform through which we can acknowledge all stakeholders, and not just shareholders, and start to establish more balanced systems. The tertiary education sector has a significant role to play in bringing about this transformation.”

“This report demonstrates how much progress we have made but there’s more work to be done. The current pandemic shows we need to be teaching programs and asking research questions that examine our over-reliance on global production and consumption systems that also perpetuate inequality and the destruction of nature.”

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