ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is a set of criteria used to evaluate an organization's sustainability and societal impact, focusing more on the internal practices and policies of a specific organization. HEIs will benefit from an ESG approach as the three areas that have been identified are key areas for HEI who 'uniquely placed to lead the cross-sectoral implementation of the SDGs and advance the 2030 agenda' (El-Jardali, F., Ataya, N. & Fadlallah, 2018).
The Council Recommendation on learning for the green transition and sustainable development (2022) highlights the importance of integrating environmental and climate considerations into the higher education sector by supporting HEI in designing, monitoring and evaluating their sustainability strategies and/or embedding sustainability in existing processes and measures.
The Council Conclusions on the European Universities initiative (2021) defends that HEIs should be supported and encouraged to reach out to under-represented groups and keep with greater social diversity 'in their efforts to ensure the inclusion and success of their students, academics, researchers and staff, and to promote equal opportunities, irrespective of gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, social and economic background, health, disability, age, sexual orientation, migrant background and geographical location'.
The Council Conclusions on the European Universities initiative (2021) also states that the 'HEIs should ensure that students, academics, researchers and staff participate in their governance, as full members and constructive partners of the higher education community (...) and be involved in decision-making mechanisms, including concerning curricula, as an aspect of fundamental academic values, a sign of democracy and a culture of dialogue in HEIs'.
SHIFT project provides a way for HEIs to assess and track their progress in addressing ESG factors as well as supporting the implementation of new strategies and practices. It allows HEIs to benchmark their performance against other institutions, identify areas for improvement, and develop strategies to enhance their ESG scores and contribution to SDGs.
It also provides transparency and accountability, as HEIs can demonstrate their commitment to ESG to stakeholders such as students, alumni, investors, and the wider community. SHIFT provides a comprehensive and systematic approach to ESG measurement, reporting, training and certification, and its platform can also help to raise awareness about the importance of ESG considerations in higher education and drive greater action on these issues. Overall, the development of the ESG Impact Index Platform and complementary training tools is a crucial step towards promoting sustainable and responsible practices in higher education.
The aim of the project is to design and implement a strong international approach to Higher Education Institutions (HEI)' ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) dimensions, increasing the European HEIs' capacity to foster strategies, policies, practices and initiatives that ultimately positioning them as drivers of change towards the Agenda 2030 goals, leading the implementation of the European Green Deal & the New European Bauhaus Initiative. SHIFT also aims to produce results that are complementary to the HEInnovate tool further contributing to the European Higher Education Area on the topic of sustainability.
This will be made by developing and testing the ESG Impact Index (platform), which is a comprehensive tool for higher education institutions to implement and monitor their environmental, social, and governance standards and practices. The ESG Impact Index will measure the university's impact on the environment and its natural resources, assess the governance practices and policies related to decision-making and responsible actions, and evaluate the university's social impact in terms of community engagement and diversity management.
This objective will be achieved by the development of the asynchronous eLearning training (through a mini-learning approach) and the respective certification, being complemented by the online University ESG Awareness serious game for a wider audience in the HEI ecosystem.
This objective will be achieved by the project activities that involve external participants, with key emphasis on the foundation and moderation of an online community of practice on the topic of ESGs in HE and the development of a sustainability strategy based on the new ESG Maturity service. The establishment and strengthening of the networks of HEI (committed to ESG/SDG) will also be achieved through the development of the Stakeholders' Engagement Strategy and the implementation of the project communication and promotion plan.
All the objectives identified above and strongly correlated to the selected priorities as they actively contribute to the support of the digital and green transition in the HE sector, and strongly target the fight against climate change while embedding a lens of inclusion and diversity throughout.
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