The 2030 Agenda directly engages universities through SDG 4 (Quality Education) to "Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all." It also assigns a critical role to research and innovation (particularly in SDG 9), fields where universities play a leading role.
Beyond SDG 4 and SDG 9, the entirety of the 2030 Agenda calls upon universities and the academic community to play an essential and active role in its achievement, particularly across three strategic dimensions:
- Through the production, dissemination, and transfer of knowledge—that is, by fulfilling their core functions of teaching and research.
- As a hub for exchange, socialization, and social transformation, through university outreach and engagement with their socio-economic environment.
- To establish partnerships with businesses, public administrations, and civil society (NGOs, foundations, etc.), sharing common goals that contribute to the SDGs.
