Aligning higher education with the United Nations SDGs

NEP 2020 and SDGs:

1. SDGs are a matter of urgency that requires actions by all countries, both developed and developing, to end poverty and other socio-economic and environmental problems.
2. It requires aligning of strategies that will improve the standard of life and education, reduce inequality, and harness economic growth.
3. The SDG Report 2023 has flagged slow progress in the achievement of the set targets and expects the similar trend due to prolonged effects of COVID-19, impacts of the climate crisis, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and a weak global economy. 
4. SDG4 pertains to access to quality education, which acts as a prerequisite for the achievement of other goals. 
5. the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 was India’s accelerated efforts to ensure the achievement of SDGs for equitable and inclusive education.
6. Though NEP 2020 calls for changes at all levels of education, priority should be given to higher education as it leads to
   1. Accelerates social mobility
   2. Empowers people through creativity and critical thinking,
   3. Grants employment skills.

7. According to OECD data: People with a higher education degree are more employable and earn an average of 54% more than those who only have completed senior secondary education. 
8. Thus, university-inclusive education can:
   1. Protects people against poverty (SDG1)
   2. Prevents them from hunger (SDG2)
   3. Supports them for good health and well-being (SDG3)
   4. Promotes gender equality (SDG5)
   5. Provides them decent work, which in turn drives economic growth (SDG 8)
   6. Reduces inequalities (SDG10).

Areas requiring improvement:

1. Improving research-teaching nexus in universities
   1. This can enable students to become direct benefactors of the knowledge generated from research.
2. Need for Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary systems of education
   1. This will produce multitalented people who can pursue research
   2. They can also find innovative solutions to global challenges such as
      1. affordable and clean energy (SDG7)
      2. sustainable cities and communities (SDG11)
      3. climate change and global warming (SDG13)
      4. studying their impact on an economy and the earth.
3. Development of innovative solutions and start-ups (SDG 9) in collaboration with private companies.
4. Introduction of Value-Based Education (VBE) which shall help citizens to become responsible towards self, society, and the planet and help our nation achieve “Life on Land” (SDG15).
5. Besides ranking universities according to the achievement of SDGs, efforts have to be made to educate and orient stakeholders of higher education towards SDG agenda.
6. Creating a culture in universities that focuses on
   1. Community health
   2. Energy-saving measures
   3. Efficient resource allocation
   4. Waste reduction
   5. Development of local skills
   6. Sharing of services, infrastructure, and facilities with other universities or external partners