Over 20 private universities, HEIs sign pact to strengthen India’s net zero commitment

NEW DELHI: Over 20 Indian private universities and higher educational institutions (HEIs) have pledged for "better and improved" actions to achieve UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in their institutions and cities to strengthen India's net zero commitment. The institutions signed a "Goa Declaration" at the conclusion of the three-day PACT2030 conclave, held in Goa last week.

As per the declaration, the universities called for urgent action to further SDG progress from local to global level. "We, the representatives of higher educational institutions in India, participating in the PACT2030 Conclave held in Goa, India, from 10-12 March 2022, express our consent to be the founding members of PACT2030, and together as a call for urgent action to further SDG progress from local to a global level, declare the following agenda to guide the policies, plans, and operations of our institutions in creating World-Class Sustainable Universities, Sustainable India, and a Sustainable World," the declaration read.

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Among the signatories of the declaration are several prominent universities including OP Jindal Global University, Alliance University, IIHMR University, Chandigarh University, Chitkara University, World University of Design, and NIMS University, among others.

The PACT2030 (Pledge, Act, Change & Transform), a carbon-neutral conclave, was organised by QS I-GAUGE, a renowned agency for ranking of Indian educational institutions, from the UK based QS Quacquarelli Symonds Group. QS I-GAUGE will be the core behind the conclave every year which will be co-hosted by academic institutions.

The "Goa Declaration" is the first of its kind academic declaration towards achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals. The conclave was co-hosted by the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), Uttarakhand, and Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education (Deemed to be University), Tamil Nadu.

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"The top universities and luminaries of Indian higher education worked towards building consensus and sharing best practices, and perspectives among the delegates of the conclave to lay down a set of principles and promises to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs), leading to the formation of the 'Goa Declaration'," said Ashwin Fernandes, director for QS I-GAUGE.

"Sustainable Development Goals 2030, originally envisioned by the United Nations (UN), was the foundation for the guidelines that are set in the Goa Declaration Document," he added.

Vice chairman of the Indian Red Cross Society and vice president of Bharatiya Janata Party Avinash Rai Khanna, who was the guest of honour on the occasion, addressed the gathering and laid down a five-point agenda for the higher education institutions.

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"Leadership, Research, Teaching and Learning, Campus Operations, and Quality of Service are the most important aspects that every institution must emphasise upon to make a larger contribution to the SDG Agenda," he said. Anil Prakash Joshi, Founder, Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organization (HESCO), delivered the first keynote address of the conclave and said, "Like GDP (Gross Domestic Product), GEP (Gross Environment Product) must be initiated and practised by the government to ensure the wellbeing of the country in an environmental perspective."