The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) are the product of decades of work by the global organisation regarding roadmaps to surmount the myriad of challenges facing our generation, which if not tackled will spell doom and gloom for future generations. The UN terms the SDGs as a global call to action and “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all”. Articulated into 17 goals, 169 targets and 6124 actions, the lodestar outlines aspirations and actions to tackle hunger, poverty, health, clean energy, climate action, inequality, peace and justice. The UN SDGs are an outline humanity’s war to save itself and all of us individually and collectively must be part of the battle. As knowledge producers, universities are considered the vanguard when it comes to empowering people to change the way they think towards a sustainable future. They provide knowledge, skills, and motivation for younger ones to appreciate the multi-faceted challenges facing us today and how they threaten their future. By this, tomorrow’s leaders are mobilised to confront today’s challenges. Through research by their faculty, students and staff, universities support governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other stakeholders to understand and implement the different SDGs. On their own and by prompting from funding, ranking, and other organisations, universities have been galvanised to integrate SDGs into various aspects of their teaching, research, outreach, and engagement. While some have fashioned out new curricula, introduced new degrees at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, others have united research programmes aimed at supporting the SDGs. As a first step, the Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University (PSAU) has started the process of SDG education by integrating its teaching across different programmes. Concomitant with this, through its first year introductory course on engineering design, the college of engineering initiated a carefully mentored programme through which students were introduced to the SDGs and guided towards fashioning out engineering solutions to the different challenges that the SDGs aim to address. Consequently, throughout the semester, working in groups of four to six, students brainstormed on the SDGs, identified problems that they could solve with the caveat that their solutions must produce tangible engineering outcomes, devices, or technologies addressing at least one SDG. Aptly themed “the role of engineering in attaining the UN SDGs,” the semester long mentoring produced ten engineering outcomes that addressed 13 of the 17 SDGs. These outcomes ranged from an electronic trash monitoring and disposal system to prevent health hazards posed by rotting and unattended waste to other sensor-based applications in baby monitoring, poultry farming, responsible consumption of water and electricity to solutions addressing local issues such as provision of conducive and ergonomic classroom equipment, portable emergency solar-powered flashlights, and a technology to enhance construction site safety. In another outcome with potentially wider applications, a group of students focused on addressing financial and health inequality faced by the mobility-impaired and disabled people by proposing an add-on that converts a manual wheelchair into a solar powered one within two minutes. It is noteworthy that all the students are freshmen just commencing their engineering studies. The enumerated outcomes were showcased as poster and physical outcome presentations during a well-attended SDG Week at the newly erected SDG Ville in the university’s main campus. The publicity before the event, its carnival nature, and viability and excitement generated by of outcomes of the students’ projects provided the much needed awareness regarding the SDGs and engineers’ roles in their attainments. This document provides a non-technical overview of the project outcomes as well as photos from the event, the first of periodic engagements by the university towards a better, safer, and sustainable future for us all.
Global Leadership in Sustainability
PSAU's commitment to sustainability extends to its global engagement, as demonstrated by two flagship initiatives:
Sponsorship of the Times Higher Education (THE) Global Sustainable Development Congress (in Thuwal, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (2023) and in Bangkok, Thailand (2024))
As a sponsor of the THE Global Sustainable Development Congress, PSAU has facilitated knowledge exchange on a global scale, bringing together policymakers, academics, and industry leaders. Through these events:
• PSAU has showcased its research and policy initiatives, contributing to global SDG discourse.
• Facilitated discussions on key challenges like climate resilience, education equity, and sustainable energy, helping shape actionable strategies for governments and NGOs.
Appointment as a Founding Partner of the UNEP-THE International Green Learning and Skills Accelerator
PSAU’s collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and THE underscores its leadership in promoting sustainability education and skill development:
• PSAU has played a central role in designing programs that align with SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 13 (Climate Action), focusing on green skills for the future workforce.
• Supported capacity-building initiatives that enable governments and NGOs to integrate sustainability into national education systems, ensuring long-term impact.
As a student-centric and sustainability-focused institution, PSAU is excited to be part of this great initiative that will impact the future skills that we teach at universities all over the world. It is important that the future generation is ready to continue the fight towards a sustainable, equitable, just, and cleaner world for future generations beyond the current UN SDGs.
PSAU will partner with THE, UNEP, and other institutions to provide leadership towards research, curriculum enhancement, and best practices to deepen SDG education across the higher education landscape worldwide.
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Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University has firmly positioned itself as a leader in SDG policy development, not only through national and regional engagements but also by fostering global partnerships and thought leadership. Its sponsorship of the THE Global Sustainable Development Congress and role as a Founding Partner of the UNEP-THE International Green Learning and Skills Accelerator reinforce its commitment to shaping a sustainable future. PSAU's efforts exemplify its dedication to identifying challenges, creating innovative solutions, and driving impactful actions that resonate both locally and globally.
