Goals and Objectives
Promoted by CRUI - The Conference of Italian University Rectors - since July 2016, the Italian University Network for Sustainable Development (RUS) mark the first experience of information sharing and coordination among all Italian Universities committed to the topic of environmental sustainability and social responsibility.
The main goal of RUS is to spread the culture of sustainability, both within and outside Universities, by sharing skills and experiences. The aim is to increase the positive impact in terms of environmental, ethical, social and economic actions, which are currently implemented by each university, in order to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs and to strengthen the value of the Italian experience on an International level.
Goals
- Harmonizing institutional activities and improving the management of the members environmental and social aspects, through a continuous monitoring of the state of sustainability within Universities and the definition of a shared framework with appropriate metrics to keep track of the environmental, social and economic characteristics of the Universities and their related benchmarking activity.
- Creating a community able to develop / spread / transfer / adapt national and International best practises and to adequately represent the members and the RUS at a national and International level, with particular attention to sustainability in International rankings and the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.
- Promoting projects within the network, which have already been successfully tested by one or more of the adhering groups, and developing joint initiatives that are relevant to new projects, in areas such as knowledge and skills transmission, education and university management, with a focus on learning and on a multistakeholder/multidisciplinary blend.
- Developing a multidisciplinary approach in university programs, with the purpose of contributing in the growth of the sustainable development culture and in guiding the students towards a positive lifestyle.
- Training and updating the staff of Italian universities (professors, technical-administrators, collaborators and linguistic experts) on the topics of sustainable development, including teachers and professors from different levels of education, if necessary.
- Developing awareness and promotion campaigns at local, national and international level, to stimulate stakeholder engagement.
- Increasing collaboration with public institutions as well as with public and private businesses, in order to join forces and achieve RUS’ goals regarding the Third Mission of the University.
- Preparation of documents and position papers on matters within its competence, when requested by institutional subjects.