Report on Sustainability: The UB’s Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. 2018-2019

Abstract

The University of Barcelona is pleased to present our eleventh Report on Sustainability, which has until this year been called the Report on Social Responsibility. This report reflects our firm commitment to sustainable development and transparency. The preparation of this year’s report, much like all our activity at the university, has been severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has limited our ability to generate and obtain the information that is customarily included here. In the past several months, the world has been forced to address an unpredictable situation of unprecedented scope that has required (and will continue to require) enormous efforts from the whole of our society to tackle and limit the devastating effects of the current pandemic. As always, the University of Barcelona will do everything in its power to mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic on people and on society as a whole, while also giving special attention to our own university community. In the following pages, readers will find comprehensive data on the governance of the UB, our teaching and research activity, our social commitment, our economic situation and much more. An important innovation this year, which I would like to point out now, comes with our first efforts to identify the UB’s contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals that have been defined by the United Nations. We include this information in spite of the difficult circumstances of the past year in order to demonstrate our staunch commitment to the SDGs. Two clear examples of our sharp focus on sustainable development are our preparation of an action plan to achieve the SDGs and the creation of the interuniversity alliance CHARM-EU. This report aims to provide a complete picture of the sustained hard work and diligence of everyone at the University of Barcelona to create an institution that is increasingly responsible and committed to the major aims that humankind will have to address in the decade ahead...

The Report on sustainability includes the main actions carried out during the academic year (in this case 2018-2019) in relation to ethical commitment and social responsibility. The Report brings comprehensive data on the governance of the University of Barcelona, our teaching and research activity, our social commitment, our economic situation, and includes the University contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). This report aims to provide a complete picture of the sustained work and diligence of the University of Barcelona to create an institution that is increasingly responsible and committed to the environment.