The wicked problem of measuring real-world research impact: Using sustainable development goals (SDGs) and targets in academia

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Geoffrey R. Chapman ◽  
Ashley Cully ◽  
Jennifer Kosiol ◽  
Stephanie A. Macht ◽  
Ross L. Chapman ◽  
...  

Abstract This paper proposes that the United Nation's sustainable development goals (SDGs) and associated targets form an effective framework for determining real-world research impact. Existing bibliometrics that assess the quality of academic work are usually quantitative and self-referential, reducing the focus on real-world issues. The same measurements are often adopted by funding bodies, pressuring researchers to increase compliance, and further reducing integrity and real-world impact. A series of world cafés were conducted, collecting data on how researchers, their institutions, and network organisations can contribute to, and measure research aligned with the SDGs and targets. The results showed that participants were generally positive towards using the SDGs and targets to measure impact and quality of academic research. Suggestions to assist greater adoption of the SDGs and targets as a measure of impact included: aligning governmental and institutional funding; changing key performance indicators; increasing cross-disciplinary work; aligning mission/vision statements; and legitimising SDG-focused projects at conferences.

2021 ◽  
pp. 183933492110526
Author(s):  
Al Rosenbloom

This article is a commentary on how marketing scholarship can be more relevant as it tackles the human development challenges presented by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The commentary argues that as businesses are transforming themselves into purpose-driven organizations, marketing needs to be a part of that transformation. SDG 1 No Poverty and SDG 12 Sustainable Consumption and Production are discussed within the article. The commentary also tackles the institutional barriers that work against path-breaking SDG marketing scholarship: normative promotion and publication expectations along with the practitioner-academic research divide. Without realigning the incentives that reward original, boundary-spanning SDG marketing scholarship, the marketing discipline will be stuck in a cycle of rewarding one behavior while hoping for another.


2021 ◽  
Vol 295 ◽  
pp. 05003
Author(s):  
Konstantin Maltsev ◽  
Larisa Binkovskaya ◽  
Anni Maltseva

The relevance of linking the concept of sustainable development and the security discourse reveals the possibility of believing that education is a prerequisite for ensuring that “sustainable development” goals become a reality. The university has a twofold task: first, to produce knowledge that meets the demands of our time, i.e. technical knowledge, and second, to form human capital, to train specialists capable of the practical application of instrumental knowledge. The initial orientation of the concept of “sustainable development” towards a global perspective: the representation of reality in an economic paradigm, i.e., totally determined by the “logic of capital”, “monocausal economic logic”, determines the criteria by which the quality of human capital, its price, and efficiency of production of a standardized product are evaluated, the production of which is undertaken by the university-corporation that has replaced the classical “university of reason”, whose ontic foundations - the “Hegelian science”, the romantic “education of humanity” - are no longer valid in what is called modernity. The article demonstrates how modernity, constituted concerning a certain self-representation of the New European subject and presented in the liberal economic paradigm, predetermines both the goal-setting in determined by its representation of the development and the content and methods of the reform of the university. It is concluded that “sustainable development”, “security” and “university-corporation” are essentially connected with the representation of reality in the liberal version of the economic paradigm.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
José Miguel Rodríguez-Antón

No one has the slightest doubt about the enormous potential that the African continent has as a tourist destination. The diversity of cultures, the great biodiversity that it possesses, the multiple artistic manifestations that it offers and the beauty of the seas that surround it are key pieces in continuing to promote its capacity as a tourist attraction, which is approximately 60 million tourists per year who generate seven percent of exports and employment. However, in order for Africa to take off, it is necessary that a number of conditions related to security, health, education, eradication of poverty, reduction of inequalities, peace and justice and quality of its waters, among others, are intimately related to the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the 2030 Agenda. In this context, we maintain that the implementation of the Circular Economy in Africa will be a key tool in this process of improving the sustainability of this continent in its three aspects, economic, social and environmental, and raising its level of tourism competitiveness.


2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 300
Author(s):  
Loh Su Ling ◽  
Vincent Pang ◽  
Denis Lajium

Two important features in Science Technology Engineering Mathematics (STEM) education are integration and solving real world problems.  Despite the efforts to promote STEM education awareness and interest among students and teachers, documented studies on how to explicitly integrate the existing STEM subjects curriculum standards in solving real world problems are limited. This paper describes the planning of after-school STEM education program focusing on relevant global issues related to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) that integrates the existing curriculum standards of three STEM subject in the lower secondary level. The data collection is mainly through document analysis of the three individual STEM subjects’ standard documents and the planned curriculum map for the school, along with the document on ‘Education for Sustainable Development Goals Learning Objectives’.  Four possible design challenges were formulated based on the themes in SDG incorporating selected standards from the three STEM subjects as well as addition of a few new related concepts and skills.  The description offers a way to assist educators in planning similar STEM education lesson or programmes or activities through integration of the existing individual STEM disciplines curriculum standards for different level and context relevant to the students.   Keywords: Contextual problem solving, integration, standard-based, STEM education, Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Cite as: Loh, S. L., Pang, V., & Lajium, D. (2019). The planning of integrated STEM education based on standards and contextual issues of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Journal of Nusantara Studies, 4(1), 300-315. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol4iss1pp300-315


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Fadhil Md. Din ◽  
Santhana Krishnan ◽  
Din Yu-You Li ◽  
Yu Qin

The renewable energy industry is instrumental to the achievement of all of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Given the urgency and scale at which renewables must be deployed to meet the world’s sustainable development and climate goals, it is critical that the industry understand its potential impact on all of the SDGs [McCollum et al., 2019]. This mini revision of energy and its relationship with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is mainly towards the agenda of Decarbonize by Mid-Century, Roadmap to 2050, as the aspiration of the “The World in 2050” (TWI 2050), which transformational of six exemplary to achieve SDGs in long-term period [Stanford et al., 2017]. The Roadmap 2050 dreams for six pillars, which are (1) Zero-Carbon electricity, (2) Electrification of end users, (3) Green Synthetic Fuels, (4) Smart Power Grids, (5) Material Efficiency, and (6) Sustainable Land-use. This pillar is only emphasizing the most intensified sectors that could threaten future society, which are Power, Industry, Transportation and Buildings [Khanna et al., 2019]. However, this update only describes the most related topic on Energy (or Power) as the subject matter. Currently, the recent attention of the common energy sector is to promote the Energy Efficiency Index (EEI), minimizing the coal-fuel or fossil-fuel burning system in energy and transportation sectors, and implementing the Renewable Energy initiatives [Anderson et al., 2018]. SDGs and all impose materials (indicator, measurement, impact and outcome) is not only strategize to make further improvement in life and planet, but beyond the prosperity of humanity in the future with the emphasize of “No One Left Behind”. Energy-research based is the contemporary engagement with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), industry-driven, community translational project and government policy. The aims of this interesting topic are concurrent with the ASEAN Renewable and Energy Roadmap under the Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) for the agenda 2030. Therefore, the initiative by “The Hitachi Global Foundation” is recruiting more youth program in the assessment of “promoting of academic research, science and technology” since 2015 for the purpose of pioneering research in society [Hitachi report, 2019]. One of the important enabling sustainability activity is “Energy, Environment” as the contribution to the international community and provide solution to the various issues and challenges. Any research related to the energy will bring back the concepts of SDGs, which combining the 5Ps (Prosperity, People, Partnership, Peace and Planet). Numbers of researchers participating the utmost inspiring “research and empowerment of society” program is being selected based on scientific knowledge, creativity and contribution to the publics. One of the global outcome is a similar targeted by “Roadmap to 2050”, with the clause supporting the RD activities that should aims for continuous process of decarbonisation society and lock-in the solution in long run. Thus, as one of the influential contribution in the roadmap and TWI 2050, The Global Hitachi Foundation is a one step ahead to engage more researchers in the SDGs implementation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 163
Author(s):  
Sindy Yulia Putri

<p><em>In 2018, the quality of Indonesian human resources was ranked 87 out of 157 countries. The good growth of Indonesian human resources, of course, starts from the womb or prenatal period, under five years of age, children, adolescents, to working productive ages. This study chose the topic of stunting, because of the urgency to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian human resources in the regional and international realms. Superior human resources are certainly formed from a long process since childhood. This paper aims to apply the concept of sustainable development goals (SDGs) as a framework adopted by the Government of Indonesia in reducing the prevalence of stunting cases and to provide the latest holistic analysis regarding the implementation of SDGs policies by the Government of Indonesia in reducing the prevalence of stunting cases. This study used qualitative research methods. The result of this research is that collaboration between state and non-state actors is needed to handle stunting cases in Indonesia. Starting from the synergy between ministries / institutions and collaboration with academics, public health scholars, companies, and foreign parties. These results are important as recommendations for each stakeholder in implementing the SDGs concept to reduce the prevalence of stunting cases in Indonesia.</em></p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bert J. M. de Vries

Non-technical summary The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets are an important achievement. They largely reflect the worldview of Modernity, with its emphasis on scientific and planning rationality and emancipatory ideals. This worldview is no longer evident and dominant, and it is time to systematically explore complementing worldviews. Explicit use of worldviews, as sets of values and beliefs, and ethics enriches the interpretation and implementation of the SDGs. This facilitates the engagement of citizens in their real-world diversity and the development of respect for and empathy and cooperation with people holding other values, beliefs and morals. Dialogue around ‘the middle road’ can give guidance to just, fair and sustainable development pathways.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Dür ◽  
Lars Keller

Dealing with the great challenges of the 21st century requires far reaching changes in the lifestyle and perceptions of humans to ensure an appropriate quality of life for all, now and in the future. To provide people with the necessary competencies, the UN initiated the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) program. The two-year research-education, cooperative project ‘AustrIndia-4QOL’ aims to contribute to the goals of ESD. It is based on a collaboration between students from schools in Austria and India on the topics of quality of life, sustainability and global justice. The purpose of this particular case study is to explore the effects of a weeklong face-to-face collaboration in the final part of the AustrIndia-4QOL project. Therefore, it is examined whether or not Austrian and Indian students’ concepts regarding the Sustainable Development Goals ‘Gender Equality’ and ‘Decent Work and Economic Growth’ change as a consequence of encountering differing perspectives. Short texts written by the students at the beginning and at the end of this collaboration, according to guiding questions, form the basis for a qualitative content analysis. The findings illustrate that the students’ awareness increased and their evaluation of topics related to the discussed sustainable development goals changed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 135 ◽  
pp. 04027
Author(s):  
Mariia Ermilova ◽  
Tatiana Maksimova ◽  
Olga Zhdanova ◽  
Dokhoyan Zohrab

This topic of sustainable development and maintenance and development of innovations contributes to the improvement of the ecosystem as a whole. The development and application of global sustainable development goals in the economy of each country contributes to improving the quality of life of the population, conservation of nature, etc. Globalization of economic development contributes to new trends in the future. Within the framework of this direction, various problems related to the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) issues are investigated. Sustainable development in general contributes to the accelerated growth of new trends in economic and environmental aspects in many developed and developing countries. The main goal of sustainable development is to create a single basic framework for the unification, renewal and rational use of natural and energy resources, human capital and other energy sources. Innovative technologies contribute to the development of these areas at an accelerated pace, for example, the use of solar energy will help to reduce energy and fuel costs, which will have a significant impact on the health of people and all living organisms.


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