Relationships with regional NGOs and government for SDG policy

CUT maintains strong, long-term collaborations with regional NGOs and government bodies, contributing directly to policy development across health, environment, energy, culture, education and social inclusion. Through evidence-based consultation, data provision, modelling, scenario analysis, stakeholder engagement and participation in national committees, CUT informs strategies, monitors implementation and supports adaptive management. These partnerships span ministries, municipalities, professional associations, civil-society organisations and scientific bodies, reinforcing CUT’s systemic and interdisciplinary approach to addressing societal challenges.

This extensive, institutionalised engagement reflects CUT’s continued leadership in SDG-aligned policy engagement at national and regional level.

Cross sectoral dialogue about SDGs

CUT plays a leading role in advancing cross-sectoral dialogue on the SDGs by consistently bringing together government authorities, municipalities, NGOs, regulators, EU partners, UN agencies, industry stakeholders, professional bodies, civil society and researchers in shared forums for evidence-based discussion and policymaking. Through national consultations, multi-stakeholder conferences, public-engagement platforms and international events, CUT facilitates dialogue on public health, climate action, water safety, energy transition, cultural heritage, financial resilience and sustainable urban development. These collaborations strengthen multi-level cooperation, support inclusive governance, and ensure that scientific evidence informs national and regional SDG actions.

CUT’s extensive engagement positions the University as a key catalyst for coordinated, cross-sectoral approaches to sustainable development.

International collaboration for data gathering for SDGs

CUT enhances international collaboration data gathering for SDGs through its active role in the EUt+ alliance and the ISCN network. It has developed an integrated system that monitors and evaluates research impact on the UN SDGs, using dedicated dashboards that classify all consortium publications and funded projects per SDG, supporting data-driven analysis and transparent reporting. Through participation in international working groups, CUT helps advance shared methodologies, address common data-collection challenges, and develop more consistent and comparable sustainability reporting tools.

These initiatives strengthen global cooperation and improve the reliability of SDG measurement across institutions.

Collaboration for SDG best practice

CUT actively advances collaboration for SDG best practice through extensive international partnerships, participation in global sustainability networks, and engagement in comparative and cross-border approaches. As a member of ISCN, AASHE, EIT Climate-KIC and the EUt+ Alliance, CUT contributes to the co-development, review and dissemination of international best practices for SDG implementation. These collaborations enable knowledge exchange, capacity-building, shared sustainability frameworks, and benchmarking of institutional policies and operations. CUT also co-creates transferable tools and methodologies through international research projects addressing climate resilience, gender equality, public health, circular economy, biodiversity and sustainable manufacturing.

Through sustained global engagement, CUT strengthens evidence-based models that support scalable and internationally aligned SDG solutions.

Collaboration with NGOs for SDGs

CUT maintains strong collaboration with NGOs for the SDGs through student volunteering programmes, research programmes, and the development of educational resources. In 2024, students engaged in impactful NGO-led volunteering on marine conservation, gender-based violence prevention, chronic-disease advocacy, biodiversity protection and public-health promotion. CUT also partnered with numerous NGOs in multi-country research programmes on respectful maternity care, climate resilience, dementia and frailty, pollution monitoring, sustainable agri-food systems, circular manufacturing and social innovation. In parallel, CUT co-developed high-quality educational resources with NGO partners, including digital heritage platforms, gender-equality and clean-energy toolkits, mental-health training for migrants and refugees, environmental-impact assessment modules and arts-based sustainability curricula.

These collaborations advance key SDGs by combining academic expertise, civil-society engagement and community-centred capacity building.

Education for SDGs: commitment to meaningful education

CUT shows a strong institutional commitment to Education for the SDGs, integrating sustainability learning across all study levels. Through structures such as the Office of Sustainable Development, the SDGs Committee, the Learning Development Network and the Green Office, SDG education is embedded into curricula and university policies. All students take at least one compulsory sustainability course, complemented by elective options and experiential activities, including interdisciplinary workshops and summer camps. Staff also receive mandatory sustainability training.

Participation in the EUt+ ESSLab+ further supports knowledge exchange and innovative teaching practices, while CUT’s research centres and labs enhance SDG-oriented learning through related projects. Overall, CUT ensures meaningful, comprehensive SDG education for all learners.

Education for SDGs: specific courses on sustainability

CUT demonstrates a strong commitment to Education for the SDGs through sustainability-focused programmes, extensive sustainability-related courses, and SDG-embedded curricula across all Faculties. The MSc in Chemical Engineering with Specialisation in Circular Bioeconomy directly addresses major sustainability challenges, while new programme developments- such as a BSc in Culinary Arts currently undergoing external accreditation- have been designed with sustainability principles integrated throughout. All students engage with specific courses on sustainability, delivered as compulsory or elective modules covering environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainable development.

Discipline-specific modules across engineering, health sciences, agriculture, tourism, management, digital communication and maritime studies further mainstream SDG principles. Overall, CUT ensures a comprehensive, institution-wide approach to sustainability education.

Education for SDGs in the wider community

CUT delivers extensive SDG-focused outreach through strong partnerships with public authorities, NGOs, schools, European networks and professional bodies. CUT provides inclusive educational programmes for the wider community, including public lectures, school campaigns, professional training, digital learning platforms and EU-funded collaborations.

Key initiatives include the Open University Lecture Series with local municipalities, EU-MiCare mental-health training with international partners, domestic-violence education with MIGS and SEPKVO, Carbonica Academy for climate-smart farming, Water Museum environmental learning, and sustainability-oriented conferences such as EuroSun and Wine Tourism.

Through these collaborative actions, CUT advances capacity building, knowledge exchange and equitable access to sustainability education, reinforcing its contribution to SDG17 at local, national and European levels.

Sustainable literacy

CUT is committed to enhancing sustainability literacy among students and has taken proactive steps to measure it. Sustainability literacy is assessed through a balanced mix of formative (e.g., reflections, discussions) and summative assessments (e.g., analysis of real-world sustainability challenges and project-based solutions like circular economy or energy-efficiency designs). Emphasis is placed on applied learning, critical thinking, and SDG-aligned competencies such as systems thinking and ethical responsibility.

Complementing this, CUT employs data-driven tools—recognised as Good Practice by the European Commission – to track sustainability-related research and teaching outputs across the institution, enabling transparent, longitudinal evaluation of impact. This integrated approach ensures students not only understand sustainability concepts but can apply, reflect on, and demonstrate them – directly supporting SDG 4.7 on education for sustainable development and global citizenship.