Leicester ranked 37th in the world in THE University Impact Rankings 2019
The rankings are based on performance in contributing to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
The University of Leicester is delighted to announce that we have been ranked 37th in the inaugural international Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings out of well over 500 institutions from 75 countries worldwide. The ranking also places us 8th amongst universities in the UK.
Our inclusion in these rankings marks our institution as a global pioneer, demonstrating the University’s commitment not just to supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals through our teaching, research and knowledge transfer, but also to embodying the goals in our internal practices, policies and procedures.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a set of guidelines which aim to support all countries in achieving true environmental, economic and social sustainable development. They were adopted by all UN Member States in 2015, signifying a global recognition of the need for partnership in creating a better world.
For eight years in a row, around 80% of students have told the NUS that they want their institutions to take more action on sustainability, which we have taken on board. The SDGs are embedded within our institution – we are a proud member of the UN Global Compact, and last month we published our first annual Sustainable Development Goals report (PDF, 9.6mb).
Work from across the University was considered when developing our first report, from the cutting-edge research undertaken in clusters like the Centre for Landscape and Climate Research, to local community engagement projects like Health Matters, which brings together students, clinicians, researchers, community support groups, patient groups and the public to promote health-related discussions and debate.
Dr Sandra Lee, Social Impact Lead, said: “We were pleased to be one of the first UK institutions to be included in this ranking, as the SDGs resonate with our staff and students as crucial to tackling the global challenges we face. The THE University Impact Rankings, along with other measures, help us to measure the positive contribution our teaching, research and day-to-day activities are making to the world.”
In December, the University of Leicester also came 35th out of 710 universities in the UI GreenMetric global ranking of sustainable universities, confirming our position in the top 5% of universities worldwide for sustainability.