We were delighted to host Mr. Peter Wollaert – United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Fellow & Director of CIFAL Flanders, Chairman of the UN Association Belgium Flanders – as keynote speaker at ICONSUS2025.
His keynote “Agenda 2030 and its 17 SDGs: a Global Framework and Moral Compass for Just Transition Policy Making and (Project) Management in Higher Education Institutions” explored:
- The UN Agenda 2030 and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals as a holistic framework and “moral compass” for higher education policy and project management;
- Practical examples from the CIFAL Flanders on how to “become SDG-proof” and avoid greenwashing, including multi-level transition teams, stakeholder engagement and SDG self-assessment tools;
- Links to ethical governance (SDG 16), the Inner Development Goals and the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings;
- Concrete steps for embedding the SDGs holistically into university strategy, operations, teaching and outreach.
Moderated by Tito Livio Mongelli and Eric Gelfgren, this keynote combined high-level UN experience with actionable insights for higher education worldwide.
As a memorable gesture, Mr. Wollaert presented the official SDG Flag to the Escola Superior de Gestão e Tecnologia de Santarém, symbolising the shared commitment to advancing the Sustainable Development Goals.
We thank Dr. Wollaert for inspiring participants to accelerate the integration of the SDGs in higher education and for his generous gift to ESGTS.
ICONSUS2025 was developed within the scope of the TIME2ACT@SD project (https://time2act.ipsantarem.pt/), co-funded by the EU under the Erasmus+ programme (Ref. 2022-1-PT01-KA220-HED-000087984).
#ICONSUS2025 #SDGs #Agenda2030 #HigherEducation
