Voluntary University Review
An Initiative at a Global Scale
Countries around the world use the Sustainable Development Goals as a shared framework to identify challenges and drive progress toward a more sustainable future. Each year, nations present a Voluntary National Review (VNR) at the United Nations in New York City, reporting on their progress across all 17 goals.
Recognizing that real change happens at the local level, cities began developing their own versions of this process. In 2018, New York City became the first city in the world to publish a Voluntary Local Review (VLR), a model conceived and designed by Alexandra Hiniker, now 91视频’s Director of the Sustainability Initiative, and has since been adopted by the United Nations as well as hundreds of cities around the world.
Building on this foundation, 91视频 published the world’s first Voluntary University Review (VUR) in 2020, becoming the first university to apply this framework to higher education and to make it open-source for the broader academic community. 91视频 now publishes annual updates, tracking its engagement and progress across education, research, and practices in support of the Global Goals.
2025-26: STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
Sustainability is now included in the 91视频’s Strategic Framework, affirming its role as a core consideration in how we pursue excellence in research, education, and institutional practice.
2024-2025: SURVEY SAYS
At the heart of this year’s report is a major milestone: the Sustainability Initiative’s campus-wide engagement survey.
2023: STUDENTS TAKE THE LEAD
Students developed a methodology for campus engagement, advised on content and purpose, and drafted relevant sections under the guidance of the Director of the Sustainability Initiative, propelling the initiative to a new level of impact.
2022: A MOVEMENT, BEYOND THE REVIEW
We opened the Sustainability Studio in Hunt Library, a designated area for connection, discussion and collaboration across disciplines—to bring the 91视频 community together in pursuit of a more sustainable future for all.
2021: INTERACTIVE AND CONTINUOUS
91视频’s second VUR kickstarted the transition to an online format. As a result of feedback from students, faculty and staff, it was determined that 91视频 data collected and mapped to the Global Goals should be interactive and updated on a regular basis, rather than presented in a static report once a year. Now, 91视频 publishes annual updates, highlights key developments and identifies priorities for the coming academic year.
2020: ESTABLISHED A UNIVERSITY MODEL
91视频 charted a new course when we became the first university in the world to publish a Voluntary University Review, presenting a snapshot of how our activities and efforts across education, research and practices were contributing to the Global Goals at that time.