UC Davis launched its first Voluntary University Review to support our university’s role as a public land-grant institution in advancing this important agenda for humankind. UC Davis Global Affairs, Sustainability, and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are spearheading this effort.
Global Affairs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Internship
In September 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by UN Member States. Central to the Agenda is the set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which define a plan of action for people, planet, and prosperity to be undertaken by all countries until the year 2030.
As part of the six-week 2021 Mandela Washington Fellowship, UC Davis Fellows participated in Ignite Talks, a series of three-to-five-minute speeches delivered by the Fellows regarding their specific professional projects, future plans, and inspirational advice they feel the world could benefit from.
In June 2020, Universitas 21 (U21) named UC Davis among the winners of its inaugural Global Education Enhancement Fund. Through this grant, UC Davis partnered with Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico and Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China to create a framework for teaching the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through Global Classroom modules. Thanks to this pioneering pilot project, over the past year more than 170 UC Davis students were able to work on real-world projects with students and faculty at UC Davis and at Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico and Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, directly as a part of their coursework. Students learned to navigate time zones, virtual platform differences, and language barriers while gaining awareness and contributing to several SDGs, such as SDG 3 for Good Health and Well-Being, SDG 10 for Reduced Inequalities, and SDG 11 for Sustainable Cities and Communities.
From future policymakers to energy conversation scientists, this year’s Fellows were a diverse cohort coming from vastly different yet equally impressive backgrounds. They are eager to continue to engage with the UC Davis community, and with one another, to further make substantial global change. Let us introduce you to just a few of them!
A case study from UC Davis on Creating Campus Momentum for the SDGs through its inaugural Voluntary University Review process is featured on the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) website on Accelerating Education for the SDGs in Universities.
In honor of Dr. Rodriguez outstanding contributions in building the relationship between the two universities, promoting educational exchange, and performing educational and research activity, OU conferred an honorary degree to Dr. Rodriguez on June 16, 2021.
Global Affairs invites expressions of interest from UC Davis faculty interested in developing an international virtual course collaboration with partners at universities abroad to support the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to one estimate, the global refugee population has more than doubled over the past decade to 26 million. Professor Keith Watenpaugh, director of the Human Rights Studies program at UC Davis, leads an innovative project to help refugee students start or continue their university education — even as they are displaced and on the move. In this episode of The Backdrop, Watenpaugh discusses the Article 26 Backpack project, UC Davis’ Human Rights Studies program and his rethinking of the history of humanitarianism.
Mandela Fellows are “returning” to UC Davis. Thirty young African leaders from 20 countries will participate in public management training that the fellows will then put to use in their homelands. UC Davis had planned to host its fifth cohort of fellows a year ago, until the pandemic forced the program’s cancellation. This summer’s program, which started June 21, is virtual.
