“I’m incredibly proud that RMIT has been ranked seventh globally in the 2023 THE Impact Rankings.
"This is a significant rise and a direct reflection of our impact on society, through stewardship initiatives, leading education offerings and impactful research,” Cameron said.
“Moreover, it is testament to the determination and hard work of a university community in collaboration – RMIT students, staff and partners who share in this achievement.”
Other notable results include RMIT ranking 17th globally for efforts to address climate change (SDG 13), 19th for sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11), 23rd on clean water and sanitation (SDG 6) and equal 37th for affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) initiatives.
The THE Impact Rankings, now in its fifth year, has seen a rapid growth in participation, with an extra 185 institutions taking part this year compared to 2022.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Education and Chair of the RMIT Sustainability Committee, Professor Sherman Young, said RMIT’s continued performance in this context underlined the University’s deep and sustained commitment to sustainability.
“The education sector has a crucial role to play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals to help to create a more sustainable future for everyone, and RMIT is truly leading the way on this thanks to strong leadership and the hard work of so many of our people,” Young said.
Last year, the University announced it would fast track its carbon neutral target from 2030 to 2025.
“RMIT has achieved the biggest on-site emissions reduction of any tertiary institution in Australia and continues to act with urgency to address climate change by continuing to reduce our carbon emissions globally,” he said.
Meanwhile, the University’s Knowledge with Action strategy includes a major focus on partnerships and regional collaboration for impact.
A university’s final score in the overall ranking is calculated by combining its score in SDG 17 with its top three scores out of the remaining 16 SDGs.
To bring more stability to the rankings this year in light of rapid growth in participation, a rolling average of the last two years’ scores was used for the overall ranking table.
Story: Michael Quin & Angel Calderon
