Smart and Sustainable Universities
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Education and Approaches".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2025) | Viewed by 2426
Special Issue Editors
Interests: sustainability in higher education; lifecycle assessment; sustainable mobility; agro-food; energy; water; waste; accessibility in protected natural areas
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: environmental management; industrial ecology; environmental governance; local development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: lifecycle assessment; sustainability; agro-food; sustainable mobility; energy; water; waste
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The role of universities is not limited to teaching and research; it extends to the whole of society through the dissemination of research results and an awareness of public opinion on specific issues, to which the university can make its own scientific and cultural contributions.
One of the most pertinent current issues is the environmental sustainability of any university that fulfills important roles in society, taking into account their role towards students and the community. This occurs, for example, in teaching activities, such as providing degree programs, masters, etc., on sustainability; in research activity, by encouraging projects in the environmental sector, preferably following a multidisciplinary approach; and in the dissemination of research and awareness, organizing conferences, congresses, etc., on specific environmental issues. Universities also have an impact as consumers of natural resouces (energy, water, paper, etc.) and as waste producers, and they should endeavour to reduce their environmental impact. In the latter case, in order to carry out their activities, universities occupy spaces, are consumers of water and energy, are important consumers of paper and office equipment, manage catering activities, generate waste, waste water, and produce air emissions. Universities and their structures can be examples of practicing sustainability if they implement sustainability policies during the course of these listed activities. In recent decades, universities have organized a series of initiatives and declarations on this topic. Some national and international institutions have also presented papers on the role of environmental education in higher education.
The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect information on initiatives, scientific studies, and the dissemination of culture and good practices of sustainability, both inside and outside universities, in addition to the positive impacts of universities in environmental, ethical, social, and economic terms following the implementation of such actions. The studies published in this Special Issue will be a valuable guide for those who study these topics, but also for universities that want to collect useful information to implement actions spreading a culture of sustainability and to improve their social and environmental performance.
Prof. Dr. Giulio Mario Cappelletti
Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Ioppolo
Dr. Carlo Russo
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- sustainability
- the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and universities
- university rankings
- environmental and social reporting
- environmental education
- sustainable mobility
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