University leaders worldwide sign sustainability declaration

By Wagdy Sawahel. Academic leaders and institutions around the world have been called on by United Nations agencies to commit to developing sustainable practices in higher education and to help build more sustainable societies, by signing a declaration ahead of the global Rio+20 conference.
The Higher Education Sustainability Initiative for Rio+20 – the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, being held in Rio de Janeiro from 20-22 June – says the sector has a “special responsibility to provide leadership on education for sustainable development”. As institutions that educate decision-makers, higher education institutions play a key role in “building more sustainable societies and creating new paradigms”, according to the initiative.