Student-Led, Research-Informed and Practice Focussed: University College Cork's Journey to Sustainability

John O'Halloran; John F Barimo; Siobhan Cusack; Sandra Irwin; Maria J Kirrane; Gerard Mullally; David Nyaluke; Julie O'Donoghue; Catherine O'Mahony; Mark Poland; Maurice Ryder

doi:10.14710/jsp.2025.29840

DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/jsp.2025.29840

Student-Led, Research-Informed and Practice Focussed: University College Cork's Journey to Sustainability

*John O'Halloran

- President, University College Cork, Ireland

John F Barimo

- Manager of SDSN Ireland, University College Cork, Ireland

Siobhan Cusack

- Director of Research Strategy & Projects, Office of the Vice President for Research & Innovation, University College Cork, Ireland

Sandra Irwin

- Head of Sustainability, President's Office, University College Cork, Ireland

Maria J Kirrane

- Head of Sustainability & Climate Action, University College Cork, Ireland

Gerard Mullally

- Lecturer in Sociology, University College Cork, Ireland

David Nyaluke

- Education for Sustainable Development Officer, University College Cork, Ireland

Julie O'Donoghue - Research Systems & Reporting Officer, Office of the Vice-President for Research & Innovation, University College Cork, Ireland

Catherine O'Mahony

- Director of the Centre for the Integration of Research, Teaching & Learning, University College Cork, Ireland

Mark Poland - Director of Buildings & Estate, University College Cork, Ireland

Maurice Ryder - Web Content Strategist and Head of Web Content Team, Office of Marketing & Brand Impact, University College Cork, Ireland

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

BibTex Citation Data :

@article{JSP29840,
    author = {John O'Halloran and John Barimo and Siobhan Cusack and Sandra Irwin and Maria Kirrane and Gerard Mullally and David Nyaluke and Julie O'Donoghue and Catherine O'Mahony and Mark Poland and Maurice Ryder},
    title = {Student-Led, Research-Informed and Practice Focussed: University College Cork's Journey to Sustainability},
    journal = {Journal of Sustainability Perspectives},
  volume = {5},
    number = {3},
    year = {2025},
    keywords = {},
    abstract = { Sustainability is the defining challenge of our age. As engines of social progress, universities play a foundational role in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and shaping a secure future. A student-led, research-informed, practice-focused approach has made University College Cork (UCC) one of the world’s most sustainable universities, consistently ranked in the UI GreenMetric top 10. Sustainability principles are central to teaching, research, outreach and operations at UCC, and are a cornerstone of organisational leadership, culture and strategy. UCC published its first Sustainability Strategy in 2016 and reports on priority initiatives annually. Researchers, including those in the UCC Futures Sustainability Institute, advance solutions to global challenges. Mapping research onto the SDGs ensures responsive priority setting for a sustainable future. An open-source SDG Toolkit supports the integration of sustainability in teaching, and a Connected Curriculum provides a framework to embed the SDGs in curricular and extra-curricular learning. UCC’s Sustainability Academy delivers bespoke industry-aligned programmes, educating future leaders to drive transformation. UCC integrates emerging sustainability practices into operations, recently adopting new approaches to the sustainability of its website and other digital spaces. This paper outlines UCC’s holistic journey to embedding sustainability through research, education and leadership, highlighting key enablers and success factors.   },
   issn = {2797-7137},   pages = {502--515}  doi = {10.14710/jsp.2025.29840},
    url = {https://ejournal2.undip.ac.id/index.php/jsp/article/view/29840}
}

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Abstract

Sustainability is the defining challenge of our age. As engines of social progress, universities play a foundational role in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and shaping a secure future. A student-led, research-informed, practice-focused approach has made University College Cork (UCC) one of the world’s most sustainable universities, consistently ranked in the UI GreenMetric top 10. Sustainability principles are central to teaching, research, outreach and operations at UCC, and are a cornerstone of organisational leadership, culture and strategy. UCC published its first Sustainability Strategy in 2016 and reports on priority initiatives annually. Researchers, including those in the UCC Futures Sustainability Institute, advance solutions to global challenges. Mapping research onto the SDGs ensures responsive priority setting for a sustainable future. An open-source SDG Toolkit supports the integration of sustainability in teaching, and a Connected Curriculum provides a framework to embed the SDGs in curricular and extra-curricular learning. UCC’s Sustainability Academy delivers bespoke industry-aligned programmes, educating future leaders to drive transformation. UCC integrates emerging sustainability practices into operations, recently adopting new approaches to the sustainability of its website and other digital spaces. This paper outlines UCC’s holistic journey to embedding sustainability through research, education and leadership, highlighting key enablers and success factors.

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Section: Original Articles

Language : EN

In Vol 5, No 3 (2025)

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