What do institutional development plans say about sustainability? An analysis of HEIs highlighted in sustainable actions

Abstract

Addressing the issue of sustainability is on the agenda, especially when the linked space involves higher education institutions (HEIs) and their role in society. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the adequacy of the institutional development plans of HEIs that are part of rankings in relation to sustainability. To this end, a qualitative and exploratory research was carried out, based on documents from 42 institutions belonging to the UI GreenMetric and the Principles for Responsible Management Education. The results showed that there is a field in formation focused on sustainability, in which lies the initial stage in favor of a change in institutional documents that is based on the sustainable bias, highlighting the need for advances so that such manifestation is evidenced in practice. In addition, there is a tendency to direct efforts in a fragmented way, whether in management, extension or sustainable structure. However, in order to make significant progress, it is necessary to address management, campus/structure, teaching, research and extension together in order to build a truly sustainable educational institution.