The Guild: A sustainable and just transition must remain a priority amid emerging global crises
Bor Slana/STA
Date of publication:
On 1 April 2025, The Guild – an international network of European research-intensive universities – published a new policy document reaffirming the universities' commitment to addressing the challenges of the sustainability transition with recommendations for policymakers. The University of Ljubljana (UL), a member of The Guild, actively contributed to the preparation of this key publication.
Titled Universities in the face of the climate and nature crises: Redoubling our commitment to a sustainable future, the document outlines the activities and best practices undertaken by universities so far in response to the climate and environmental crises.
Upon publication, Prof. Jan Palmowski, Secretary-General of The Guild, noted that the document comes at a time when the European Union’s attention appears to be shifting from the ambitious goals of the European Green Deal toward other pressing concerns, such as economic competitiveness and geopolitical tensions. Meanwhile, the challenges related to the sustainable transition are increasing. “The Green Deal is less and less present in the public discourse [...] the climate and environmental crises are not diminishing, but are becoming more and more acute in their dimensions and effects on our local environments and across the world.”
In light of this, the document underscores that, even amid new global challenges, Europe must “ensure that it remains a frontrunner in the sustainable and just transition” (Breton et al., 2025, p. 4). Policymakers are urged to keep the sustainable transition high on the agenda, and universities are called on to intensify their contributions to this shared goal.
Prof. Dr Maja Klun, Vice-Rector for Knowledge Transfer, Digitalisation and Sustainable Development at the UL, emphasised the necessity of the UL’s active engagement in this and similar activities and initiatives of international networks in the field of sustainability: “The University of Ljubljana has been an equal partner in the development of this document, affirming our role as a proactive institution striving to shape progress rather than merely follow trends. We recognise that only through international collaboration can we achieve our ambitious goals in supporting the sustainability transition.”
The document, developed by The Guild’s Sustainability Working Group, highlights five strategic areas where universities can lead and support a just and sustainable transition. These include:
- research relevant to sustainability,
- education for sustainability,
- promotion of sustainable mobility,
- implementation of sustainable practices in campus operations, i.e. establishing everyday processes at universities that support a sustainable transformation, and
- enhancing universities’ social role and influence in developing and sharing knowledge, and promoting scientific dialogue in society through stronger community engagement.
The launch was accompanied by an online discussion, where participants not only explored the document's contents and policy proposals, but also addressed challenges such as aligning the green and digital transitions, and equipping students to tackle the complex demands of a sustainable future.