World-class sustainability impact

The Times Higher Education Sustainability Impact Ratings assesses 1,603 universities globally for their progress towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

UTS again performed strongly in this year’s ratings, placing equal 63rd in the world and equal 10th in Australia, with a total score of 91.4 out of 100.

UTS was rated across six SDGs:

• 17th in the world for SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production
• Equal 29th in the world for SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation
• Equal 31st in the world for SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals
• 50th in the world for SDG 7: Affordable and clean energy
• Equal 69th in the world for SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth
• Equal 72nd in the world for SDG 13: Climate action

The results highlight some of the outstanding work being done across UTS to further the UN SDGs:

SDG 12: NiCE Loo

The NiCE Loo is an innovative toilet technology that uses advanced water filtration to turn urine waste into valuable fertilizer. Built by the multi-year ARC Research Hub for Nutrients in a Circular Economy (NiCE) the world-leading technology seeks to enhance resource efficiency while minimizing the environmental footprint of waste disposal.

SDG 6: AI-driven water quality prediction

Cutting-edge artificial intelligence tools predict water quality in the dams, rivers and creeks that feed into the drinking water supply in Sydney and Melbourne. Developed by the UTS Data Science Institute in partnership with Sydney Water, WaterNSW, Melbourne Water and TRILITY, the tools use real-time monitoring, weather and upstream data to predict raw water quality with 90 percent accuracy.

SDG 17: SEAweed Tech

A bioplastic alternative made from red seaweed is being used to mitigate pollution in coastal communities across the Asia Pacific. Developed by the UTS Climate Change Cluster with Coast 4C, the project produces a zero-waste bioplastic to generate employment opportunities and reduce pollution in the coastal communities where more than one million people live.