Higher Education engages with SDG 14: Life below water

• NOTE! The deadline for submitting proposals has been extended to Monday 23 November!

To coincide with the UN Decade of Ocean Science (2021-2030), the International Association of Universities (IAU) and the University of Bergen (UiB) will jointly produce a publication on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14, life below water, to present examples of activities, best practices and to show how universities engage in science and higher education, also to build back sustainably after COVID-19.

Juxtaposing and interlinking the goals

By juxtaposing and interlinking SDG14 with other goals in the 2030 Agenda, the aim is to highlight research and higher education that create opportunities to connect and involve as many as possible in the work towards ocean sustainability. Current levels of misinformation in public debate show the dire need and enormous potential for science-based information and education.

Therefore, we invite universities and experts worldwide to contribute to this SDG14 publication which will show the broad range of ongoing and planned ocean initiatives globally. By collecting these initiatives on what universities do to engage with the SDGs, the publication’s goal is to encourage more institutions to embed the 2030 Agenda in their education, research and other activities.

The publication brings attention to this topic and aims to use the momentum the agenda creates for transformative changes in curriculum, research and developing campus initiatives. Taking the upcoming Decade of Ocean Science as an inspirational starting point, we call for proposals for articles from all world regions on ocean science and higher education.

The publication will be directed at academic institutions and stakeholders in public policy. What we are aiming for is a sort of ‘Reader’s Digest’ of and for SDG14.

In the spirit of the 2030 Agenda, the publication will avoid the silo thinking prevalent in society and instead encourage thinking across disciplines, across the SDGs, across borders, and, indeed, across the Ocean.

What topics to address?

The editorial team welcomes proposals that address the following broad topics:

• Show undiscovered links between the SDGs;

• Provide examples of best practices in marine education;

• Juxtaposition of other goals with SDG14, including possible connections on sub-goal

  and target levels across the goals;

• Show how local knowledge and global science can work together to stimulate higher

  education to engage critically with the 2030 Agenda;

• Consider how ocean science and education can contribute to a sustainable recovery in

  light of the COVID-19 pandemic;

• Provide examples of and proposals for curriculum change in higher education;

• Include policy recommendations, not just show a blueprint for how to add SDGs to

  higher education programmes;

• Offer suggestions for where ocean science and education should go in the future.

Submission process

We ask for interested parties to submit an expression of interest, abstract and bio note by:

• Monday, 23 November 2020

Abstracts are to reflect the topics above and demonstrate a clear link to the role of Higher Education for SDG 14. All abstracts should be submitted in English. The expected length of the abstract is 200 words. Please include a short biographical note and institutional affiliation. Authors will be notified by 1 December 2020 if their abstract is accepted, full papers (1500- 2000 words) are expected by 15 February 2021. All submissions to the publication will undergo review by a team of academics from UiB and IAU. Final decision on the publication will be taken by the editorial committee. UiB and IAU do not offer remuneration for the submission of abstracts and/or published papers.

Contact

Please address any inquiries and expressions of interest to: Kristin Hansen (Kristin.Hansen@uib.no) and Isabel Toman (i.toman@iau-aiu.net).