Intermediary organizations and their role in advancing the SDGs in higher education

Drawing on evidence from documents and semi-structured interviews with members of the Catalan system of higher education, this research explores how intermediary organizations (IOs) facilitate the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), conceived as a global policy framework, in local...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Lakhno, Marina, Ortiz Gervasi, Luis
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:10230/61192
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10230/61192
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/23322969.2024.2323735
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Higher education policy
Sustainability
The SDGs
Intermediaries
Descripción
Sumario:Drawing on evidence from documents and semi-structured interviews with members of the Catalan system of higher education, this research explores how intermediary organizations (IOs) facilitate the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), conceived as a global policy framework, in local contexts. We observed that, despite the voluntary nature of SDGs-related policies, most Catalan public universities embraced the SDGs. Two contextual factors likely facilitated their effective engagement with this global initiative: first, the autonomy granted by regional and national governments to the higher education sector when it comes to social responsibility, and, second, the willingness and ability of higher education institutions (HEIs) in Catalonia to work with the SDGs. The key element added to these contextual factors was the collaboration stimulated by meso-level actors, namely Catalan intermediaries. The Catalan case exhibits a process whereby IOs effectively engage with HEIs, forging a platform for collaboration; in turn, this led the local government to delegate the task of promoting the SDGs to IOs. This paper contributes to the debate in global higher education policy-making as it discusses the policy implications of the involvement of intermediary actors in bringing global policy frameworks to local level.