24 February 2025
Fenny Julistine Tarigan
Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) held a Socialization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the theme "Empowering Change Through Universities: Enhancing Awareness and Knowledge on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to Drive Global Impact" at the USU Digital Learning Center Building on February 18–19, 2025. This event aimed to raise awareness and encourage change through the academic community to create a global impact.
Prof. Rikson Asman Fertiles Siburian, S.Si., M.Si., Ph.D., Manager of Internationalization at the Directorate of Internationalization and Global Partnerships, delivered the opening remarks at the socialization event. "The importance of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for a better future lies in their potential to create a significant impact for our children and grandchildren," said Prof. Rikson.
One of the speakers invited to the event was Dr. Wahyu Ario Pratomo, S.E., M.Ec., Secretary of the Priority Program Evaluation Agency. He highlighted the importance of collaboration among four key platforms in implementing the SDGs: government and parliament, academia and experts, philanthropy and business actors, civil society organizations and the media. He also explained the role of SDGs in global university rankings, noting that USU ranks 8th out of 45 Indonesian universities listed in THE (Times Higher Education) and holds a global rank of 601–800.
During the discussion session, Fauziah Khairunnisa, an Environmental Engineering student at USU, shared that USU is preparing a Circularity Center at TPS Pintu Empat USU to manage waste in an integrated manner. She hoped this socialization would inspire students to be more aware and actively contribute to implementing SDGs.
This event is expected to enhance understanding, strengthen commitment, and drive actual actions among the academic community to support SDG achievement.
