EVALUATING COMMITMENTS TO SUSTAINABILITY AND SOCIALENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY: THE CASE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF VALE DO ITAJAÍ

Abstract

This article presents the results of the diagnostic evaluation of sustainability of the Network of Sustainability Indicators in Universities (RISU) at the University of Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina. It gives a panorama of the joint actions of researchers of national and international networks around the theme of sustainability in Higher Education. It presents the history and the unfolding of actions carried out at the University, in the diagnosis of environmental indicators of their graduate courses, sustainable strategies and practices, and actions of environmental responsibility at the institution. It highlights the participation, in the organization, in national seminars and international forums on the theme, with national and international networks involved in the ARIUSA, and the coordination and articulation of the 13 institutions of Higher Education in Brazil that participate in the project. The methodological focus used was both quantitative and qualitative, with the application of a questionnaire with 114 indicators distributed across 11 dimensions covering the possibility of applying sustainability and social responsibility in the universities. By way of results, the analysis indicated fragilities related to the sustainability indicators in the teaching dimension, particularly concerning the evaluation of the sustainability indicators in the learning process, and the evaluation of learning, and a methodology to determine the incorporation of sustainability into the courses. The university stood out especially in the dimensions of raising awareness and participation – Extension/Teaching and of Social-environmental Responsibility. Also, in the institutional scope – the formulation and funding for the Sustainable Univali Program, and the review of the Institutional Development Plan (IDP), were pointed out. It concludes by identifying some challenges that demand a commitment of HEIs in Brazil in the transition and incorporation of the culture of sustainability as an effective policy.