Cultures of Sustainability – Strengthening Universities as Future Workshops for Sustainable Development

As part of the 41st General Assembly of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK), held on 4 November 2025 in Osnabrück, the HRK adopted a recommendation titled “Cultures of Sustainability – Strengthening Universities as Future Workshops for Sustainable Development.” The statement emphasizes that society’s future viability depends on its ability to manage transformative change sustainably. Building on the HRK’s 2018 declaration “For a Culture of Sustainability,” the 2025 recommendation outlines core principles and practical guidance for how universities can shape sustainable development and cultivate institution-specific cultures of sustainability aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Key Principles

• Universities as transformation actors:
  German universities see themselves as central contributors to sustainable societal change, serving as places of innovation, reflection, and negotiation. Each institution develops its own sustainability culture in line with the SDGs
• Autonomy in defining sustainability priorities:
  Universities independently determine their sustainability strategies, grounded in academic freedom, scientific evidence, and self-governance.
• Research: Universities conduct sustainability research and need open, mission-oriented funding and reliable “real-world labs” to test solutions.
• Teaching: Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) supports students’ personal development and critical thinking. Universities need space for debate and academic exchange on integrating sustainability into curricula.
• Academic freedom: Strong autonomy is essential; external prescriptive requirements or narrow legal constraints hinder sustainable transformation.
• Reporting: Bureaucratic reporting obligations burden institutions. Universities should choose their own suitable indicators and integrate them into existing systems.
• Resources and infrastructure:
  Effective sustainability work requires adequate funding, long-term capacity-building, and appropriate infrastructure-especially in campus development.

Find more information, including a detailed annex of this meeting, here (in German).