The Global Sustainable Development Congress 2023 was hosted in partnership with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology on 30 May – 1 June and brought together 1,600+ global thought leaders and innovators to discuss urgent solutions to the sustainability emergency.
Challenging the usual thinking on what higher education, governments, businesses and society must do to help society meet the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the congress was a call to action for global universities to pivot their educational, research, innovation and outreach programmes towards tangible outcomes. Delegates from around the world immersed themselves in sessions aligned with the societal transformations needed to achieve the SDGs around the themes of health and demography; sustainable energy and industry; environment; and sustainable cities and communities.
THE collaborated with KAUST's Health, Safety and Environment department and the Sustainability Office to alleviate the carbon equivalent generated by the travel of delegates and speakers by planting mangroves. Also known as ‘blue carbon’, mangroves typically sequester carbon two to four times faster than mature tropical forests and contain the highest carbon density of all terrestrial ecosystems. Each mangrove tree planted removes over 308kg of CO2 from the atmosphere over the growth life of the tree.
- Watch the on-demand session recordings
- View the event photos in our Flickr gallery
- Read the event communiqué
In partnership with
