Beyond Green Campuses: Sustainability Rankings as Strategic Tools for University Branding

Lukács, Rita and Papp-Váry, Árpád (2024) Beyond Green Campuses: Sustainability Rankings as Strategic Tools for University Branding. PROSPERITAS. pp. 1-14. ISSN 2064-759X (print); 2786-4359 (online)

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Abstract

The paper introduces and compares four prominent sustainable university rankings: People & Planet’s University League, QS World University Rankings: Sustainability, Times Higher Education Impact Ranking, and UI GreenMetric. In the paper, the authors analyse the methodologies, thereby revealing similarities, differences, and top global performers. Additionally, the positions of Hungarian universities are evaluated in these rankings. The study addresses the need for universities to provide more information on their impacts and examines the relationship between sustainability rankings and overall university rankings. Based on the analysis of two global university rankings, no evidence was found about global leaders being the top performers in sustainability dimensions. Large international universities can benefit from overall university rankings, while sustainability rankings might be a good opportunity for smaller universities to differentiate themselves from their competitors. To put it simply: if a university is not performing super well in education and research, focusing on sustainability issues can provide a pathway to achieving a favourable position in sustainability rankings, which offers an alternative recognition and competitive advantage.

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