Research
Introduction
Conducting research is a major function of many colleges and universities. By researching sustainability issues and refining theories and concepts, higher education institutions can continue to help the world understand sustainability challenges and develop new technologies, strategies, and approaches to address those challenges.
Featured Resources
Latest News from AASHE Bulletin
New Resources
Faculty and student researchers at the UC Berkeley Climate and Society Center
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
The Climate and Society Center (CSC) is developing two key initiatives: a Faculty Roundtable, which supports faculty working on climate equity projects, and a Community Roundtable, which brings together environmental …
- Posted Aug. 21, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Sustainable scientific publishing: a pilot survey on stakeholder motivations and opinions
- University of Salzburg
- University of Akureyri
Assessing sustainability of journals and publishers could guide the choice of a publication venue. However, sustainable scientific publishing is not sufficiently defined. We assessed motivations for sustainable scientific publishing and …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Sustainable development in Portuguese higher education institutions from the faculty perspective
- Polytechnic Institute of Santarém
- University of Aveiro
Higher education institutions play a fundamental role and have great responsibility in promoting sustainability and achieving sustainable development goals. It is therefore essential to study the teacher's perceptions of incorporating …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
The formation of a field: sustainability science and its leading journals
- University of Borås
This study investigates the scholarly field of sustainability science between 2001 and 2021 from the perspective of 18 frequently cited journals. For this purpose, the article employs the concept of …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Wanting to be part of change but feeling overworked and disempowered: Researchers’ perceptions of climate action in UK universities
- Cardiff University
- University of Bath
Interest in the relationship between the activities of universities and action on climate change is growing, but until recently there has been little focus on the critical role of researchers, …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Evaluating the perils and promises of academic climate advocacy
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
What are the causes and consequences of academic climate advocacy in contemporary times? Should it be celebrated and pursued, or derided and eschewed? Does advocacy in various forms tarnish or …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Agents of (un)sustainability: democratising universities for the planetary crisis
- Queen's University Belfast
As producers and gatekeepers of knowledge, and as providers of education and training, our universities play a key role in the reproduction of unsustainability. This article finds that they are, …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Transformative research for sustainability: characteristics, tensions, and moving forward
- Utrecht University
- Leuphana University of Lüneburg
- University of Kassel
- University of Helsinki
- Czech Academy of Sciences
The question of how science can become a lever in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals permeates most recent sustainability research. Wide-ranging literature calling for a transformative approach has emerged in …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Citation as representation: gendered academic citation politics persist in environmental studies publications
- Illinois Wesleyan University (IL)
- University of South Florida (FL)
Publication citation impact can be an essential metric in deciding tenure and promotion, but studies have shown that historically women are cited less than men, despite equal or greater output …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Fossil fuel industry influence in higher education: A review and a research agenda
- Salem State University (MA)
- University of Miami (FL)
- University of Michigan (MI)
- Virginia Tech (VA)
- University of Regina (SK)
- National University of Ireland, Maynooth (Co. Kildare)
The evolution of fossil fuel industry tactics for obstructing climate action, from outright denial of climate change to more subtle techniques of delay, is under growing scrutiny. One key site …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
The art of arts-based interventions in transdisciplinary sustainability research
- Wageningen University
- Universität für Bodenkultur Wien (BOKU University)
- Universität für angewandte Kunst Wien
Transdisciplinary, co-creative research deals with complex real-world problems, with complexity being a common denominator of sustainability issues. It is often understood as an interplay of two dimensions, collaboration and creativity, …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Exploring the research trends in climate change and sustainable development: A bibliometric study
- University of Delhi (Delhi)
Climate change and sustainable development are interconnected and pressing global challenges requiring urgent attention. Researching the trends in climate change and sustainable development through a bibliometric study is essential for …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Bibliometric Analysis of Research Hotspots and Frontiers in Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals
- Nankai University
- Guizhou University
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), established in 2015, are binding targets for monitoring the sustainable status of all countries in the world. Developing localized SDGs indicator systems, assessing …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Sustainability in Numbers by Data Analytics
- National University of Singapore
- Universiti Malaysia Pahang
- Springer
For a successful delivery of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) and to track the progress of UNSDGs as well as identify the gaps and the areas requiring more …
- Posted Aug. 13, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Climate Vulnerability Index
- Texas A&M University (TX)
These images depict the overall climate vulnerability of the United States. There are three images to choose from:
- Overall Climate Vulnerability map of U.S. (map only version)
- Overall Climate Vulnerability …
- Posted Aug. 11, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Public Policy
- Cornell University (NY)
Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy
- Posted Aug. 11, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Pecan orchard research
- Texas A&M University (TX)
A Texas A&M student conducting research at a local pecan orchard.
- Posted Aug. 11, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Sustainability Research at the University of Maryland
- University of Maryland, College Park (MD)
The University of Maryland leverages multidisciplinary expertise to better understand the vulnerabilities and resilience of Earth systems in response to a changing climate, equip policy makers with actionable knowledge, and …
- Posted Aug. 4, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Exploring Aquatic Systems: FGCU Water School in Action
- Florida Gulf Coast University (FL)
Florida Gulf Coast University Water School student researchers conduct fieldwork in aquatic ecology and bathymetry, using scientific instruments to map underwater landscapes and study ecosystem dynamics. This hands-on research supports …
- Posted Aug. 4, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
UMD researcher innovates to reduce textile waste
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
UMD Associate Professor Abbie Clarke-Sather, PhD, and her team have created a new way to make textiles more recyclable. Over the past six years, Clarke-Sather has been developing a new …
- Posted July 29, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Wave energy and the power of Lake Superior
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
Craig Hill's research focuses on the waves on Lake Superior and beyond to better understand how wave conditions are changing, and how coastal communities can better prepare for a future …
- Posted July 29, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Better Roads through sustainable and innovative pavement materials
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
Professor Manik Barman conducts research on creating innovative and sustainable pavement materials and designs, rehabilitation, and maintenance. "Better roads" is the theme of his research, with effective pothole patching being …
- Posted July 29, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Science in Action: FGCU Students Dive into Limnology for Sustainable Water Solutions
- Florida Gulf Coast University (FL)
Dr. Thomas leads Florida Gulf Coast University Water School students in a hands-on limnology field class, demonstrating water quality measurement techniques using specialized equipment in a natural campus setting.
- Posted July 29, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
FGCU Water School students engage in hands-on limnology and bathymetry research
- Florida Gulf Coast University (FL)
Students from Florida Gulf Coast University's Water School can be seen getting ready to deploy a quadcopter drone to investigate a nearby pond. This practical exercise is a component of …
- Posted July 28, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
University of New Hampshire photo submission for the 2025 Sustainable Campus Index
- University of New Hampshire (NH)
Student and faculty researchers from across the University of New Hampshire have teamed up for the 'Flax to Linen' project that links historic New England agricultural practices with sustainable fashion …
- Posted July 28, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Mont-Bellevue Park and its University Nature Reserve
- Université de Sherbrooke (QC)
The portion of land belonging to the Université de Sherbrooke within Mont-Bellevue Park (125 hectares) has been officially recognized as a University Nature Reserve as of October 8, 2024. This …
- Posted July 22, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
NSF-NHERI Wall of Wind, Florida International University
- Florida International University (FL)
The NSF-NHERI Wall of Wind (WoW) Experimental Facility at Florida International University (FIU) is the only life-size test facility at a U.S. university capable of generating Category 5 winds. The …
- Posted July 22, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
UCI Ecological Preserve as a Living Lab
- University of California, Irvine (CA)
UCI researchers using the Ecological Preserve as a living laboratory.
- Posted July 14, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Florida International University - Institute of Environment - Everglades Research
- Florida International University (FL)
The Institute of Environment at Florida International University has more than 200 investigators who conduct research in over 60 countries and are members of national and international advisory organizations. Students …
- Posted July 2, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Florida International University - Institute of Environment - Everglades Research
- Florida International University (FL)
The Institute of Environment at Florida International University has more than 200 investigators who conduct research in over 60 countries and are members of national and international advisory organizations. Students …
- Posted July 2, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
University of Minnesota Duluth: Beekeeper at the Land Lab
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
University of Minnesota Duluth photograph submitted for SCI 2025.
- Posted July 1, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
En-ROADS Climate Solutions Simulator
- Climate Interactive
En-ROADS is an online simulator that provides policymakers, educators, businesses, the media, and the public with the ability to test and explore cross-sector climate solutions. It allows users to explore …
- Posted June 18, 2025
- Tools
- View more
University of Tasmania research on climate impacts on biodiversity
- University of Tasmania (TAS)
University of Tasmania is a leader in climate action and research as demonstrated in being ranked #1 in Climate Action of the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings from 2022-2024. Researchers …
- Posted June 6, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Penn Vet Semi-Annual BioBlitz
- University of Pennsylvania (PA)
The University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) celebrated our Earth by exploring the biodiversity around our campus with its semiannual "BioBlitz." Community members from the university, the …
- Posted May 5, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Shut the Stash Sticker
- University of Pennsylvania (PA)
Chemical fume hoods used in research laboratories use up to 3.5 times the amount of energy as a single family house each day. Since Penn has over 1,000 fume hoods …
- Posted May 5, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Deree Science Day 2025
- The American College of Greece (Aghia Paraskevi)
Deree Science Day 2025 brought together students, faculty, and science enthusiasts for a dynamic day of discovery, innovation, and hands-on learning. Featuring engaging workshops, interactive experiments, and expert-led discussions, the …
- Posted April 17, 2025
- Photographs
- View more
Brackish Water Los Angeles: An Exhibition Field Report
- California State University, Dominguez Hills (CA)
Brackish Water Los Angeles is an art and research project housed at California State University Dominguez Hills' (CSUDH) University Art Gallery, co-directed by Aandrea Stang and Debra Scacco. Part of …
- Posted Feb. 28, 2025
- Conference Presentations
- View more
New Research: Campus Trends With Indoor Waste Diversion Practices
- California State University, Sacramento (CA)
- Johns Hopkins University (MD)
- Busch Systems International Inc. (ON)
Over the last decade a growing number of colleges and universities have reorganized how they collect waste from academic and administrative areas of campus to improve their diversion rates. Anecdotal …
- Posted Feb. 28, 2025
- Conference Presentations
- View more
Sustainability Institutes and Labs: From Research to Real-World Impact
- Harvard University (MA)
Campuses have been centers of producing ground-breaking research on critical topics for centuries. Some have succeeded in disseminating that information in a way that catalyzes action, while other research papers …
- Posted Feb. 28, 2025
- Conference Presentations
- View more
Education for Sustainability: Behavior Change Research
- Pennsylvania State University (PA)
Since the mid-1990s, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has insisted that achieving sustainability will depend on changes in behavior which need to be motivated by a …
- Posted Feb. 28, 2025
- Conference Presentations
- View more
University Leadership that Enables Sustainability Education and Scholarship
- University of Calgary
This chapter is part of a new open access handbook from Taylor and Francis (https://www.taylorfrancis.com/reader/download/13f32394-c078-4201-8b83-0bce63352914/book/pdf?context=ubx). It explores and articulates different levers and areas of responsibility for sustainability in academic programs …
- Posted Feb. 20, 2025
- Publications
- View more
Binghamton 2 Degrees: Building Community Resilience Through Collaborative Action
- Binghamton University (NY)
Binghamton 2 Degrees is a transformative initiative uniting Binghamton University and the greater Binghamton community to envision a resilient future under the looming threat of two degrees of warming. Through …
- Posted Jan. 27, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
TASTE Food: The Automated Scope 3 tool for Tracking Emissions from Food
- The Culinary Institute of America (NY)
- Stanford University (CA)
- University of New Hampshire (NH)
- AASHE (MA)
- World Resources Institute (DC)
Currently, estimating purchased food emissions requires time intensive methods and cost prohibitive software which are often limited to estimating emissions based on spend. Previously, institutions that analyzed purchased food emissions …
- Posted Jan. 27, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
Holistic Inclusive Education On Climate Change
- The American College of Greece (Aghia Paraskevi)
The American College of Greece (ACG) is committed to advancing climate action and sustainability through an inclusive, multi-faceted approach to education. Under the umbrella of Holistic Inclusive Education on Climate …
- Posted Jan. 24, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
Resilient Climate Leaders: Redefining Sustainability Programming to Meet the Needs of Students Today
- Tufts University (MA)
In the early 2020’s with the onset of the pandemic and accelerating impacts of the climate emergency, students in Tufts University’s sustainability programs began asking for ways to more effectively …
- Posted Jan. 24, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
The Seafood Shift: Making Tufts Dining More Sustainable
- Tufts University (MA)
Saskia Zimmerman, a Sustainable Solutions Fellow at Tufts University helped Tufts Dining find new ways to quantify their sustainable impact and further integrate sustainable food sourcing into their work. This …
- Posted Jan. 24, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
Design for Vulnerables
- Tecnológico de Monterrey – Campus Monterrey (Nuevo Leon)
- Tecnológico de Monterrey – Campus Chihuahua (Chihuahua)
Design for “Vulnerables – Technology Challenge” is a project idealized and created in Tecnológico de Monterrey, Chihuahua Campus, it aims to understand how design processes can facilitate the introduction …
- Posted Jan. 24, 2025
- Case Studies
- View more
CSUF’s Energy and Sustainability Summit Paves the Way for a Greener Future
- California State University, Fullerton (CA)
Cal State Fullerton is at the forefront of making sustainability efforts accessible and affordable for Orange County communities, preparing students to be pioneers in clean energy and partnering with local …
- Posted Dec. 11, 2024
- Photographs
- View more
Green Lab Innovations to Advance Institutional Strategic Goals
- University of Pittsburgh (PA)
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
- AASHE (MA)
You have a Green Lab designation program, now what?
Learn how to develop complementary innovative green lab initiatives that foster sustainable research practices while fulfilling institutional sustainability objectives. Via examples …
- Posted Nov. 25, 2024
- Videos & Webinars
- View more
Centre for Sustainability Transitions
- Stellenbosch University (Western Cape)
The Centre for Sustainability Transitions (CST) is a research, training, and learning centre housed within the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at Stellenbosch University. It brings together research on …
- Posted Nov. 14, 2024
- Research Centers & Institutes
- View more
This tab provides access to data collected through AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS). STARS is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. STARS enables meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements developed with broad participation from the campus sustainability community.
All responses reference content from reports under the latest version of STARS, version 2.2. AASHE membership and log-in is required.
AC 9: Research & Scholarship
- Percent of research employees that conduct sustainability research
- Percent of research departments that conduct sustainability research
- Sustainability research inventory (upload)
- Sustainability research inventory (description)
- Website URL - Sustainability research
AC 9: Support for Sustainability Research
- Description of the student sustainability research program
- Description of the academic staff sustainability research program
- Website URL - Support for sustainability research
AC 10: Open Access to Research
- Website URL - Open access repository
- Open access policy (upload)
- Open access policy (description)
- Description of the open access article processing charge (APC) fund
- Description of the open access journal hosting services
- Website URL - Support for open access
Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.