Smart and Sustainable Universities

Dear Colleagues,

The role of universities is not limited to teaching and research; it extends to the whole of society through the dissemination of research results and an awareness of public opinion on specific issues, to which the university can make its own scientific and cultural contributions.

One of the most pertinent current issues is the environmental sustainability of any university that fulfills important roles in society, taking into account their role towards students and the community. This occurs, for example, in teaching activities, such as providing degree programs, masters, etc., on sustainability; in research activity, by encouraging projects in the environmental sector, preferably following a multidisciplinary approach; and in the dissemination of research and awareness, organizing conferences, congresses, etc., on specific environmental issues. Universities also have an impact as consumers of natural resouces (energy, water, paper, etc.) and as waste producers, and they should endeavour to reduce their environmental impact. In the latter case, in order to carry out their activities, universities occupy spaces, are consumers of water and energy, are important consumers of paper and office equipment, manage catering activities, generate waste, waste water, and produce air emissions. Universities and their structures can be examples of practicing sustainability if they implement sustainability policies during the course of these listed activities. In recent decades, universities have organized a series of initiatives and declarations on this topic. Some national and international institutions have also presented papers on the role of environmental education in higher education.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect information on initiatives, scientific studies, and the dissemination of culture and good practices of sustainability, both inside and outside universities, in addition to the positive impacts of universities in environmental, ethical, social, and economic terms following the implementation of such actions. The studies published in this Special Issue will be a valuable guide for those who study these topics, but also for universities that want to collect useful information to implement actions spreading a culture of sustainability and to improve their social and environmental performance.

Prof. Dr. Giulio Mario Cappelletti
Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Ioppolo
Dr. Carlo Russo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• sustainability
• the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and universities
• university rankings
• environmental and social reporting
• environmental education
• sustainable mobility