Students Apply UN Goals to University Community

Graduate students working on their master’s degrees in International Communication this past semester in The Lesley H. and William L. Collins College of Professional Studies focused on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and developed ways St. John’s University can incorporate them on campus.

“The students in my International Communication class were excited to take the SDGs and apply them locally,” explained Minna Aslama Horowitz, D.Soc.Sci., Adjunct Professor. “They discovered that the University’s Vincentian mission is a perfect backdrop for achieving many of the goals.”

The goals are being implemented locally and globally by governments, organizations, and individuals. The class welcomed guest speaker Mark Edge, Director of Collaborations for Developing Countries at Bayer, who discussed how the company uses SDGs to ensure corporate social responsibility in their activities.

Graduate student Natalia Guendel Bueno’s proposal includes the creation of a Clean Energy committee that includes various members of the University community who will focus on how to save energy on campus. She also supports the creation of an Economic Development Community Relation committee whose main focus will be to provide assistance to the Queens community by creating workforce readiness seminars, résumé review sessions, and small business counseling.

“Sustainable Development Goals are imperative to the success and growth of humanity,” she said. “It is very important for institutions like St. John’s to commit to at least a few SDGs and assess their success. If private and public institutions commit to the promotion of different goals, issues such as climate change, and economic, race, and gender inequalities, will improve.”