From the crisis of plastic in the oceans to gender disparities in pay, the world’s biggest concerns are more and more in the minds of consumers and corporations. And no one understands the importance of tackling these better than universities and students.
But which universities are incorporating these global issues into their governance? And how can we measure the real impact that universities are making on their students and their wider communities?
Times Higher Education has put together the Impact Rankings to shine a light on those institutions that are working hard to tackle global issues such as gender inequality, quality education for all, climate change, promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, economic growth and good health and well-being.
To compile the rankings, we mapped how universities around the world are committing to the 17 United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs are a global call to action to tackle poverty, climate change and inequality.
Universities were invited to submit data on how they were progressing on the SDGs. More than 2,000 universities submitted data this year across the SDGs. You can read more about the methodology here.
This ranking is a crucial resource for students choosing universities because it moves away from assessing universities on their research output and focuses instead on the impact that universities are having on some of the world’s most pressing issues.
Top five universities in the overall Impact Rankings 2025
1. Western Sydney University
Western Sydney University tops the ranking for the fourth year running.
The university scored particularly highly for SDG 15 (life on land) and SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production).
The university has prioritised research in areas relating to SDG 4 (quality education), SDGs 13, 14 and 15 (relating to environment and sustainability), SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDGs 11 and 12 (sustainable cities and communities, and responsible consumption and production).
A series of key initiatives has also been introduced on campus to increase its sustainability, including implementing a pilot solar-powered car park on the Kingswood Campus, offsetting the carbon footprint of international travel and installing more electric-vehicle charging stations on campus.
2. University of Manchester
The University of Manchester takes second place this year.
The UK university has demonstrated its commitment to the SDGs through a range of research institutes and centres, including the Manchester Environmental Research Institute, the Manchester Institute of Innovation Research and the Sustainable Consumption Institute, among others.
On campus, the university has implemented the Living Campus plan, which aims to address the challenges of growing an urban campus while encouraging local biodiversity. The students’ union has also set a target for the university to become plastic-free by 2025.
3. Kyungpook National University
Kyungpook National University in South Korea is the highest ranking university in Asia in this year’s Impact Rankings.
The university scores highly for SDG 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and SDG 17 (partnership for the goals).
Kyungpook National University conducts research in various areas such as cancer diagnosis, approaches to wastewater removal, and the removal of metals in water.
=4 Griffith University
Griffith University has climbed 20 places to take this year’s joint-fourth position. Griffith University is still a relatively young university having been established in 1975.
The Australian university scores highly for SDG 15 (life on land) and SDG 14 (life below water).
In terms of research the university is home to a range of research centres conducting research in topics such as health policy, low-carbon energy, climate action and social change.
Students can join a range of clubs relating to the SDGs including marine society, sustainable medicine society and women in engineering.
=4. University of Tasmania
The University of Tasmania is the third university from Australia to feature in the top five of the 2025 Impact Rankings.
It also claims first place for SDG 13 (climate action) for the third year in a row.
The university has been carbon neutral-certified since 2016. There is also a sustainability committee made up of senior leadership and student representatives at the university. The committee aims to identify and share actions that embed sustainability into university life.
Across campus a variety of green initiatives are under way, such as the waste-minimisation action plan and the sustainable transport plan.
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