From 2-5 April 2024, the SDG-iLevel project held a combined staff workshop and project meeting at Leuphana University Lüneburg. 15 academic staff members from University of Girona, University of Rijeka, and Kaunas University of Technology joined the workshop on "Empowering university staff for contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals". They brought a diverse range of expertise, resulting in rich discussions and valuable contributions to the ambitions of the SDG-iLevel project.
During two days (3-4 April), the COPERNICUS Alliance, supported by the other project partners, hosted a workshop on "Empowering university staff for contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals" with 15 invited academic staff members (teachers, researchers, administrators, leaders) from University of Girona, University of Rijeka, and Kaunas University of Technology to exchange and explore outcomes of the SDG-iLevel project.
The project team presented and introduced the SDG-iLevel Maps, the Self-Nudging Toolkit, the Online Visibility Booster and, above all, a 6-Module Staff Workshop Study Pack. This Study Pack contains materials designed to sensibilize university staff in relation to their individual SDG contributions, particularly with the aim of improving their mental wellbeing, morale, job satisfaction and productivity. Based on these materials lateron a MOOC will be developed.
The six modules presented during the workshop covered a variety of topics such as sustainable development in general, SDGs in research and teaching, university-community engagement, the whole-institution approach and more. Theory was well supported by practical exercises and group activities. A guided tour through the Leuphana University campus including its impressive main building was another highlight.
Another two days (2 and 5 April) were used for the project core team to plan and evaluate the staff workshop, reflect on the progress so far and plan further steps. The above mentioned SDG-iLevel Maps, the Self-Nudging Toolkit and the Online Visibility Booster will be further improved, while other project objectives will be developed in parallel. Updates will follow!