Goal 13: Climate Action

Goal: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

UGA is working to address UN Sustainable Development Goals through focused research, teaching, service, and stewardship on campus, across the state, and around the globe. Some examples of how students, faculty, and staff are addressing Goal #13 are listed below.

Georgia Initiative for Climate and Society

The Georgia Initiative for Climate and Society provides a focal point that facilitates and enhances the visibility of interdisciplinary climate research, instruction, and outreach programs at the University of Georgia. It also disseminates to diverse audiences science-based information on the climate as well as how social systems respond to climate variability and change.

Carbon Footprint Reduction Research

As part of the Drawdown Georgia project, researchers at the University of Georgia have partnered with faculty from other leading institutions to identify solutions to reduce the state’s carbon footprint. Strategies include boosting solar farms, adopting electric vehicles, retrofitting buildings, implementing nature-based forestry solutions, and reducing food waste.

Energy Conservation Program

UGA reduced its energy use intensity per square foot by 22% between 2007 and 2020 through investments in the campus energy infrastructure, energy efficiency upgrades in campus buildings, and energy efficient design in new construction and renovations. Energy use in UGA facilities is responsible for an overwhelming majority of the University’s overall greenhouse gas emissions, so energy conservation and renewable energy are critical components of UGA’s Sustainability Plan.

Sustainability Certificate Program

The UGA Sustainability Certificate links knowledge, skills, values, aptitudes, and attitudes necessary to address complex sustainability problems. Through courses, seminars, capstones, and portfolios, students develop the key competencies that help them innovate sustainable solutions in a wide range of disciplines.