News

Walailak University leads by example in contributing to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), having been ranked third globally for stewardship and fourth globally for outreach in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2024 Report.

The report, produced in partnership with the world’s leading scientific publishing company Elsevier, reveals that across the four areas used for assessment in the THE Impact Rankings 2024—research, teaching, stewardship (how universities advance SDGs), and outreach (engagement with local and global communities)—Walailak University stands out as the only university in Southeast Asia to secure its positions among the world's TOP10. The university is ranked third globally for stewardship and fourth globally for outreach.

Professor Dr. Sombat Thamrongthanyawong, President of Walailak University, said, "Walailak University places great importance on sustainable development in alignment with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and continues to make significant progress in this area. The results have been highly satisfactory, providing concrete evidence of the university's outstanding performance. This demonstrates Walailak University's standing as a globally responsible institution committed to social responsibility and sustainable development, serving as a leading advocate for the betterment of the world."

Normally, the THE Impact Rankings assess universities based on their top three SDG scores (26% each) plus their score for SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals) at 22%, culminating in an overall score of 100. However, the new analysis from the THE 2024 report highlights the top universities worldwide based on how they manage their organizations and influence communities to live sustainably.


Source: THE Impact Rankings 2024 Report, 20 June 2024, Page 16 and 18 

In the stewardship table, Afe Babalola University from Nigeria secured first place with a score of 98.2 out of 100, 2.6 points higher than WU. RMIT University from Australia ranked second with a score of 96.1, 0.5 points higher than WU. Walailak University ranked third with a score of 95.6. The University of Exeter from the United Kingdom ranked fourth with a score of 95.1, and the University of Tasmania from Australia ranked fifth with a score of 95.0. 

In the outreach table, Afe Babalola University once again secured the top position, scoring 98.0 out of 100, 2.2 points higher than WU. The University of Minnesota from the United States ranked second with a score of 97.0, 1.2 points higher than WU. Arizona State University (Tempe) from the United States ranked third with a score of 96.2, 0.4 points higher than WU. Walailak University ranked fourth with a score of 95.8, and KIIT University from India ranked fifth globally with a score of 95.0.

The THE Impact Rankings 2024 use well-calibrated indicators across the four areas to include 2,152 universities from 125 countries across the world. Excelling in stewardship means that universities received high scores in indicators such as tracking food waste and offering sustainable food choices on campus (SDG 2), maintaining a strong proportion of senior female academics (SDG 5), implementing water reuse policies (SDG 6), ensuring energy efficiency through building renovations (SDG 7), and guaranteeing a living wage (SDG 8). Regarding outreach, top universities scored highly on indicators such as developing policies to address poverty (SDG 1), working with health institutions (SDG 3), offering educational programs on energy efficiency to the local community (SDG 7), engaging in cooperative planning for climate change disasters (SDG 13), and providing expert advice to government (SDG 16).

Visit Walailak University’s Impact Rankings 2024 here.