The United Nations and IE University join forces to foster innovation for sustainable development

The United Nations (UN) and IE University have signed an agreement to join forces and leverage new innovative and technological solutions for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

“To deliver the 2030 Agenda in this decade of action, we need to invest wisely now for a global recovery and sustainable future, using stimulus measures to set the stage and the pace for key economic transitions. We have high ambitions for this collaboration with IE University to support UN Resident Coordinators, UN country teams and the UN development system in keeping the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed.

The agreement considers several areas of collaboration, including the development of learning platforms and knowledge products, the provision of executive training and advisory services, the promotion of social entrepreneurship, the development of new technological applications and services for social innovation, and the promotion of multi-stakeholder partnerships.

“This Alliance between the UN and IE University will create a hub of research and education on the best practices associated to sustainability, hosted at the new IE Tower campus in downtown Madrid. This location will become a global reference for the diffusion of the Sustainable Development Goals across all types of organizations and professionals, as well as a center for training UN teams,” said Santiago Iñiguez, President of IE University.

“Sustainability is deeply embedded as a value across IE University’s programmes and practices, and embraced by its students, faculty, staff and alumni, as reflected in the numerous initiatives already launched and planned for the next ten years.”
Santiago Iñiguez, President of IE University

This unique alliance seeks to create a new space where practitioners, academia, governments, companies, entrepreneurs, investors, civil society, and other stakeholders can work together to address complex problems more innovatively and promote more sustainable, resilient and inclusive societies.

“The SDG’s have challenged us all from the beginning and the pandemic has added complexity to finding sustainable and innovative solutions; IE University, as an academic institution, can play an important role to build capacities, empower youth, conduct evidence-based research and promote a common understanding of the issues,” said Susana Malcorra, Dean of IE School of Global and Public Affairs and former Chef de Cabinet to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.

This new space for collaboration also aims to give birth to new technological applications, products and services using big data, artificial intelligence, blockchain, advanced computing, the internet of things, open sources, collaborative platforms and other emerging drivers that can help to expand and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and improve people’s lives.