Queen’s University ranked the best in addressing the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of Zero Hunger, according to the Times Higher Education Impact rankings.
“The Impact Rankings have played an instrumental role in bringing together our community by creating a focus on the numerous ways Queen’s is engaged in solving the world’s most pressing challenges,” the University said in a statement to The Journal.
According to the 2023 Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, which were released in June, Queen’s ranked third worldwide and first in Canada in the institution’s efforts to achieve the SDGs. The ranking highlighted the University’s work towards the goal of Zero Hunger and put them in the top spot. The University placed second in Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions and seventh and 37th in Sustainable Cities and Communities and Partnership for the Goals, respectively.
“It is an honour to be recognized for our institution’s ongoing contributions to advancing the SDGs. These goals are reflective of the University’s mission and our desire to be recognized as a global institution,” the University commented.
An annual SDG report outlined the University’s2023 progress to hitting those goals.
“Our performance in the rankings tells us that we are on the right track, and our efforts are having an impact,” Principal Patrick Deane said in the report.
Students feel the ranking is a bright spot after hearing dismal news about budget crises and research rankings.
“I’m really happy to hear that Queen’s ranked as the top University for Zero Hunger. This is especially great because of our slip in rankings recently,” Claire Golding, ArtSci ’27, said in an interview with The Journal.
According to the annual report, Queen’s works to implement the goal of Zero Hunger under the four main sectors of teaching and student life, community impact, global reach, istration and operations.
Queen’s gained their first-place spot through a combination of on-campus programs such as the AMS Food Bank, community gardens, and the Providing Equal Access, Changing Hunger (PEACH) market.
The Swipe It Forward initiative allows students to donate meals from their meal plan to others. The initiative has fed 800 students through 14,500 meals since 2018, according to the University.
The University’s dining halls were revamped to reduce food waste and create sustainable and ethical menus. Since 2015, Queen’s has donated a number of its scraps to a local pig farmer to limit the food put in landfills.
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