The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) expands its range of funding opportunities related to sustainability. A new programme for international higher education partnerships along the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) has been launched with funding from the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. Around 20 million euros are available for these 'SDG Partnerships' until 2027. 

'To be able to successfully realise the 17 UN sustainability goals until 2030, we must expand international higher education cooperation across all topics connected to sustainable development. By encouraging cross-border teaching, research and knowledge transfer projects in this area, we enable the higher education institutions to contribute more – and more effectively – to selected UN sustainability goals,' said DAAD President Professor Joybrato Mukherjee. 

He continued to explain that higher education plays a key role in promoting development in the countries of the global South. 'To be able to master current and future crises around the world, we need more research and expertise, as well as more effective transfer regarding sustainable development issues. The success of the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda also depends on how quickly we can expand global higher education cooperation on the issue of sustainability,' said Mukherjee.

Cooperation dedicated to selected sustainability goals

In its new funding programme ‘SDG Partnerships’, the DAAD combines and realigns four of its existing funding lines for sustainable development. The objective is to support higher education institutions in the global South in the areas of teaching, research and knowledge transfer along the UN sustainability goals (SDG). The programme is also designed to contribute to the development of high-performing internationally networked higher education institutions in the partner countries. To this end, the DAAD provides funding for establishing around 15 new partnerships a year, between German higher education institutions and institutions in the global South.
The cooperation projects should be concerned with the sustainability goals to which universities and higher education can contribute significantly. The programme comprises two funding lines: the first one is for projects related to the ‘One Health’ approach, according to which the health of human beings, animals and the environment is closely inter-linked. Projects in this funding line should focus predominantly on SDG 3 ‘health and well-being’, as well as on SDGs 13, 14 and 15. Higher education projects that contribute to one or multiple other sustainability goals, are covered by the second, general programme line.