Trinity College Dublin has joined the pilot run of Responsible Futures International, a pioneering accreditation and supported change programme. This initiative demonstrates Trinity’s dedication to embedding sustainability and social responsibility across both the formal and informal curriculum, in partnership with students.

Launched in the UK in 2014, the Responsible Futures programme has since involved 35 institutions. The current international pilot, led by Students Organising for Sustainability (SOS) and the International Association of Universities (IAU), involves Trinity and six other institutions from around the globe. The goal is to co-create an international framework of best practices for sustainable education, which will be formally launched at the end of 2024.

Participating institutions, including Trinity, will engage with their students throughout the year to implement changes to teaching and learning, spanning from top-down, middle-out, and bottom-up levels. SOS and IAU will provide support through network learning opportunities, helping universities collaborate with their students to effect change. At the end of the pilot year, institutions will have the chance to undergo a student-led audit to achieve Responsible Futures accreditation.

Sarah-Jane Cullinane, lead of Trinity’s Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Fellows Programme, shared her enthusiasm for the programme, stating:
"We are very excited to work with our students on the SOS Responsible Futures pilot programme and student-led audit. It provides transparency and accountability for the work we are doing, and aim to do, on ESD in Trinity. It also positions our students as partners and leaders in that process."

Freddie Fallon, a Senior Freshman Environmental Science and Engineering student and ESD Intern at Trinity, expressed the significance of the programme:
"The Responsible Futures International programme will provide robust, global guidance in the development and audit of Trinity's sustainable development curriculum. Even in the early stages of this partnership, RFI has provided eye-opening insight from institutions across the globe. As a student involved in ESD curriculum auditing and development, this scheme empowers myself and my fellow students to make the best decisions for our college community."

Freddie also highlighted the critical need for graduates prepared to address global challenges:
"More than ever before, we need university graduates equipped to tackle the world's greatest challenges. Over the past decade, Responsible Futures has supported UK universities in embedding sustainability and climate justice in students' learning. The international framework, co-developed with the six pilot universities, will create a model from which universities around the world can learn. Higher education has a leadership role and responsibility to address the climate crisis and ecological emergency. In the face of these challenges, we are delighted to be working with the IAU and six incredible pilot universities to launch the international pilot of Responsible Futures."

Hilligje van’t Land, General Secretary of the International Association of Universities, also commented:
"The joint IAU and SOS UK Responsible Futures International Programme is an accelerator on the road to successfully working with sustainability at the whole institution level and can help students, staff, and leadership at universities work more closely together."