Critical Reflection: Academia’s Evolving Role in Development Thinking in the Era of the SDGs

Authors: Jorge Membrillo-Hernández, Tecnológico de Monterrey 

Universities and SDGs 

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have not pushed universities to the sidelines; instead, they have amplified academia’s mission. In fact, higher education’s role in the 2030 Agenda is now widely recognized as critical: “the SDGs cannot be achieved without higher education.”^[1] Universities invest in future leaders, generate solutions through research, support local communities, and provide a vital voice on SDG issues. Global reports emphasize that “none of the 17 SDGs can be achieved without the contribution of higher education and research.”^[2] In practice, SDG thinking has been integrated into campuses, from carbon-neutral building projects to sustainability curricula, as part of what some scholars call the university’s “fourth mission” of co-creation for sustainability.^[3] This reflects a significant transformation: the old “ivory tower” model of detached, discipline-bound scholarship is giving way to engaged, transdisciplinary knowledge production.

Universities in Practice: Co-Creation and Living Labs

Many institutions are rising to this challenge by blending research, teaching, and practice. For example, universities worldwide now host living labs, innovation hubs, and community research centres where students and faculty work on real-world SDG problems.^[4] These initiatives often use co-design methods and partnerships with local stakeholders. In one documented case, a large public university led a four-year program in which over 50 students collaborated with community members, NGOs, and companies to co-create solutions to poverty, gender equity, and sustainable energy in Indonesia.^[5] Throughout these projects, academic theory was developed “in dialogue” with on-the-ground data and lived experience, rather than imposed from above. In essence, research is practiced in situ: participants iterate through design workshops, field surveys, and reflections with citizens and local experts. This mode of engaged scholarship demonstrates how knowledge is produced through partnership and experimentation, not just abstract analysis.

Redefining Theory: Plural Knowledge and Contextual Frameworks

Such experience-based work raises an important question about the nature of theory. Can highly contextual, local knowledge be considered “theory”? It depends on how we define it. If theory is seen as universal and predictive, then indeed, the SDG era challenges traditional models. However, if theory is understood as generative and grounded in practice, then this shift adds to the diversity of theory. In development scholarship, many now value middle-range frameworks and provisional models that emerge from patterns across cases. For example, researchers using participatory methods follow a “grounded theory” approach: concepts emerge from the data collected in the field rather than being prescribed in advance.^[6] In this perspective, multiple ways of knowing, including Indigenous wisdom, practitioner insights, and community narratives, are recognized as legitimate sources of explanation. The SDGs explicitly promote this epistemic diversity. Reports on SDG localization note that communities often leverage traditional ecological knowledge and local innovation to address goals such as clean water and agriculture.[JL1] [JM2] In practice, development academics are increasingly learning from local stakeholders and co-designing solutions, thereby democratizing theory’s creation.

Challenges of Pluralism and New Rigour

While pluralism encourages inclusivity and contextual sensitivity, an overabundance of divergent approaches may hinder knowledge integration and challenge the maintenance of consistent scientific standards.  Scholars observe a tension: universities are now expected to[JM3]  be inclusive and problem-driven, yet the traditional academic system continues to reward narrow, discipline-based outputs. There is ongoing debate about how to balance contextual depth with analytical clarity, and normative engagement with empirical rigour.^[7] Some argue that new standards are needed for engaged work, such as the thorough documentation of co-creation processes or the triangulation of diverse data sources. Others warn that without careful reflection, “engagement” can lose its critical edge and reinforce existing power structures. Academia’s challenge is to develop methods that are both locally grounded and critically sharp while maintaining scholarly integrity and collaborating with NGOs, policymakers, communities, and activists. The discourse on the “impact agenda” suggests that universities must evolve institutional structures, such as promotion criteria and funding models, to support applied, interdisciplinary work.^[8]

Conclusion: Toward Collaborative, Justice-Oriented Knowledge

The SDGs should be viewed not as the end of theory, but as a reimagining of academia’s mission in development. Instead of imposing one-size-fits-all models from a distance, scholars are now called to walk alongside communities to co-produce knowledge and solutions. The absence of a single overarching theory in the SDG framework acknowledges complexity and context. What emerges is space for actionable insights rooted in practice. As one study states, higher education must “accelerate creation of new leaders and skilled professionals” to foster social and economic development.^[9] In this spirit, universities need not try to restore an old paradigm but should move forward with humility and creativity. The goal is to nurture plural, justice-oriented scholarship that embraces multiple systems of knowledge and empowers marginalized voices, while maintaining the critical rigour that underpins good science. In doing so, academia can fulfill the promise of the SDGs: generating knowledge that is inclusive, equitable, and directly responsive to people’s needs.

“The SDGs should be viewed not as the end of theory, but as a reimagining of academia’s mission in development. Instead of imposing one-size-fits-all models from a distance, scholars are now called to walk alongside communities to co-produce knowledge and solutions. The absence of a single overarching theory in the SDG framework acknowledges complexity and context. What emerges is space for actionable insights rooted in practice.” – Jorge Membrillo-Hernández, Tecnológico de Monterrey

References

^[1] Paula Gonçalves Serafini, Jéssica Morais de Moura, Mariana Rodrigues de Almeida, and Júlio Francisco Dantas de Rezende, “Sustainable Development Goals in Higher Education Institutions: A Systematic Literature Review,” Journal of Cleaner Production 370 (2022): 133473. 

^[2] Bojie Fu, Shuai Wang, Junze Zhang, et al., “Unravelling the Complexity in Achieving the 17 Sustainable-Development Goals,” National Science Review 6, no. 3 (2019): 386–88. 

^[3] Hulya Oztel, “Fourth Generation University: Co-creating a Sustainable Future,” in Quality Education. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, edited by W. Leal Filho, A.M. Azul, L. Brandli, P.G. Özuyar, and T. Wall (Cham: Springer International, 2020), 1–13.

^[4] Fu et al., “Unravelling the Complexity”; Oztel, “Fourth Generation University.”

^[5] Datu B. Agusdinata, “The Role of Universities in SDGs Solution Co-creation and Implementation: A Human-centered Design and Shared-action Learning Process,” Sustainability Science 17, no. 4 (2022): 1589–604. 

^[6] Fortune Aigbe, Clinton Aigbavboa, Lebogang Ayobiojo, and Patrick Ehi Imoisili, “Adaptive Learning for Inclusivity, Sustainable Development, and Societal Impact: A Case Study of Community Engagement at the University of Johannesburg,” Sustainability 17, no. 11 (2025): 4861. 

^[7]     Paris Hadfield, Darren Sharp, Jonas Pigeon, and Rob Raven “Governing University Living Labs for Sustainability Transformations: Insights from 18 International Case Studies,” Sustainability Science 20, no. 5 (2025): 1753–74. 

^[8] Ibid.

^[9] Serafini et al., “Sustainable Development Goals in Higher Education.”

About the Faculty Mentor Paper Series

This paper is part of the Reach Alliance faculty reflection series, Reimagining the Future of Sustainable Development, in response to Mariana Prado’s Sustainable Development Goals:The End of Theory? Featuring contributions from leading scholars across the Reach Alliance global academic consortium, the series opens a timely dialogue on the evolving role of universities in shaping the future of sustainable development theory and practice. Developed as part of Reach’s commitment to advancing research-to-impact and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, these reflections aim to engage higher education professionals in shaping the future of the Sustainable Development Goals.