Core Partners
Australia
Curtin University is a future-oriented, innovative, and global university known for its engagement with industry and community, high-impact research, and commitment to reconciliation. According to ARWU (2021), we are ranked in the top one per cent of universities worldwide and ranked 174th in the QS World University Rankings 2025.
The School of Design and the Built Environment (DBE) focuses on sustainable design and the built environment, improving the quality of life, advancing community wellbeing and enhancing settlements of all sizes from rural villages to mega-cities. Through research, teaching and community engagement, the school is recognised as a global leader in fostering a sustainable, equitable and inclusive future. We strive to lead in action research, activity-based pedagogy and authentic learning.
Our practice-based multidisciplinary focus on impact includes architecture, construction management, design, geography, interior architecture, project management, urban and regional planning, sustainability, and climate emergency. The quality of our learning and student experience, our creative response to emerging pedagogical and technological changes and our focus on innovative solutions ensure that we are sought out as the leading provider of design and built environment education and research.
Our emphasis on collaborative partnerships and engagement with industry, government, and our local communities will ensure that our research and teaching are recognised as salient, contemporary, and of the highest quality. Building on our disciplinary strengths and cross-disciplinary collaboration, we are sought after as a partner of choice both globally and locally.
India
Centurion University is duly recognised as a pioneer in ‘Skill Integrated Higher Education'. Its unique model lays specific emphasis on creating sustainable livelihoods on a national scale in challenging geographies through education that results in employability and sparks entrepreneurship. This model has been recognised by multiple Governments (Central and State), International organisations such as UNESCO and the World Bank, as well as Policy Think-tanks such as the NITI Aayog. Recently, Centurion University’s School of Vocational Education and Training has been recognised as a Centre of Excellence by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India. It is the only university in India to be recognised for this.
We have continually strived to be a best-in-class human resource development hub that builds employable, enterprising and society-centric youth through industry-relevant education, skill development, new ventures, production, and technology development. The founders, faculty and staff are fully committed to their credo: Shaping Lives. Empowering Communities. This credo is underpinned by a value system of inclusiveness, integrity, equity, respect, and sustainability in everything we do.
Since its inception in 2005 and subsequent establishment as a University in 2010 (vide Odisha Act 4 of 2010), Centurion has created a unique environment that ensures a tailored learning and employability path for youth in some of the poorest and underserved geographies in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
Centurion has embraced the Agenda for Sustainable Development and the associated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) since being formally announced in 2015. SDGs have been both formally and informally used as a guiding framework and are now firmly embedded in the Centurion DNA. Whilst having an indirect impact and contribution on almost all 17 SDGs, Centurion has specifically focused on 9 SDGs and embedded it in everything from its strategy, governance, institutional management and outcomes.
Switzerland
The United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) works to ensure that developing countries benefit more equitably from globalisation. While the expansion of trade and economic integration has lifted millions out of poverty, many have yet to benefit, and considerable challenges remain. UNCTAD provides policy analysis, consensus-building, and technical assistance to help countries harness trade, investment, finance, and technology for inclusive and sustainable development.
Operating at national, regional, and global levels, UNCTAD supports countries in diversifying their economies, integrating into global trade systems, enhancing digital access, promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, and addressing environmental challenges. Its work also supports macroeconomic stability, financial resilience, and improved consumer protection. UNCTAD’s initiatives are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development, in collaboration with partners such as the World Bank, IMF, WTO, and UNDP. While primarily working with governments, UNCTAD recognises the vital role of private sector and civil society partnerships in achieving systemic change.
A key initiative under this mandate is the Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) Programme, funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO). SMEP supports applied research and pilot projects aimed at reducing industrial pollution and plastic waste across Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. To date, 27 pilot projects have been funded under SMEP, targeting sectors such as plastics, textiles, tanneries, organic waste, water management, and used lead-acid batteries. Through initiatives like SMEP, UNCTAD helps foster cleaner industries, support green innovation, and strengthen the capacity of Global South nations to participate in a more sustainable global economy.
Brazil
Instituto 17 (i17) is a non-profit Brazilian civil society organisation founded in 2018 to promote the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) and propose integrated solutions based on the circular economy, environmental protection, and local development.
Its mission is to disseminate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) and build sustainable solutions that guarantee collective and diffuse rights, value socio-environmental diversity and ensure social inclusion.