Energy Sustainability at Universities and Its Contribution to SDG 7: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Considering the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG 7, focused on “Affordable and Clean Energy”, universities have the role of promoting sustainability through combining sustainable energy with the processes of knowledge transmission and research. Although sustainability at universities has been thoroughly investigated, there is a lack of comprehensiveness in identifying and categorising the university role in energy sustainability and efficiency. In this context, the aim of this paper is to perform a systematic review of the literature on this topic and relate the university role in sustainable development to its contribution to SDG 7. Using the databases ScienceDirect and Web of Science, the review resulted in an analysis of 545 articles from various perspectives, published in the last 10 years regarding energy efficiency and sustainability at universities. This enabled an improved understanding of how universities have been contributing to sustainable development in the energy context and the possibility of exploring scenarios and visions for future actions by educational institutions aiming to comply with SDG 7.