Análise de Dados da Plataforma UI Green Metric sob a Perspectiva de Índices Socioeconômicos Municipais

Abstract

Brazil's commitment to achieving the goals of the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda reinforced the legitimate interest of all society in sustainable practices, including in the academic sphere. The increase in the supply of environmentally friendly products, the interest of industries in more sustainable solutions and the awareness of the population contributed to the expansion of the offer of university courses in the area of Environmental Sciences. The objective of this work is to analyze the relationship between the position of Brazilian higher education institutions that participate in the UI Green Metric World University Rankings (UIGM) and socioeconomic aspects of the municipality in which they are located. Open data from the UIGM platform was used (infrastructure, energy, waste, water, transport and environmental education), the sustainable development index of cities (IDSC), the Municipal Human Development Index (IDHM), education category, and the Product Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. It was found that: in 2021, Brazilian HEIs represented 4.2% of the total number of participants (26 public and 14 private); 80% of the best Brazilian HEIs in the ranking have already participated in the program since 2011; the analyzes performed did not show a strong relationship between the variables investigated (UIGM-IDSC, UIGM-IDHM, UIGM-GDP per capita). The research was limited to analyzing the numbers and general indexes referring to the group of participants of the UIGM, not being carried out studies of individual situations. In order to identify the causes that resulted in the contrast between the indices, it is necessary to deepen the research at an individual level, studying the reality of each institution and its respective city.