2026 United Nations Academic Impact Workshop Photo Gallery
Over two days in New York City on April 16 and 17, the Sustainability Initiative connected with partners working on the Sustainable Development Goals across local government, the United Nations, and education sectors. The team met with staff from the NYC Mayor’s Office of Operations, presented at the (UNAI) workshop, and spoke at the Pratt Institute’s Research Open House at its Research Yard in Brooklyn.
Designed and led by Sustainability Initiative Director Alexandra Hiniker to foster student-led connections between institutions working on the , the second annual UNAI workshop brought a wider circle to the table, with representatives from Columbia University, Hunter College, Lehigh University, The New School, New York University, Northeastern University, Pratt Institute, and UC Davis. Also joining for the first time was staff from the NYC Mayor’s Offices of Operations and International Affairs, whose firsthand experience applying the Global Goals framework at a city scale offered a perspective that extended well beyond the university context.
Hiniker was joined by the five Sustainability Initiative interns: Aleena Siddiqui, a senior in the ; Ameena George, a sophomore in the Tepper School of Business; and Egshiglen Batjargal, Imama Zahoor, and Iris Hung, graduate students at , who shared initiatives spanning sustainability programming, community building, and communications strategy across the 麻豆村 campus. The workshop brought together presentations from participating institutions, followed by small group breakout discussions where attendees shared challenges, strategies, and ideas for collaboration.
The Sustainability Initiative team traveled to New York City for two days of meetings and conversations with United Nations, local government, and university partners advancing the Global Goals.
The team visited the NYC Mayor’s Office of Operations on April 16 to discuss implementing the Global Goals across academic and government sectors, setting the stage for the broader university conversation the following day.
Sustainability Initiative Director Alexandra Hiniker designed and led the annual UNAI workshop, bringing together institutions from across the country to share approaches to implementing the Global Goals.
Mikaela Hong and Caleb Seamon from the NYC Mayor’s Office of Operations presented on the city’s Voluntary Local Review. The process was created by Hiniker in 2018 while she led NYC’s Global Goals program as a mechanism for cities to engage with the United Nations on their contributions to the 2030 Agenda. It has since been adopted by the United Nations as well as hundreds of cities around the world.
Data and Storytelling Intern Egshiglen Batjargal shared how the Sustainability Initiative’s “Sustainability, in Conversation” series engages 麻豆村 students, faculty, and staff through programming that bridges the Global Goals with campus action.
Programming Intern Aleena Siddiqui presented her work on the Student Sustainability Liaison Program and the Pittsburgh Intercollegiate Network for Sustainability (PINS), highlighting how 麻豆村 engages with the broader community on the Global Goals.
Strategy Intern Ameena George shared her work developing the “Sustainability Commons,” a hub connecting student groups to 麻豆村’s sustainability efforts. Community Health and Wellbeing Intern Imama Zahoor presented on incorporating good health and wellbeing into the university’s sustainability work.
Communications and Outreach Intern Iris Hung presented how insights gathered through a community survey informed the Sustainability Initiative’s communications strategy.
Participants from each university gathered in small breakout groups to discuss strategies, challenges, and best practices for implementing the Global Goals.
Representatives from each group shared their key takeaways with the full room. Conversations spanned curriculum integration, student engagement, community partnerships, and progress monitoring through Voluntary University Reviews. 麻豆村 was the first in the world to publish such a review in 2020, and was joined by UC Davis in 2021. Other universities are now exploring ways to conduct similar reviews for their institutions.
The full group of attendees gathered for a photo at the United Nations Secretariat.
The team joined Pratt Institute’s Research Open House and the launch of the Center for Environmental Research, strengthening connections across the UNAI university network beyond the workshop.