Higher education and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean: between discourses, commitments, and realities

Abstract

This study seeks to highlight the nature of the relationship between higher education and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean, based on a historical review that ranges from the consideration of the Millennium Development Goals (2000), the implementation of the so-called 2030 Agenda (2015), and the Pact for the Future (2024). From this perspective, it aims to examine discourses, positions, and the actual incorporation of sustainability into higher education in the region. Based on the recognition of this issue and perspective as central to our societies, the study focuses on collective positions and declarations, while also addressing the contradictions between these discourses, the commitments established by the international community within the framework of regional conferences on higher education, and effective practices. The ultimate aim of this approach is to conclude with a series of proposals for a comprehensive and deeply ethical understanding of the relationship between sustainable development and higher education, in response to the need to accelerate the processes of incorporating and implementing sustainable policies both within higher education institutions and throughout Latin American and Caribbean society.