Comparative Analysis of Social Reports from Higher Education Institutions focusing on meeting the SDGs: Case Study of the University of Caxias do Sul

Abstract

The search for a balance between the needs of human beings, in the economic and social spheres, and the preservation of natural resources is indispensable. To this end, it is essential to elaborate regulatory policies, a role that the United Nations (UN) has been demonstrating efforts through the proposition of global political commitments, where the 2030 Agenda stands out, composed of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Another important concept is that of Corporate Social Responsibility, where companies started to adopt a broader business vision, in addition to the obligations required by law, taking responsibility for their impact on society in general. From this, organizational changes also occurred in the field of education, as educational institutions, increasingly competitive, began to include sustainability metrics. The Social Balance has become the tool for disclosing the economic and social performance of organizations. Thus, the objective of this work was to carry out an analysis of the Social Balance report of a Higher Education Institution maintainer in relation to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on the opportunities for improvements yet to be implemented. The object of study was the University of Caxias do Sul Foundation (FUCS). Data collection took place through the publication of the FUCS Social Balance Report with a base date of 2015, where the reported actions were compared with the 17 UN SDGs. It was observed that FUCS is an institution that presents a great initiative regarding actions and projects linked to the SDGs, but lack effective actions aimed at objectives 1, 2, 5 to 7, 11 to 15 and 17, where it has a smaller number of these when compared to the other objectives. Each objective has several specific goals, which require more comprehensive, continuous, systematic and collective efforts with other entities to become effective.