Communication on Sustainability in Spanish Universities: Analysis of Websites, Scientific Papers and Impact in Social Media

Daniela De Filippo,Flor Sánchez,Javier Benayas,Karem Peña

doi:10.3390/su12198278

Daniela De Filippo, Flor Sánchez + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198278

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Abstract

This study analyses how Spanish universities are communicating their commitment to sustainability to society. That entailed analysing the content of their websites and their scientific papers in sustainability science and technologies and measuring the impact of such research in social media. Results obtained from bibliometric approaches and institutional document analysis attest to intensified interest in sustainability among Spanish universities in recent years. The findings revealed an increase in the number of universities using terms associated with sustainability to designate the governing bodies. The present study also uses an activity index to identify universities that devote high effort to research on sustainability and seven Spanish universities were identified with output greater than 3% of the total. Mentions in social media were observed to have grown significantly in the last 10 years, with 38% of the sustainability papers receiving such attention, compared to 21% in 2010. Publications in open access journals have had a greater impact on social media, especially on Twitter and Facebook. The analysis of university websites showed that only 30% had social media accounts and only 6% blogs specifically designed to disseminate their sustainability activities.

Highlights

Universities are powerful influencers in their geographic and cultural surroundings
SuFstaiginuabrileity12a0–20c, 1s2h, xoFwOsR PtEhEeRmREoVsIEt Wprominent overall findings based on the indicators ap6polfi2e2d to analyse Spanish universities’ websites
Identifying indicators, such as those proposed in this article, would make it possible to obtain objective information to establish reliable comparisons related to the commitment of universities to sustainability

Summary

Introduction

Universities are powerful influencers in their geographic and cultural surroundings. In 2017, 19.8 million students and 1.5 million professors engaged in higher education in Europe, investment in which amounted to 1.2% of the country’s GDP [1]. Higher education institutions (HEIs) disseminate knowledge and innovation and further development and citizen well-being in their communities. Universities can build students’ skills and heighten their awareness of sustainability by including it as a cross-curricular topic [2]. This privileged role has focused attention on universities’ significant influence in the development and dissemination of sustainability [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12]. A growing number of such institutions are embedding sustainability into curricula, research, administration, community involvement and partnerships [13,14,15,16], after having been clearly acknowledged as key actors in the development of sustainable campuses and societies [17,18]

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