TORONTO, July 3, 2025 /CNW/ – The 3rd Transatlantic Symposium on Sustainable Development in Higher Education, hosted by International Business University (IBU) in Toronto, Canada, brought together leading academics, researchers, and policy experts from Europe, North America, and other parts of the world to explore how higher education institutions – particularly in international business education – can accelerate progress toward a more sustainable future.
Under the theme “Incorporating Sustainability in International Business Education Programmes,” the Symposium served as a platform for cross-continental dialogue, research exchange, and practical collaboration. It is part of a growing international effort to mobilize scientific and educational communities to tackle sustainability challenges through interdisciplinary and institutional innovation.
This year’s main keynote speakers addressed the core themes shaping the global sustainability agenda:
Dr. Jatin Nathwani articulated sustainable energy policy for a low-carbon energy system, examining the world’s path to cleaner energy and the challenges of ensuring accessibility and equity in the global energy transition.
Dr. Charles Cho evaluated the evolving global sustainability reporting standards, emphasizing how these frameworks are enabling companies worldwide to improve transparency and accountability.
Dr. Marc Rosen stressed the importance of multidisciplinary research, advocating for integrated approaches to sustainability that transcend traditional academic boundaries.
Dr. K.T. Tsang shared his insights into the role of behaviour intervention in sustainable development and the potential contribution of AI.
Throughout the Symposium, participants echoed a common message: sustainability cannot be solved with one-size-fits-all approaches. Instead, industry-specific solutions and applications of enabling technologies, informed by rigorous research and adapted to both local and global contexts, are essential. Encouragingly, more companies are now actively developing and publishing regular sustainability reports, a shift driven in part by increasing stakeholder expectations and evolving regulatory standards.
During the Symposium, IBU’s MBA students also shared the results of their Capstone projects with a theme on sustainability practice relevant to industry application through poster presentations.
For universities, the message was clear – integrating sustainability into curricula is no longer optional. As business leaders of tomorrow face growing environmental and social challenges, higher education institutions must equip students with the skills and frameworks necessary to lead responsibly.
“It was a pleasure to speak at the 3rd Transatlantic Symposium on Sustainable Development in Higher Education,” said Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. “Events like these allow post-secondary leaders to share best practices and ensure that our colleges, universities, and institutes are sustainable economic drivers for decades to come. Our government will continue to make the strategic investments, like we have in STEM, teaching, and nursing, to protect our workforce and enable our colleges and universities to produce the highly skilled workers we need to drive our critical industries forward.”
“This symposium marks a powerful step forward in fostering multidisciplinary research, global collaboration, and actionable sustainability frameworks. It is clear that academia must lead by example in developing talent and innovation initiatives for a more sustainable future,” said Dr. Artie Ng, Co-Chair of the Symposium. “We are proud to see how IBU continues to lead in integrating sustainability practice and ESG themes into the curriculum of its business education programs.”
As a lasting contribution to the field, the experiences and research presented at this year’s event will be published in a forthcoming volume titled “Incorporating Sustainability in International Business Education Programmes,” to be released by Springer Nature following peer review.
IBU remains proud to champion sustainability in education and continues to embed ESG and sustainable development principles into its degree programs, preparing graduates to become global leaders in both business and impact.
SOURCE International Business University
