Global Sustainability Experience
The Global Sustainability Experience at UT Dallas brings awareness and excitement to the topic of sustainability by providing a forum for academic and industry partners to discuss sustainability trends, generate sustainable business ideas, and engage students in developing innovative approaches and potential solutions to critical global issues.
Learn more about the Global Sustainability ExperienceEvent Highlights
Rwanda Africa, International Study Trip, Fall, 2023
In the last few decades, international business organizations and academic institutions have been focusing on emerging countries’ economies. Among them, Rwanda, has been featured as one of the most attractive countries in Africa. Through group projects, company study tours, and discussion with university faculty members and government officials, students will be able to learn about the business opportunities and challenges that exist in emerging countries. The course helps students assess the business environments and sustainability efforts in Africa by conducting the study as a seminar in Kigali, Rwanda.
Ann and Jack Graves Charitable Foundation Conference Series
Sustainability Webinar Series
This webinar is a kickoff event for our annual Sustainability Competition in April 2023.
Omar Hernandez
Program Manager of the United Nations Academic Impact Initiative
Read BiographyOmar Hernández works in public information as the Program Manager of the United Nations Academic Impact initiative and focal point on Sustainable Development Goals and institutions of higher education. Previously he served as Volunteer and Conference Management Specialist at the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat and as a Consultant for the Education for Justice initiative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
Moreover, Omar volunteered with the Liaison Office of the United Nations Agency for Palestine Refugees, the World Federation of United Nations Associations, and the United Nations Association of Venezuela. In his home country, Venezuela, he worked as an International News Analyst and Editor for the local media, including various assignments as a Temporary Correspondent at the United Nations in Geneva, and was a Professor at the Andrés Bello Catholic University, teaching courses of International Journalism, International Public Law, and International Human Rights Law, while being an active member of the Academic Council on the United Nations System.
Omar has a master’s degree in Cooperation for Development with a Specialization in International Humanitarian Aid from the Jaume I University in Spain, a Diploma of Advanced Studies in Freedom of Expression and Right to Information from the Andrés Bello Catholic University in Venezuela, and a bachelor’s degree in international studies from the Central University of Venezuela.
The Jindal School of Management at The University of Texas at Dallas held a Sustainability Webinar on January 31, 2023. This webinar is a kickoff event for our annual Sustainability Competition in April 2023. Through this webinar, our students will learn about the importance of sustainability through the UN’s SDGs, and be inspired to innovate and enter the Case Competition in April with their own sustainability proposals.
Robert Skinner
Deputy Director and Chief of Partnerships and Global Engagement, United Nations
Read BiographyRobert Skinner is the Director of the UN Information Center (UNIC) in Washington. Before joining UNIC, Skinner was Executive Director at the United Nations Foundation New York Office, responsible for operations and relations. In that role, he managed the Foundation’s relations with United Nations communications officials, the press corps, and Permanent Missions to the United Nations.
Before joining the Foundation in 2006, Skinner held several positions in the United States Department of State, including as Deputy Spokesperson at the United States Mission to the United Nations in New York, and as Public Affairs Officer for the United States Embassy in Port of Spain, Trinidad, and Tobago.
Skinner holds a law degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Bachelor of Arts in Business and Administration from Oakland University in the United States. He is married and has two children.
The Sustainable Global Business Initiative (SGBI) held a Spring Sustainability Webinar on January 31, 2022. This webinar was a kickoff event for our first Sustainability Competition in April 2022. The keynote speaker was Robert Skinner, Robert Skinner, Deputy Director and Chief of Partnerships and Global Engagement, United Nations. Through this event, our students learned about the importance of sustainability through the UN’s SDGs, and were inspired to innovate and entered the Case Competition in April with their own sustainability proposals.
On July 16, the Sustainable Global Business Initiative (SGBI) collaborated with the Center for Global Business to launch the Summer Sustainable Webinar titled “How Organizations Are Addressing Their Sustainability Strategies During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic.”
SGBI Director, Dr. Habte Woldu, opened the webinar and introduced the speakers: Jenny Burden (Texan by Nature), Ryan Spicer (PepsiCo), and Ben Tacka (Trane Technologies). Hubert Zydorek, CGB Director, led the discussion portion. The event was attended by students, staff, and faculty members.
ESGBI Stories and News
Speakers, Student Competitors Zero in On Sustainability
The inaugural Global Sustainability Experience at the Naveen Jindal School of Management — a semester long event that included two webinars, two workshops and a student pitch competition — concluded with a celebration on April 22 that coincided with Earth Day. Dr. Hasan Pirkul, Caruth Chair and Jindal School dean, introduced Dr. Muhammad Yunus, the morning keynote speaker. Before the introduction, Pirkul spoke about the role that business schools play in society, especially regarding sustainability.
Read the full storyEntrepreneurship Meets Sustainability in Jindal School Webinar
The Naveen Jindal School of Management kicked off its inaugural 2022 Sustainability Competition with a webinar that focused on how innovation and entrepreneurship can be applied to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals to help solve sustainability problems. The competition is a collaboration of the Sustainable Global Business Initiative in the Center for Global Business, the Center for Information Technology and Management, and two student organizations: the Society of Sustainable Business and the Consulting Leadership & Development Society.
Read the full storyUT Dallas Membership at The UN Academic Impact
The University of Texas at Dallas was recently accepted as a member of the UN Academic Impact in November 2021. The engagement with the UNAI framework provides the opportunity for the University of Texas at Dallas to build a diverse network with universities around the globe to exchange sustainability ideas and efforts. This membership opens doors for UT Dallas students and faculty members to global academic collaboration, and promote their work related to the Sustainable Development Goals.
The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) is an initiative that aligns institutions of higher education with the United Nations in supporting and contributing to the realization of United Nations goals and mandates. These include the promotion and protection of human rights, access to education, sustainability, and conflict resolution. There are over 1,400 member institutions in more than 147 countries. Together, they reach over 25 million people in the educational and research sectors around the world representing a global diversity of regions and a thematic wealth of disciplines.
Some benefits for the UT Dallas students and faculty through UNAI network:
- Share and promote projects, events, research, and ideas with over 1,400 member institutions.
- Connect to UN regional offices for speakers at student organization and department events.
- Invitation to UNAI events at UN offices, UNAI hubs, and virtual events
For more information about the UN Academic impact please visit the website here or contact Dr. Woldu.
Jindal School Webinar Highlights Business Sustainability StrategiesSee the details of the event
Jindal School Webinar Highlights Business Sustainability Strategies
A recent Naveen Jindal School of Management webinar explored a few ways corporate leaders and partner organizations are formulating their sustainability strategies. “Sustainability can be broadly defined as thinking and acting in terms of rational allocation of resources,” said Dr. Habte Woldu, a professor of organizations, strategy and international management in the Jindal School and director of its Sustainable Global Business Initiative (SGBI).
Read the full story