The U7+ Alliance of World Universities is the first coalition of university presidents aimed at defining concrete actions that universities can take to collectively address global challenges in coordination with government leaders in G7 countries and beyond. Alliance members meet annually to establish a common agenda and identify key areas for coordinated action. Together, U7+ university presidents take stock of their universities’ unique civic and social responsibilities, and pledge concrete action on behalf of their institutions to address the world’s most pressing challenges at local, regional, and global levels through an innovative lens.

The U7+ Alliance includes 100+ presidents and top leaders of universities from over 20 countries, who meet annually at the U7+ Presidential Summit, which typically takes place immediately before the annual G7 Summit of world leaders. Rather than being designed as a scientific colloquium, the U7+ Presidential Summit prioritizes issues aligned with the priorities set by the G7 Presidency of that year. University presidents also plan on the concrete innovation initiatives and actions that our universities can take as engaged global actors on issues where they can have a demonstrable impact. Following the inaugural Presidential Summit in France in July 2019, U7+ Alliance members self-organized into working groups, each of which is dedicated to addressing a concrete global challenge— small yet critical and collective steps toward achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 193 countries have adopted.

As the U7+ Alliance, we are also dedicated to training the next generation of global leaders and fostering intergenerational dialogue around pressing global challenges. The Alliance hosts an annual U7+ Worldwide Student Forum and the U7+ Intergenerational Roundtable Series, which convenes students and scientists from across the globe for vigorous debate on the global challenges confronting future generations, from climate change and sustainable innovation to gender inequality and women’s rights. These are some of the key achievements that the U7+ Alliance has made over the last three years: • The Launch of HAICU (Human-centered AI+ for/by Colleges and Universities), a lab dedicated to promoting cooperation between universities and other stakeholders to ensure AI+ is envisioned, developed and used in a human-centered fashion.

• A statement and commitment from 29 university members from 12 countries to ensure that students have access to sustainability courses, and commit to ambitious climate change action plans and targets to reduce and offset GHG emissions associated with their operations. • A 2020 Worldwide Student Forum dedicated to bringing youth voices to the fore of discussions amongst university leaders on how to prepare students as they enter the labor force, and a 2021

Worldwide Student Forum on climate change. • Ongoing participation in multilateral discussions and governance, including COP26 in Glasgow.

S t r o n g A l l i a n c e s f o r a S u s t a i n a b l e P l a n e t The goal set by the 2022 German presidency of the G7 to create strong alliances for a sustainable planet is more urgent than ever. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report released April 4th 2022 has once again warned that climate change is widespread, rapid and intensifying, and that the opportunities to prevent global temperatures from rising above the 1.5C threshold are rapidly disappearing.

Members of the institutions of the U7+ recognize that universities are uniquely situated to partner with one another and with governments to help address this urgent climate crisis. Universities are key to addressing our planetary crisis, leading research and innovation on climate change mitigation, and through engagement of the next generation of citizens. Thus, U7+ Alliance members are committed to promoting socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable infrastructure and to accelerating the global energy transition starting on our own campuses. We are also committed to training all our students in sustainability, as part of building a better future.

As an Alliance, U7+ endeavors to amplify research, teaching and sustainable operations through participation and engagement with the UNFCCC and our G7 leadership. As hubs for intergenerational dialogue and action, we build opportunities to elevate youth voices in designing the solutions future generations will depend on.

Our commitments to protect our planet and ensure a greener, more resilient future for everyone are codified in the U7+ Statement on Climate Change and Sustainability, signed by 32 U7+ universities in 13 countries, including all G7 countries. This statement calls on each of us to: • Reduce campus GHG emissions from 2018 levels by 2030, with the goal of developing and publishing a specific target for this reduction. • Promote that all students at our universities will have access to courses related to climate, biodiversity, and sustainability.

Member universities of the U7+ Alliance are working together to advance in these goals and lead by example on their respective campuses, leveraging learnings from colleagues to accelerate impact together. The participating universities have committed to collaborate on two specific actions: Action 1: To promote access to courses related to climate, biodiversity, and sustainability for all students at our universities. Twenty-eight U7+ member universities have committed to this action, which is co-championed by the University of Toronto, Université PSL, and the University of Edinburgh.

Action 2: To improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from 2018 levels by 2030, and at a minimum to develop and publish a specific target for this reduction by 2030. Twenty-one U7+ member universities have committed to this action. Action 2 is co-championed by University of Edinburgh and University of Toronto.

Key experts across member universities committed to Action 1 have met regularly over the past year and half, including for a workshop in June 2021 to share institutional learnings and contribute to strengthening sustainability courses. Taking a cue from the UK-hosted G7 Summit, workshop participants shared perspectives and experiences on expanding access to sustainability curricula in U7+ universities through an action-oriented approach that includes:

• Developing sustainability course inventories.

This involves collecting data on existing courses with sustainability-related content, expanding the courses offered, and increasing awareness amongst students about these inventories through social media campaigns and presentations at university fairs. • Investigating sustainability pathway programs and how they can be adapted to different institutions, with the objective of making these programs widespread and gaining credibility and validation. • Engaging all students as actively as possible and inviting them to participate in the sustainability education conversation. To exemplify this principle, the workshop incorporated students both as panelists and as attendees participating in the discussion. →

Aix-Marseille Université (France), Ashesi University (Ghana), Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (India), Juniper Tree Learning (USA), National Autonomous University of Mexico (Mexico), Northwestern University (USA), Osaka University (Japan), University of Naples Federico II (Italy), Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique (Morocco), Université PSL (France), University College London (UK), University of British Columbia (Canada), University of Cape Town (South Africa), University of Edinburgh (UK), University of Toronto (Canada), University of Ottawa (Canada).

• Ensuring a holistic approach to problem solving that includes engagement with non-academic partners. This transdisciplinary approach includes faculty members across departmental and faculty boundaries while also engaging non-academic partners in the generation of actionable knowledge.

Many U7+ members have also committed to engaging students through “living labs,” where students have real life opportunities to study sustainability initiatives being implemented on campus and in the community. Living lab projects contribute to meeting the universities’ targets to be a zero-waste and net-zero carbon in the coming years. Universities are also setting ambitious goals on the number of students who will be engaged in sustainabilityoriented projects, often with partner organizations.

Also in June of 2022, following the G7 meeting in the UK, 21 member universities of the U7+ Alliance, led by the University of Edinburgh and the University of Toronto, developed a joint framework for Greenhouse Reduction and Energy Efficiency as part of our commitment to Action 2. The 21 participating institutions committed to improving energy efficiency and reducing their level of greenhouse gas emissions from 2018 levels by 2030, in accordance with the Paris Agreement commitments to halt global warming and reduce net zero carbon emissions by half by 2030. Many U7+ members have already committed to ambitious plans to reach net zero in the coming years and are sharing best practices through the Alliance.

In taking appropriate measures on reducing greenhouse gases, the participating universities are taking action across all three scopes of GHG emissions: direct emissions from sources that are owned by the university, such as boilers, furnaces, or vehicles (Scope 1); emissions from the generation of purchased electricity (Scope 2); and GHG emissions that occur as a consequence of university activities from sources not owned or controlled by the university, such as travel or emissions associated with purchasing or investments (Scope 3).

Examples include commitments to incorporating energy efficient and renewable energy technologies into design and construction standards, developing decarbonization retrofit strategies, and optimizing water efficiency in existing buildings and grounds. Universities are also making significant investments in green technologies, from the ambitious development of geoexchange systems that store surplus heat generated by mechanical systems in the summer for use in the cold Canadian winter months, to the extensive use of solar panels that generate significant power for campuses in warmer climates. Some members are also committing to divest from investments in fossil fuel companies. And many Alliance members are adopting guidelines to guide sustainable business travel.

The following framework for institutional GHG reductions was developed to encourage all universities to set, measure and achieve reductions goals:

S t e p 1 : M e a s u r e U7+ universities commit to measuring their Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions using standards tools, such as ISO 14064 Part 1, and ISO 50001 for Energy Management Systems. This establishes a process for quantifying GHG emissions, identifying specific emission sources, and providing reliable data. The challenges around measuring Scope 3 emissions, which are the indirect emissions generated by such things as growing and transporting food, travel, investments, and producing the goods we buy, can be tackled by using the Corporate Value Chain Accounting and Reporting Standard. This tool allows companies to assess their entire value chain emissions impact and identify where to focus reduction activities.

S t e p 2 : B e n c h m a r k U7+ universities also commit to benchmarking their energy consumption and GHG emissions to determine where opportunities for reduction exist. They will do this by combining both internal and external benchmarking. Internally, they will assess how each building measures up against other similar buildings on campus, as well as across the country, and how buildings measure against themselves year after year. Externally, universities will assess how buildings measure up against other buildings of similar nature within the city, nationally, and globally.

Some recommended tools for this process are the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager for tracking and benchmarking against Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) or, in the UK, the Energy Benchmarking tool that will be launched by the Chartered Institute of Building Service Engineers (CIBSE) to provide relevant and reliable benchmarks that represent the current trends of energy use in buildings. Other tools include the RET Screen Expert, which provides a comprehensive database compiled from many energy surveys in different countries for different building types with open information source. After completing this high-level benchmark analysis, each university can then prepare a more detailed Performance Analysis to better estimate the energy savings, GHG emissions reduction, cost savings, and/or production potential for their facilities.

S t e p 3 : T a r g e t U7+ universities commit to energy and GHG reduction targets, setting up priorities, limitations, and expectations with internal stakeholders, senior leadership, and planning and budget offices. Recommended tools for this step are ASHRAE standard 100, and

the ISO 50001 Energy Management System Certification. The targets that institutions establish for GHG reduction should be measurable, monitored, communicated, and updated.

S t e p 4 : P l a n U7+ universities commit to developing an in-depth plan to achieve established GHG emissions targets and to publish this plan. Many members have already done this. Resultant policies and programs should consider regional contexts to leverage existing infrastructure advantages, such as local renewable energy sources where available. Universities will mobilize the collaboration of internal stakeholders in the development of the plan, aligning finances, capital/deferred maintenance, sustainability, and academic priorities and budgets. RETScreen and eQuest are some of the proposed tools that can be used for simulation and modelling for energy efficiency.

S t e p 5 : I m p l e m e n t U7+ universities implement policy and programs focused on energy and GHG emissions performance and embed sustainability targets into all projects and operations. Institutions also ensure sustainable procurement practices for equipment, systems, processes, and personnel that contribute to energy performance.

U7+ universities review and evaluate the performance to see whether the targets were achieved and report on annual performance and inventories. This is an iterative process to continually monitor, evaluate, and adjust the plan and targets. S t e p 7 : E n g a g e U7+ universities engage stakeholders, recognize action, and communicate results. They should engage their staff and students in their GHG reduction and energy efficiency plans. Depending on their priorities, actions, and context, there will also likely be opportunities to engage their suppliers and contractors. In this step, institutions recognize where wins have taken place and celebrate the outcomes achieved. They also report and communicate on their performance to their stakeholders and build further support for deeper action. →

Australian National University (Australia), Columbia University (USA), École Polytechnique (France), HEC Paris (France), London School of Economics and Political Science (UK), McGill University (Canada), Northwestern University (USA), Sciences Po (France), Seoul National University (South Korea), Université de Bordeaux (France), Université Cheikh Anta Diop (Senegal), Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique (Morocco), Université Paris Saclay (France), Université PSL (France), University College London (UK), University of British Columbia (Canada), University of Cambridge (UK), University of Edinburgh (UK), University of Ibadan (Nigeria), University of Montreal (Canada), University of Ottawa (Canada), University of Toronto (Canada).

T h e U 7 + S t u d e n t F o r u m o n C l i m a t e C h a n g e Even as climate change is likely to have serious consequences for our planet and all its inhabitants, it is the younger generations that will disproportionately suffer the consequences of the climate crisis. Longterm environmental degradation caused by activities for which youth bear no responsibility will nevertheless shape their future. Understanding that intergenerational dialogue and centering the voices of the younger generation is essential to solve the climate crisis, the U7+ Alliance convened the 2021 U7+ Worldwide Student Forum, titled “Climate Change: Intergenerational Conflict or Intergenerational Alliance?”. The Forum, which amplified student voices to incorporate the interests and rights of future generations into climate action, policy, and planning, was led by University College London, alongside Northwestern University and the U7+ Student Leaders Board.

Over the course of five months, students engaged in a series of academic events and conversations. Ninety-four student delegates from U7+ partner universities across 12 countries, with a wide variety of academic backgrounds, fields of study, and interests participated. This included students of law, climate science, geography, anthropology, psychology, and engineering, among other disciplines, each of whom were nominated to participate in the Forum. Through peer-to-peer discussion, these delegates engaged in small group conversations and produced a series of recommendations for U7+ Presidents about the role that universities should adopt in addressing climate change.

T h e F o r u m , w h i c h a m p l i f i e d s t u d e n t v o i c e s t o i n c o r p o r a t e t h e i n t e r e s t s a n d r i g h t s o f f u t u r e g e n e r a t i o n s i n t o c l i m a t e a c t i o n , p o l i c y, a n d p l a n n i n g , wa s l e d b y U n i v e r s i t y C o l l e g e L o n d o n , a l o n g s i d e N o r t h w e s t e r n U n i v e r s i t y a n d t h e U 7 + S t u d e n t L e a d e r s B o a r d .

Through governance: • Governmental bodies should create positions for students, to enable them to actively lobby for their interests. Governments would benefit from this because student sustainability leaders are the perfect ambassadors to relay innovative suggestions and unique ideas to the public. • Within global government structures, countries with unstable governments should also have their youth included, to ensure that developed countries do not dominate the conversation. • Advance the role of youth as stakeholders in policymaking. Because of the voting disaffection of a big part of youth demographics, politicians do not prioritize issues affecting young people’s interests in their agendas. If young people become main stakeholders, they can force change. • Form advisory boards connecting student voices to those holding decision-making power.

In universities: • Establish meetings within university settings where corporate and government representatives are invited to hear the perspective of students and in turn explain to students how their decision-making processes on climate-related issues work. • Include young people (15-35yrs) who are external to universities in student advisory boards to provide a wider spectrum of perspectives and ideas, preventing the bottleneck of university

“elitism.” • Prioritize intergenerational discussion between students, professors, and community leaders outside of universities. • Develop curricula that take into account climaterelated topics and bring together different disciplines, faculties, and subjects. • Encourage student research in and engagement with sustainability through scholarship programs. • Provide professional development for students on how to translate the work they are doing in university into “green careers” and connect students to professionals, companies and organizations working in sustainability. Implement internships in which university students can strengthen their relationships with corporate and government entities. • Make the campus “greener” by creating plasticfree zones, treating food waste, or redistributing leftover food. • Educate on the links between environmental impacts and socio-economic issues. • Provide degrowth content alongside other perspectives favoring growth, such as productivism in economics. Form Research and Degrowth

Academic Associations that work on specific degrowth goals. →

Research for impact: • Research in climate change and sustainability needs to be interdisciplinary and involve collaboration between people in fields as different as environmental science, economics, and psychology. • Universities should provide courses that introduce the fundamentals of policy-making processes for students and academics who are interested in communicating their research recommendations on sustainability to a broader audience. • Develop strategies to communicate research results effectively not only within the academic sphere, but also to critical stakeholders in corporate and political spheres. • Engaging local communities through university partnerships with local governments and businesses.

Ensuring a strong student voice is a significant strength of the U7+ Alliance. From climate action to social justice, U7+ universities are listening and learning and together taking major strides to incorporate sustainability into every facet of their institutions. We see our students and alumni as essential contributors to social change, as well as future global leaders who will contribute to economic stability and transformation.

S e t t i n g t h e C o u r s e f o r E c o n o m i c S t a b i l i t y a n d T r a n s f o r m a t i o n The path to economic stability, and to addressing global inequalities, requires access to opportunity for all. Our universities

T h e U 7 + A l l i a n c e i s a t o o l t o b r i n g va l u e t o i n t e r g e n e r a t i o n a l j u s t i c e , a s t h e p r e p a r a t i o n f o r a f u t u r e g e n e r a t i o n s t a r t s w i t h t h e c u r r e n t .

create opportunity and attract talent from our local communities, as well as from all over the world, including those most who are most disadvantaged, bringing together the most curious minds to address the most critical global challenges and fostering a more equitable and globally connected world. In our classrooms, we prepare the global workforce for tomorrow’s international economy. In our laboratories and libraries, we imagine new paths forward for people and the planet.

The U7+ Alliance universities are fostering the sharing of resources, including defining best practices and policies across the network to collectively drive growth and economic stability and nurture the next generation of innovators. A decentralised approach ensures that innovative ideas originate from many different resources rather than a single point and mindset. More than 2 million students attend U7+ universities. For this reason, and many more, intergenerational justice is at the core of the U7+ Alliance and its university partners. Striving to become innovation engines is the mission that universities and their students aim to achieve. By preparing a new generation of global leaders, we are preparing the world for a new era of economic stability and transformation in our classroom. To build a new culture requires a new mindset, which in turn requires thedrive and the courage to transform. The task at hand is the construction of a sustainable economy, which is a process rather than an endgame, and one that we are actively preparing our students to engage with. At the U7+, we do not think of learning as a process of transferring knowledge from one generation to the next. Rather, our focus on intergenerational justice challenges to think of it as a bi-directional process where students are learning from faculty, and also contributing their own learning and knowledge in practice and through recommendations to their faculty, administrators, and experts beyond the university.

To codify this commitment to intergenerational learning and engagement within the U7+, a group of students founded a new organization within the

Alliance to formalize the process of working together with our Alliance leadership. The U7+ Student and Alumni Network (U7+ SAN) and vision came to light in August 2020, following the inaugural U7+ Worldwide Student Forum, when a select number of students delegates from various universities spanning across six continents joined forces as a united student-led team for three main purposes: 1.To represent students’ interests and advocate for improving the educational environment and experience 2.To remain a prominent and integrated resource and partner to the alliance 3.To bring value to the notion of

“intergenerational justice” by relaying students’ viewpoints on issues that impact the educational ecosystem to decisionmakers across the network

T h e I n t e r g e n e r a t i o n a l R o u n d t a b l e S e r i e s The U7+ SAN supports the U7+ Alliance to transform and drive innovation, introduce new policies, build students’ core knowledge, and ensure smooth integration into the professional world. The Intergenerational Roundtable Series 2021, co-organised by Northwestern University, Georgetown University, and the U7+ SAN was a driving force of the alliance between students and university administrators. The intergenerational roundtables, for the first time, brought together students, professors, and other university policymakers to converse on key topics that included climate change, the global gender gap, and sustainable digital transformation These topics are intertwined and play a determining role in assuring students’ future employability as global government officials continue to tackle such issues from local, regional, and national levels. For example, the third intergenerational roundtable, co-hosted by Ecole Polytechnique and Osaka University, discussed redesigning our ecosystem in two ways: changing the technological culture and rethinking social implications. During this event U7+ student representative Shayan Khan argued that it is not just the technologies we use, but the systems in which we use them that matters. Osaka University professor Atsuo Yamada built on this concept, relating it to the legal system by asking, “if the law is set in our society to be individualistic, then how can we have a very sustainable society in the future?” Technological, environmental, and financial are some of the many facets that are becoming more common to all career fields and that universities aim to further include in their curricula. The themes discussed, encouraged by universities and pursued by students, can instigate a tangible and positive impact on society.

T h e 2022 S t u d e n t C h a l l e n g e At the dawn of 2022, the U7+ SAN and Ecole Polytechnique co-organised the U7+ Student Challenge, centred around promoting interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis on sciences and related disciplines. Students with their respective professors along with Sustainability Ambassadors selected from the expertise of the U7+ SAN’s delegates, aimed to merge technological ambitions with sustainable development goals. The diversity of the universities represented in this project-including students from Ashesi University (Ghana), Ecole Polytechnique (France), Northwestern University (United States) and University of Ottawa (Canada)-highlight the endless possibilities of bringing together global partners to work for economic development and sustainable digital transformation.

When innovating for economic development and digital transformation, it is imperative to learn lessons from the Industrial Revolution, which despite its groundbreaking character, resulted in substantial side-effects, such as the climate crisis that we are facing today. Thus, it is the responsibility of universities to prepare students for the professional world by educating and directing them to advance economic and digital progress while taking into account its social outcomes. The current and forthcoming generations’ role is summed up in these two key notions: progress and protect – progress to develop, but protect to preserve.

The projects presented by the students during the 2022 Challenge perfectly crystalized this vision, showing innovative ways to progress and protect. Innovative ideas came from students who are willing to contribute to policies and usher a new beginning that will yield long-lasting and positive outcomes.

The team from Northwestern University in the United States presented an initiative that they have developed to diversify the medical profession by promoting information and access to support underrepresented students interested in exploring careers in healthcare and preparing them to be successful candidates for medical school. The team from Ashesi University in Ghana conducted a research project to understand the complexities of illegal gold mining in the country, seeking to document the devastating effects on the →

→ economy, the environment, local communities, and women’s security, while also developing solutions to the problem. Teams from Université d’Ottawa and École Polytechnique worked together to improve a food storage system and develop a program to support access to food and reduce food scarcity in local communities.

This process of exploring local challenges with a global community of student innovators is but one example of how universities are preparing students to set the course for economic stability in their own lives and careers, and how we can influence economic transformation by building programs to help the next generation labor force to understand and address problems differently.

S u s t a i n a b l e I n v e s t m e n t s i n a B e t t e r F u t u r e The emergence of new technologies based on recent advances in fundamental science strongly impacts the global outlook. In particular, the digitalization of virtually every sector of economic, political and cultural life requires new technological developments, new regulatory responses, and new investments in human capital.

The U7+ Alliance of world universities is contributing to bringing about a better future through global sustainable development. In addition to providing future generations with sustainability training and education and reducing the environmental impact of our campuses and operations, we also invest our communities’ talent into the creation of innovative solutions to current global problems. We participate in the creation of sustainable, high-quality infrastructure, contributing to sustainable urban development initiatives within our cities and municipalities. We lead the digital transformation by innovating in leadingedge areas such as artificial intelligence. Finally, we also contribute to peace-building by responding in a timely and humanitariancentered manner to contemporary global challenges such as the war in Ukraine.

Université Côte d’Azur, the host institution of our 2022 U7+ Alliance Presidential Summit, is developing its innovation ecosystem dedicated to smart and sustainable territories.

A major challenge of the current century is to provide our societies with strategies to face the threats, reduce the risks, and promote the well-being of all living species, including humans, in a sustainable way. Observing, understanding, and modeling our planet and its environments are major challenges for the 21st century if we want to enable societies to better manage and control the natural and man-made risks that threaten our planet. In this context, the role of universities is of utmost importance.

Universities have a major role to play in the development of smart and sustainable territories. In 2016, Université Côte d’Azur committed to developing a strong axis dedicated to smart and sustainable territories, fueled by research and strongly embedded in its local innovation ecosystem.

As a university, we were convinced we could be a motor of growth to: • Support transdisciplinary research leading to groundbreaking innovation. • Train new generations to become the leaders of tomorrow. • Anchor academic activities in the socio-economic world, providing applicable solutions in response to urgent issues. • Connect the local innovation ecosystem to the European and international levels.

Smart and Sustainable Territories rely on core interconnections between people, societies, environments, and the Earth. This encompasses a wide range of multidisciplinary fields including the physical, natural, and social sciences. It also requires developing new research approaches that overcome the current fragmentation of research, integrating scientific knowledge across different disciplines and stakeholders, and co-creating scientific questions and projects. Finally, this calls for the need to develop transdisciplinary research that fuses physical, natural, and social sciences, and integrates scientific experts, practitioners, and civil society.

We believe that only such an integrated transdisciplinary approach of academic research can help us understand natural and human environments, decipher their complex four-dimensional interactions (space, time, type of risk, and resilience), and protect them sustainably.

To create a favorable environment to adopt this transdisciplinary approach, the Space, Environment, Risk and Resilience Academy of Université Côte d’Azur was created as a hub for over 400 researchers from 17 research laboratories (archeology, computer science, physics, astronomy, marine resources, to name a few), four national research institutes (CNRS, Inria, IRD, INRAE), one Observatory and two Schools (Mines Paris Tech and Skema). Since 2016, 58 projects have been funded to support this growing dynamic. Recently, the Academy brought together chemists, biologists, physicians, mathematicians, and risk management professionals to develop new methods and criteria to measure toxicological risks in a population and help manage crisis situations.

Training the next generation is a core mission of universities. Academia must use its scientific potential to renew this training to adapt to new jobs and realities. To address this challenge, Université Côte d’Azur transformed its education program to provide agile structures capable of offering training fueled by research to address the socioeconomic challenges of today, which future generations will need to tackle tomorrow. As a result, specific degrees, such as the MSc Engineers for Smart Cities, the MSc in Environmental Hazards and Risks Managements, and the Master of Environmental Management were created. Because “smart and sustainable” is a global issue, dedicated training modules were also created in non-specialised master’s programs, such as the Risks and Sustainable Development track included in the Master of Business Law, and the Eco-citizen Communication, Heritage and Sustainable Development track included in the Master of Information and Communication.

One of the values shared among all partners of the U7+ Alliance is that →

T h e u n i v e r s i t y h a s c h a n g e d a n d t h e U n i v e r s i t é C ô t e d ’ A z u r i s a p r i m e e x a m p l e . R e c o g n i z e d a s a u n i v e r s i t y o f e x c e l l e n c e i n 201 6 w i t h t h e I d e x a n d i t s U C A J e d i p r o j e c t , a n d s t r e n g t h e n e d b y i t s va l u e s o f r e s p o n s i b i l i t y, c o m m i t m e n t a n d a m b i t i o n , t h e U n i v e r s i t é C ô t e d ’ A z u r i s d e v e l o p i n g a c o l l e c t i v e a g i l i t y a n d c a r r y i n g o u t a n a m b i t i o u s p r o j e c t a r o u n d t h e n o t i o n o f a n i n t e l l i g e n t a n d f r i e n d ly t e r r i t o r y. T h i s d y n a m i c i s b e i n g d e v e l o p e d t h r o u g h i t s r e s e a r c h , t h e t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f i t s t r a i n i n g a n d t h e d y n a m i c s o f i n n o va t i o n w i t h i t s s o c i o - e c o n o m i c p a r t n e r s . T h e c h a l l e n g e i s t o p r o d u c e a d y n a m i c a r o u n d t h e o b j e c t i v e s o f s u s t a i n a b l e d e v e l o p m e n t a n d t o t r a n s m i t t h i s d y n a m i c t o c o m p a n i e s , t h e t e r r i t o r y a n d b e y o n d .

D e s p i t e i m m e n s e p r o g r e s s i n u n d e r s t a n d i n g n a t u r a l a n d h u m a n e n v i r o n m e n t s , t h e d i v e r s i t y, c o m p l e x i t y, a n d i n t e r c o n n e c t i o n s o f t h e e c o s y s t e m s t h a t m a k e o u r p l a n e t r e m a i n a m y s t e r y. T h e n e e d f o r f u n d a m e n t a l a c a d e m i c r e s e a r c h i s e s s e n t i a l .

Professor Christophe Den Auwer

U r b a n m a n a g e m e n t h a s b e c o m e o n e o f t h e g r e a t e s t c h a l l e n g e s o f t h e 2 1 s t c e n t u r y. B y 20 50, 70% o f t h e w o r l d p o p u l a t i o n w i l l l i v e i n u r b a n a r e a s . C i t i e s p r o d u c e 80% o f CO 2 e m i s s i o n s a n d c o n c e n t r a t e 3/4 o f t h e e n e r gy n e e d s o f t h e p l a n e t . T h e g o a l o f s m a r t c i t i e s i s t o b e t t e r m a n a g e t h e c i t y a n d m a k e i t m o r e p l e a s a n t f o r i t s i n h a b i t a n t s , i t s e c o n o m i c a c t o r s a n d i t s v i s i t o r s . I M R E D D h a s t h e a m b i t i o n o f b u i l d i n g t h e M e d i t e r r a n e a n c i t y o f t o m o r r o w.

→ academia should not be a passive observer nor a service provider but rather, a solution innovator. To do so, we must provide the necessary opportunities for academia to go beyond the walls of the laboratory and demonstrate that science improves lives.

To this end, Université Côte d’Azur has created the Mediterranean Institute of Risk, Environment, and Sustainable Development (IMREDD) dedicated to smart territory, risk management, and prevention. Taking advantage of the French riviera’s international influence and appeal, and participating in its development, the IMREDD brings together researchers, teachers, students, entrepreneurs, economic partners and local authorities to craft inclusive and efficient solutions for the territory of the future. Examples include the development of a living lab to address local environmental and economic challenges, such as optimizing water use in agriculture and increasing energy efficiency at local ski resorts and greenhouses.

IMREDD develops its activities around four strategic activity areas (SAAs): energy through intelligent buildings/ neighborhoods, mobility, risks, the environment and, across these areas, human beings.

It is imagined and designed around the Smart City Innovation Centre, an open Technological Platform that ensures the effective connections and interactions between fundamental research and innovation. Furthermore, building upon the commitment to smart territories, the Interdisciplinary Institute for Artificial Intelligence Côte d’Azur (3IA) is dedicated to the application of artificial intelligence to smart territories. Within AI for Smart and Secure Territories, the group works to design intelligent systems that should help communities to predict risks, extract knowledge from data, and ultimately report back to users. Areas of impact include predicting earthquakes and preventing forest fires using AI.

The 3IA Côte d’Azur Institute is one of the four 3IA institutes labeled in France in 2019 and relies on six key academic actors of AI in the region, while being supported by local partners including more than 100 companies and start-ups. The Institute has established itself as a unifying force and a local gateway for transforming AI technological innovation emerging from research laboratories into use cases for companies and local authorities, while supporting all citizens to train in or become familiar with these technologies. Since its inception, 3IA has funded a large diversity of projects, including, but not limited to: 3D modelling of large-scale environments for smart territories, territorial security through environmental risk management and distributed dark fiber optic sensing for smart cities monitoring.

F r o m t h e 3 I A s t a n d p o i n t , t h e c o n c e p t o f s m a r t a n d s e c u r e t e r r i t o r i e s r e f e r s t o s u s t a i n a b l e c i t i e s , n o n - u r b a n a r e a s a n d c o m m u n i t i e s w i t h n e t w o r k e d i n t e l l i g e n t s y s t e m s t h a t p l a c e t h e u s e r s a t t h e i r c o r e a n d d e l i v e r p e r s o n a l i z e d s e r v i c e s a n d r e s o u r c e s s u i t e d t o w i d e r a n g e o f b e h av i o r s , c o n s t r a i n t s , a n d p r e f e r e n c e s . S u c h i n t e l l i g e n t s y s t e m s s h o u l d h e l p s e n s e c o m p l e x s i t u a t i o n s , m a k e d e c i s i o n s , p r e d i c t r i s k s , e x t r a c t k n o w l e d g e f r o m d a t a a n d r e p o r t b a c k t o u s e r s .

S h a p i n g T h e W o r l d ’ s D i g i t a l T r a n s f o r m a t i o n : T h e R o l e o f U n i v e r s i t i e s Under the priority “advancing digital progress in an inclusive global order,” the Report on the Policy Priorities for Germany’s G7 Presidency in 2022 states that “the COVID-19 pandemic was a clear reminder of the need to speed up, and also to shape the digital transformation. The approach that countries take at the national and international levels will have a profound impact on innovation, economic progress and prosperity.” The German Presidency’s Report also notes that the production and use of digital technologies that are “embedded in an open, democratic and rules-based order” will have to be strengthened.

It is clearly the intention of the U7+ Alliance to play an active part in future collaborative efforts to shape the digital transformation of our economies and societies and to help develop norms required to ensure that technology is human centric; that is, that it enhances human well-being and capacities at all times.

The U7+ Alliance is strongly convinced, as mentioned in a Université de Montréalled report it sponsored in 2020, that universities can and “should play a more active role in systems of research and innovation, and that this role should transcend their current boundaries.” The U7+ Alliance is also convinced that, as sources of information that citizens and political representatives consider highly credible, universities are well positioned to play the role of trust brokers in the digital ecosystem and engage with its other stakeholders (e.g. firms, NGOs, citizen forums).

Among other things, this conviction led the U7+ Alliance to support the creation, in 2021, of the HAICU Lab (the “Human-Centered AI+ for/by Colleges and Universities” Lab, where AI+ stands for artificial intelligence and other digital innovations). The HAICU Lab’s goals include: (1) promoting high-impact →

→ international, interdisciplinary and intersectoral dialogue and research on human-centered AI+; (2) creating, sharing and promoting best practices, tools and solutions that contribute to embedding responsible human-centered digital innovation principles and mechanisms within the university’s core mandates of research and education (and other key processes like student recruitment) and within society; and (3) developing innovative evidence-informed digital solutions.

The HAICU Lab has already launched a series of projects that will contribute to reaching these goals.

For example, its first book (HumanCentered AI: a Multidisciplinary Perspective for Policy-Makers, Auditors and Users, Routledge’s Chapman & Hall/CRC Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Series, 2023) will provide a solid academic understanding of the many meanings and components of human-centered AI, but it will mostly emphasize concrete examples and use cases to reveal practices, challenges, and opportunities across a wide range of industries, and present lessons learned and promising practices that will inform policy-making and policy innovation. To enrich the academic perspective of the book and encourage discussions between the emerging science of human-centered AI and views from regulators, developers and users in various spheres of activity stakeholders, each section will be supplemented by interviews with key institutional players.

Another key project of the HAICU Lab will address the fact that there’s been an increasing number of academic-industry collaborations in AI in recent years. Recent articles have highlighted the potential benefits (e.g. increased research dollars) and drawbacks (e.g. changes in research directions or restrictions on academic freedom) associated with the establishment of these collaborations. But it’s not clear how researchers and universities, on the one hand, and AI technology firms, on the other, should act, in concrete terms, to mitigate the detrimental consequences of university-firm collaborations while maximizing their benefits. To contribute to addressing this challenge, the HAICU Lab will characterize the relationships established between universities and firms in the development of research in different sectors of activity; it will define the issues associated with the establishment of this type of partnership, as well as the benefits that are expected from them and that result in concrete terms; and, finally, it will identify the strategies to put in place to ensure the international governance of these relationships, in order to maximize the benefits for all concerned parties.

These projects will only succeed because of the applied work conducted and the vast network of relationships established by the 13 universities that are currently HAICU Lab members (3 from Canada, 3 from France, 1 from India, 2 from Italy, 1 from Japan, 1 from Senegal, 1 from the UK and 1 from the US).

To conclude, Georges Clémenceau famously said that “war is too important to be left to the generals.” There is no doubt in our mind that the digital transformations our economies and societies have started undertaking are too important to be left to firms, computer scientists and governments alone. There is a need for universities to co-lead initiatives with the other players of the digital ecosystem. The U7+ Alliance, the HAICU Lab and academia in general certainly intend to collaborate with other stakeholders and make their voice heard loud and clear in the years to come.

It is the intention of the U7+ Alliance, a group that comprises more than 50 universities from around the world, including institutions from G7 countries, to play an active part in future collaborative efforts to shape the digital transformation of our economies and societies and to help develop norms required to ensure that technology enhances human wellbeing at all times. T h e U 7 + A l l i a n c e a s M e d i a t o r f o r P e a c e a n d S e c u r i t y : R e s p o n d i n g t o t h e Wa r i n U k r a i n e In addition to the U7+ Alliance work in creating sustainable infrastructure, participating the in the development of smart and sustainable territories, and innovating in human-centered technology, we are also committed to building a better future through our role as bridge-builders and mediators for peace and security in global conflicts. Upholding the democratic principles that lay at the foundation of higher education, as well as the multilateral rules-based order established within the framework of the United Nations, and the stated “Stronger Together” goal of the G7 German presidency in 2022, members of the U7+ Alliance have long worked to support students and scholars at risk due to conflicts around the world.

Following this pattern of action, in 2022 members of the Alliance have taken a clear stance on the crisis in Ukraine. Shortly after the Russian military entrance on Ukraine’s territory, Presidents of the universities that form the U7+ Alliance have signed a statement standing “in solidarity with Ukraine, the Ukrainian people, and Ukrainian universities, and with all those affected by the violence currently perpetrated by the Russian government.” In addition to this collective statement, member institutions in the U7+ Alliance have individually put out statements and signed resolutions condemning the invasion, suspending relationships with Russian institutions, and reviewing their institutions’ portfolios of investments to cut ties with the Russian state. U7+ members have risen to the global challenge posed by the displacement of Ukrainian refugees. They have created scholarships, fellowships, and residences through a variety of funding sources, such as emergency funds, donations, and existing Scholars-At-Risk international programs, to open positions at their home institutions for Ukrainian scholars, researchers, and students fleeing Ukraine. Universities currently engaged in these programs include the University of Toronto, the University of Montreal, Columbia University, Northwestern University, Freie Universität Berlin, Università degli Studi di Milano, the University of Tokyo, Imperial

College London, University College London, University of Edinburgh, University of Strasbourg, and Université PSL. Northwestern University is offering summer fellowships and the University of Toronto is offering tuition support for current Ukrainian students who cannot return home. Université Paris Saclay has offered accommodation assistance to the families of current Ukrainian students who wish to join them in France. Our German partners at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Technical University of Munich, and University of Heidelberg are collecting donations to support Ukrainian students and scholars. Some of our partners have also extended support to Ukrainians refugees who are neither students nor scholars. University of Naples Federico II is collaborating on the ground with non-profit organizations who are helping refugees crossing the Ukrainian borders. At Imperial College London’s Business School, a team of students, faculty and staff have been working with the French charity Solidarité Ukraine and created a guide that provides practical advice on how French community leaders can best manage the arrival and resettlement of Ukrainian people. Many U7+ universities have also expanded the support offered on their campuses to current Ukrainian students and researchers, as well as Russian students and scholars who, by opposing Vladimir Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, face the potential of political prosecution from the Russian government. Mental health resources have been made available for people of all nationalities affected by the conflict at University of Toronto, Université Grenoble Alpes, and Université Paris Saclay, among others. Faculty affiliated with the U7+ institutions have been offering insightful and unflinching expert commentary since the beginning of the conflict, helping the world understand what is happening. In addition, events bringing together expert voices from both inside and outside of academia have been organized by members of our Alliance and in collaboration with other universities around the world. A plethora of lectures, panel discussions, colloquia, and conversations have covered topics as important as current diplomatic strategies, humanitarian aid, Russian censorship and propaganda, analyses of the Ukrainian and Russian militaries, and the risk of nuclear confrontation. Columbia University has hosted panels with the latest commentary on the war, as well as the status of Ukrainian studies in the academy. The London School of Economics has hosted a series of panels to discuss the war’s impact on current global issues. Imperial College London has analyzed what the war means for climate change. And Seoul National University has hosted discussions about war and gender by analyzing the impact of the conflict for Ukrainian women. In the few months since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, scholars affiliated with U7+ universities have also produced numerous publications that seek to contribute to civic discourse on the war. In blogs, articles, and think pieces disseminated across different media, they have provided expert opinions on the situation in Ukraine from a variety of geopolitical, economic, historical, and social perspectives according to their areas of expertise. Students at our institutions have shown incredible commitment and creativity coming up with gestures of solidarity and gathering material support for Ukrainian people. Students at Freie Universitat Berlin have created an online platform that connects refugees in need of temporary accommodation with volunteers who can accommodate them. Student networks at the Sapienza University of Rome have been collecting supplies to send to Ukraine and collaborating with the Red Cross to raise funds. Marches for peace, vigils, rallies, and other gatherings of support have taken place at Georgetown University, Sapienza University of Rome, Australian National University, and University of Edinburgh. Members of the McGill University students trumpet studio recorded a moving instrumental version of the Ukrainian national anthem. While the alliance has made a demonstrated effort to support Ukrainians and Russian dissidents, we are also committed to supporting values of peace and open societies everywhere. All violence and all wars anywhere on the globe are, at their core, a devastating collapse of respect for humanity. We urge that all refugees fleeing conflict be treated equally and with compassion, without prejudice based on race, nationality, gender, or any other identity, and we commit to supporting our global community. →

S t r o n g e r T o g e t h e r : A R e s o l u t e C o m m i t m e n t t o O p e n S o c i e t i e s Academic freedom is in crisis around the world. The resurgence of autocracy has stripped many universities of the autonomy necessary to fulfill their core mission -- the creation of knowledge and education of future generations. At the same time, the crisis of democracy, evident in rising political extremism and polarization, has threatened the freedom of some university faculty to address controversial topics in research and teaching. In civil society at large, disinformation and misinformation have become rampant. Developing suitable approaches and counterstrategies to counter these developments is of outmost importance.

In line with the G7+ “resolute commitment to open societies and human rights as well as the defence of liberal democracies,” the U7+ Alliance is committed to protecting academic freedom and strengthening scientific communication. For member institutions of the U7+ Alliance, prioritizing the integrity and security of science and research is an integral component of liberal democracy and the preservation of open societies. Given its foundational commitment to academic freedom and its global reach, the U7+ Alliance is well positioned to address academic freedom issues, in full awareness of the very different challenges that universities face in diverse contexts around the world. at every annual U7+ Presidential Summit, setting the agenda for discussions on academic freedom.

Academic freedom has two interrelated components -- institutional and individual. At the institutional level, universities must have the capacity to organize the pursuit and transmission of knowledge free of political interference. Although they vary in their dependence on governments for institutional support and financial resources, even universities tied to the state must be assured ample freedom to execute their academic mission free of partisan political pressure. At the individual level, university faculty must be free to express themselves in the classroom and in publications. This freedom of research and teaching is not absolute. Faculty are expected to adhere to professional standards in their work. And, even in democracies, their freedom of expression has justified limits, as in the case of prohibitions on anti-Semitic and racist speech.

The basic ambiguity in both components of academic freedom -- both must be protected, yet neither is absolute -- can serve as a starting point for a conversation about challenges to the freedom of universities and individual faculty and how best to address them in practice.

Other key issues concern the scope of academic freedom (freedom in research and teaching vs freedom of expression more broadly – on campus and in the public sphere) and the importance of university autonomy from pressures from donors, as well as government agencies. The autonomy of institutions and academics from government interference and the interests of private capital has to be protected in order to guarantee their credibility as legitimate expert vis-à-vis civil society. ■

T h e U 7 + A l l i a n c e i s c o m m i t t e d t o p r o t e c t i n g a c a d e m i c f r e e d o m a n d s t r e n g t h e n i n g s c i e n t i f i c c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a n d t h e r e f o r e p r i o r i t i z i n g t h e i n t e g r i t y a n d s e c u r i t y o f s c i e n c e a n d r e s e a r c h a s i n t e g r a l c o m p o n e n t s o f l i b e r a l d e m o c r a c y a n d o p e n s o c i e t i e s .

The U7+ Academic Freedom Working Group of administrators and faculty, championed by Georgetown University, was created in 2020 and has since been present

Annelise Riles, Executive Director of Northwestern Buffett Institute for Global Affairs, Leader of U7+Alliance Secretariat at Northwestern University Catherine Régis and Jean-Louis Denis, co-leaders of the HAICU Lab of the U7+ Alliance, University of Montreal Gwen Burrows, Executive Director, International, University of Toronto Tom Banchoff, Vice President for Global Engagement, Georgetown University Shayan Khan, Chairman U7+ Student and Alumni Network Cecile Sabourault, Vice President of International Development, Université Côte d’Azur Saranne Comel, Université Côte d’Azur