Welcome to GCUA 2030!

GCUA 2030 got a chance to ask Tom Gill a few questions. He represent University of Tennessee's part in GCUA 2030. 

Hi Tom!
We at GCUA 2030 are very happy to welcome you to be a part of this important work for a more sustainable future. Would you please tell us a little about the university you work for.

Thank you very much! I am happy that the university now is  an official part of GCUA 2030. 

Founded in 1794, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) is the flagship public land grant institution in the state of Tennessee, with a mission to provide education, conduct research and extend outreach to the citizens of Tennessee, the United States and the world. UTK has 11 colleges including endowed colleges of agriculture, engineering and business, and strong ties to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, just 30 miles away. We are one of the leading recipients of Fulbright scholar awards and nine university graduates have travelled into space. We are committed to providing quality education and life-long learning experience to our students. We are dedicated to discovering evidence-based scientific solutions and applying these solutions to the communities we serve both locally and globally.

How come you became a member of GCUA 2030?

UTK has embarked on a mission to address the United Nations Agenda2030 through becoming a global leader in sustainable development. We hope that our participation in GCUA 2030 will lead us towards greater SDG progress as a collective whole than as individual institutions striving independently. Our university mascot is the Volunteer, so we are no stranger to stepping forward to meet challenges! We believe that pushing our faculty, staff, students and administrators to apply their work towards the global good will tap into our spirit as Volunteers and foster meaningful, sustainable change for the planet.

What are your expectations being a member?
We expect that by being a member we can contribute to a collaborative network to nurture the current and next generation of scientists to explore and develop solutions to Agenda2030. We are excited to collaborate on joint teaching, research and outreach initiatives across all continents and link excellent scholars in multidisciplinary teams to tackle the world’s grandest challenges.

How can your university contribute to the alliance?

We are looking forward to collaborating with all GCUA 2030 members on avenues to address the SDGs. Our collaborative efforts will be led by the UT Institute of Agriculture’s Smith Center for International Sustainable Agriculture together with the UTK Center for Global Engagement. While the strengths of these centers may align more with SDGs 1 and 2, as a university we have expertise across all the SDGs and a commitment to see our university be a global leader in efforts towards Agenda2030.