Sustainability Rankings
Times Higher Education Impact Ranking
First launched in 2019, the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings focus on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Palacký University has been listed in this ranking since its inception four years ago, when UP was ranked 101st–200th out of 467 evaluated institutions. In the most recent edition for 2023, the ranking already includes 1,591 universities, among which Palacký University is ranked 301st-400th. This ranking also means the third place in the Czech Republic, just behind Charles University and the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, which together hold the shared position of the Czech number one. places. This means shared status of Czech number one together with Charles University in Prague.
Palacký University Olomouc – Times Higher Education Impact Ranking 2023 | |||||
Rank | University | SDG | |||
201–300 | Charles University | 3 | 8 | 16 | 17 |
201–300 | Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU) | 2 | 8 | 12 | 17 |
301–400 | Palacký University Olomouc | 3 | 4 | 16 | 17 |
401–600 | Masaryk University | 3 | 4 | 16 | 17 |
401–600 | VSB – Technical University of Ostrava | 7 | 8 | 16 | 17 |
1001+ | Anglo-American University | 5 | 8 | 16 | 17 |
1001+ | University of Chemistry and Technology Prague | 5 | 13 | 14 | 17 |
1001+ | University of West Bohemia in Pilsen | 3 | 8 | 9 | 17 |
To be included in the overall ranking, a mandatory SDG 17 had to be satisfied, plus three other optional SDGs. If data for more SDGs were provided, the overall ranking was calculated from the top three scores. In the 2023 Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, UP achieved its best results in SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 4 (Quality Education), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions ) – as well as in the mandatory SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals).
Palacký University Olomouc – Times Higher Education Impact Ranking 2023 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
SDG |
| Score | Rank (World) | Rank |
3 | Good Health and Well-being | 67,4 | 301-400 | 2-3 |
4 | Quality Education | 65,8 | 201-300 | 2 |
5 | Gender Equality | 49,6 | 401-600 | 1-2 |
8 | Decent Work and Economic Growth | 51,5 | 401-600 | 4 |
9 | Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure | 48,1 | 400-600 | 3 |
11 | Sustainable Cities and Communities | 56,6 | 301-400 | 2-3 |
16 | Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions | 62,7 | 301-400 | 3 |
17 | Partnerships for the Goals | 68,4 | 401-600 | 3-4 |
The top world institution in fulfilling the United Nations’ sustainable development goals for 2023 is Western Sydney University, Australia. The complete rankings are available here.
QS World University Rankings: Sustainability
QS World University Rankings: Sustainability is a ranking aimed at comparing universities on the sustainability of their operations and has been published by Quacquarelli Symonds since 2022.
In the second edition, entitled QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2024, the methodology has been modified, which includes, among other things, the division of the rankings into three basic categories compared to the original two last year. The individual categories and their weighting on the final ranking are shown in the table below:
Category | Overall Weight |
Social Impact | 45 % |
Environmental Impact | 45 % |
Good Governance | 10 % |
The QS Sustainability Rankings are a combination of input data from participating universities and Elsevier data, publicly available via national statistics or third-party assessments, for example.
| Overall Rank |
| |
Charles University | 161-170 | ||
Masaryk University | 281-300 | ||
Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague | 321-340 | ||
Palacký University | 451-500 |
Despite a twofold increase in the number of ranked universities, Palacký University Olomouc managed to improve its position to the overall 422nd place, which is formed as a result of the above-mentioned three categories. Palacký University performed best in the Good Governance area (187th position), which focuses on the management and governance of the university based on ten specific indicators. Among Czech universities, it holds third place in this area and even second place among AURORA partners.
In the Social Impact assessment, the university is evaluated on the basis of 5 indicators focusing on equality, knowledge transfer, education, employment and wellbeing. In the Social Impact section, UP ranks 488th, with its top-ranked indicators in the Social Impact area being Health & Wellbeing (221st), assessing the institution's commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of humanity at large (through research) and of its staff and students, and Knowledge Exchange (333rd), telling how institutions collaborate in research, share knowledge and stimulate educational growth. The Health & Wellbeing indicator is also the best in the whole country.
The last category evaluated is Environmental Impact, in which Palacký University Olomouc ranks 539th. This environmentally focused category is based on three indicators assessing sustainability, teaching and research. Here, UP performed best in Environmental Sustainability (409th place). In contrast, the indicator focusing on Environmental Education, which assesses whether graduate and professional jobs in Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences have a good reputation in the community and whether sustainability topics are part of the curriculum, is the biggest weakness.
While only 4 Czech universities were ranked in last year's Sustainability Rankings 2023, 10 Czech universities are included in the 2024 rankings. The number one for this year is Masaryk University in Brno, which surprisingly surpassed even the traditional Czech number one, Charles University. This is followed by the third place of the Czech University of Agriculture in Prague, which is not a big surprise given its focus. The fourth place belongs to Palacký University Olomouc, not only in the Czech comparison but also among the partner universities of the AURORA alliance.
QS Sustainability Ranking 2024 | Overall rank | Environmental Impact | Social Impact | Good Governance |
| |
Masaryk University | 161 | 215 | 186 | 117 | ||
Charles University | 172 | 245 | 180 | 76 | ||
Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague | 323 | 183 | 610 | 418 | ||
Palacký University Olomouc | 422 | 539 | 488 | 187 | ||
Czech Technical University in Prague | 801-820 | 954 | 836 | 606 | ||
University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice | 801-820 | 832 | 1001+ | 267 | ||
VSB - Technical University of Ostrava | 841-860 | 761 | 1001+ | 603 | ||
University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague | 901-920 | 832 | 1001+ | 599 | ||
Brno University of Technology | 921-940 | 839 | 955 | 1001+ | ||
Mendel University in Brno | 1201+ | 1001+ | 1001+ | 1001+ |
The absolute world leaders are the University of Toronto in Canada, the University of California, Berkeley in the USA and the University of Manchester in the UK.
UI GreenMetric World University Rankings
UI GreenMetric World University Rankings is the first international ranking since 2010 that assesses how well universities are developing their infrastructure and education with respect to the environment and sustainability principles.
Palacký University Olomouc participated at this ranking for the first time in 2021, when it was ranked 642nd out of 956 universities from 80 countries. In 2022, UP moved up 100 places to rank 546th out of 1,050 universities worldwide. In 2023, Palacký University improved again and ranked 427th out of almost 1200 universities from all over the world. As in the previous year, UP defended its fourth place among the six Czech universities ranked:
Ranking (2023) | Czech university | Total points 2022 | Total points 2023 |
36th | Czech University of Life Sciences Prague | 8600 | 8800 |
119th | Masaryk University | 8100 | 8235 |
361st | Mendel University | 6360 | 7010 |
427th | Palacký University Olomouc | 5735 | 6695 |
486th | University of Hradec Králové | 5510 | 6430 |
845th | Tomas Bata University in Zlín | 4620 | 4700 |
The ranking focuses on six main areas: Infrastructure, Energy and Climate Change, Waste, Water, Transportation, and Education and Research. Between 5 and 20 indicators are to be completed in each of these areas, accompanied by evidence such as a photograph, a link to a website, and a description. The rankings have newly included inquiries concerning organic waste and e-waste management. This enabled UP once again to receive the best ranking in the area of waste, mainly due to its well-developed management of organic and toxic waste – in five out of six questions in this area, UP received the maximum score. The number of green spaces on the campuses, such as the park near the UP Faculty of Science building at the Envelopa campus and the UP Centre for Education and Science Park on the Šlechtitelů Street Campus, as well as the pedestrian paths covering the parks and the UP campus, also resulted in extra points. Surprisingly, the electricity consumption per capita at the university was also positively evaluated. Questions on sustainability strategy and sustainability reports were also newly included, which improved UP’s performance in education and research, and earned it additional points. Acknowledged were also disciplines whose curriculum includes sustainability and climate change issues.
University | Infrastructure | Energy and | Waste | Water | Transportation | Education |
CULS | 1150 | 1650 | 1725 | 1000 | 1500 | 1775 |
MU | 1010 | 1550 | 1575 | 850 | 1600 | 1650 |
MENDELU |
| 885 | 1425 | 650 | 1360 | 1550 |
UP | 720 | 1075 | 1650 | 800 | 1150 | 1300 |
UHK | 60 | 1285 | 1575 | 460 | 1275 | 975 |
UTB | 590 | 585 | 1200 | 550 | 700 | 1075 |
All in all, universities in the Netherlands and in the United Kingdom have performed best. Traditionally, first place went to Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands, followed by the UK’s Nottingham Trent University, and the top three most environmentally friendly schools were complemented by the German Umwelt-campus Birkenfeld. More information can be found here.