Socio-environmental Agenda: A Planning Instrument to Improve Sustainable Development in University Campi

One of the keys to promote sustainability in a university is the establishment of a solid planning instrument. The Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), which had already built a pact for sustainability on its campus in 2009, is now reviewing its directives in order to add innovative social and environmental concepts, as well as new topics to the agenda. This paper presents the strategy and methodology being used by PUC-Rio to build its socio-environmental agenda with the participation of its entire community. The agenda is based on the principle of community cooperation and having the campus as an example of sound sustainable practices. Interdisciplinary working groups designed the new agenda on principles, diagnoses, guidelines, goals, projects, indicators and monitoring strategies for 6 distinct topics: water; biodiversity; energy; waste; constructed and living spaces; mobility; as well as 5 crossing topics—education, health, communication, information technology and resilience to climate change. The revised agenda intends to strengthen socio-environmental agreements between academia and society, as well as reinforce rules to use the campus as a model of sustainability practices.