Education for SDGs in the Wider Community

The University of Newcastle has a strong commitment to outreach educational activities that engage the wider community—including alumni, local residents, displaced people, and other diverse groups. These initiatives are designed to promote inclusive, accessible, and lifelong learning opportunities, with a particular focus on sustainability and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

In 2025, the University supported community learning through open sustainability events, local school partnerships, digital health and financial literacy resources, and inclusive education programmes. Its outreach helps people build practical skills and consider how their decisions contribute to healthier, fairer and more sustainable communities.

Sustainability learning for alumni and the wider community in 2025

Circular Economy Grand Challenge: public learning and collaboration

The University’s Integrated Innovation Network (I2N) delivered a series of educational and collaborative activities during its 2025 Circular Economy Grand Challenge. Open to alumni and members of the wider community, the programme explored ways to prevent waste, extend the life of resources, lower emissions and improve sustainable business practices. An online information session took place on 11 June 2025; an expert panel on 29 July explored real-world circular-economy case studies, sustainable design and resource management; and a team-formation event followed on 12 August.

The programme combined practical learning with opportunities to develop solutions alongside students, researchers, industry and community participants. In October 2025, three teams each received a $10,000 grant, a total of $30,000, to advance projects including wind-turbine blade recycling, upcycled skincare and other circular-economy ideas. The University’s account of the completed challenge confirms that alumni and industry were among the groups brought together.

CIFAL Newcastle: learning about the Sustainable Development Goals

As a United Nations training centre hosted by the University, CIFAL Newcastle delivers community-accessible courses such as Global Citizenship and Sustainable Development Responsibility, Sustainable Development Goals and Global Agenda: Vision and Key Opportunities, and Business and Agenda 2030: Value and Engagement. These programmes introduce participants to the SDGs, the 2030 Agenda, international cooperation, responsible leadership, and practical approaches to sustainable development.

The online, self-paced short courses are designed for continuing personal and professional development rather than enrolment in a full university degree. The short-course programme welcomes people beyond the University, including alumni, local residents, displaced people, schools and children.

Education and practical skills for local communities

Children’s University Newcastle

Children’s University Newcastle, facilitated through the University’s pathways and academic learning services, encourages children aged 7–14 to take part in learning experiences beyond the classroom, in their communities and on campus. Children who record 30 hours of activities are invited to a graduation ceremony. In November 2025, the University announced that more than 1,100 children from 48 schools were preparing to graduate through six ceremonies at Newcastle and Central Coast campuses.

Across the programme’s first decade, it partnered with 100 schools and engaged more than 9,300 children, recording over half a million hours of learning in Newcastle, the Hunter, Central Coast, Mid-North Coast and Central Darling. The 2025 reporting also recorded that 22% of participants identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, reflecting the programme’s emphasis on extending educational opportunity to underrepresented communities.

Food, health and financial literacy

No Money No Time is a free, evidence-based nutrition education platform aimed at young adults. Developed by University researchers with philanthropic support, it provides practical advice on affordable healthy eating through recipes, meal plans, meal builders, e-books and podcasts. A March 2025 University report stated that close to one million people had accessed the platform since its launch, reaching hundreds of thousands of people each year. Its culturally inclusive, multilingual resources help make health and nutrition information more accessible.

In partnership with Greater Bank, the University delivers financial literacy education that helps young people make informed decisions about savings, budgeting, credit and debt. The Greater Bank Finance Academy combines school-based and online learning with student ambassador and banking-industry contributions. In February 2025, the University and Greater Bank publicly described this continuing partnership and its practical approach to building financial resilience.

The University’s Greater Bank Finance Lab also describes community clinics for retirees and high-school students covering basic taxation, investment and financial planning. These clinics bring practical financial education to people at different stages of life.

Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids is a community-based programme developed through University research to support fathers and their children with healthy eating, physical activity and positive parenting. Its established format includes a fathers-only workshop, eight 90-minute face-to-face sessions for fathers and children, and activities at home; the University draft describes the education as free. Across earlier programme delivery, more than 500 families and more than 1,000 children have taken part.

Inclusive learning for people from refugee and displaced backgrounds

Through the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Higher Education, the University developed SUPERBE (Strategy Underpinning Participation and Empowerment for Refugee Backgrounds in Education). This programme works with community members and students from refugee and refugee-like backgrounds across the Hunter, combining educational participation, community partnerships, dialogue and access to support. Its public programme description includes eight student gatherings each year where participants can share experiences, meet service providers and discuss learning environments.

The Centre’s early-2025 account reported support for 470 students through activities responding to barriers to educational participation, including those faced by students with refugee backgrounds. This total spans several equity groups, as the Centre works to improve educational participation and access for underrepresented learners. Centre for Equity education activities

Sharing education and expertise beyond Australia

Field Epidemiology in Action and inclusive public-health education

Through Field Epidemiology in Action (FEiA), University researchers and education specialists collaborate with Pacific health agencies to develop field epidemiology training and strengthen local public-health capability. The University’s 2025 staff awards recognised FEiA’s jointly developed curricula and inclusive online learning for frontline epidemiologists, rapid-response teams and One Health practitioners in Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.

The programme also supported a Papua New Guinea field epidemiology pilot in which participants from several sectors graduated after applied health projects. Other examples include a Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) workshop in Solomon Islands, facilitated with the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and the National Disability Forum of Solomon Islands. More than 20 health and disability-sector participants explored inclusive field epidemiology and its benefits for communities. In Papua New Guinea, a GEDSI session with Cohort 10 of the intermediate Field Epidemiology Training Programme examined equity, equality, outbreak response and inclusive community communication.

Research networks and international knowledge exchange

The Women’s Research Engineers Network (WREN) supports professional learning, collaboration and exchange around equity in engineering and the Sustainable Development Goals. In the University’s 2025 recognition of the network, WREN was described as an open initiative with four regional subcommittees, 3,499 members and more than 20 events. WREN also hosts an annual international symposium that is freely accessible online, creating opportunities for researchers, practitioners and students to learn from one another.

GEDSI workshops in Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea

Through local education, alumni engagement and international partnerships, the University of Newcastle shares practical knowledge that supports healthier communities, greater educational equity and more sustainable decision-making. Its programmes connect people with the skills, perspectives and partnerships needed to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Short courses and programs

Global Citizenship and Sustainable Development Responsibility

The course introduces participants to the concept of international and transformative leadership. It provides theoretical and practical knowledge to strengthen your skills and capabilities.

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Sustainable Development Goals and Global Agenda: Vision and Key Opportunities

This course provides a comprehensive overview of the Agenda 2030. It gives a historical overview of how Agenda 2030 came into being. SDGs and their structure will be reviewed in detail. The course will look into particular examples of SDGs implementation and real-world case studies.

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Business and Agenda 2030: Value and Engagement

This course will provide you with an understanding of why the United Nations and the business community are vital to each other to obtain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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