ISU entered the world university Impact Rankings 2024 by Times Higher Education.
Impact Rankings 2024 includes 1963 universities, 79 Russian higher educational institutions are listed among them. ISU, along with several other Russian universities, including those with the status of national research, is included in the 1001+ group.
The ranking evaluates the impact of universities on the development of society and the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The 17 goals that were set in the United Nations Resolution adopted by the General Assembly are taken as a basis for the compilation.
ISU Rector, professor Alexander Schmidt:
This ranking reflects not only the university’s scientific contribution to the development of the region, Russia and even of the world, but also the university’s participation in the implementation of the results of scientific work in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The university’s inclusion in the international ranking confirms that the university’s educational, scientific and social projects are being applied in the interests of society. The fact that ISU was included in the THE Impact Rankings 2024 means the university’s achievements in this area are recognized at the global level.
According to the ranking, ISU has shown the best results in six Sustainable Development Goals:
Goal 1: No poverty. Irkutsk State University has a range of programs to support students from low-income families. Financial support is provided to students in case of expensive treatment, students from large or single-parent families, as well as students in difficult financial situation.
Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure. This category evaluates the university’s income from scientific and innovative activities, especially in areas that are important for promoting new technologies and ensuring the efficient use of resources. The development of scientific, technological and innovative activities is one of the objectives of the development strategy of the Irkutsk region. At the same time, ISU is actively involved in solving this problem in several areas, involving both the provision of fundamental research at the global level and the development of applied solutions in the interests of socio-economic development of the Irkutsk region and the Russian Federation, staffing the science-driven and high-tech industries.
It should be noted that ISU is one of the participants of the world-class research and educational center “Baikal”. Since the establishment of the REC “Baikal”, the University has been actively involved in the development of fundamental and applied solutions in the direction of “Agrobiopharma”. In 2021, within the competition of the Ministry Science and of Higher Education of the Russian Federation, a youth laboratory of experimental neurophysiology was established at ISU, supported by the government of the Irkutsk region as an important element of the development of the REC “Baikal” in the direction of “Agrobiopharma”.
The University provides training of highly qualified personnel for a wide range of science-driven and high-tech industries of regional and national companies, including: Rosatom, Angarsk Electrolysis Chemical Plant, Angarsk Petrochemical Company, LLC Irkutsk Oil Company (oil and gas production and processing, construction and operation of the Irkutsk Polymer Plant, professional retraining); a complex of IT companies based in Irkutsk – ISPSYstems, Anychart, ITSumma, Forus, Pharmsintez JSC (development of promising pharmaceutical production) and others.
Goal 10: Reduced inequality. One of the university’s tasks is to create comfortable learning conditions for all students, including students with disabilities. The University has established a Center for Inclusion Development. The tasks of the Center include organizing social life and events, creating interest groups for students with disabilities; organizing inclusive volunteering programs; creating special conditions that ensure accessibility and quality of higher education for people with disabilities. The entrances to all buildings of the university are equipped with special ramps, there are special information signs for people with visual impairment.
In UN documents, the term “reduced inequality” means not only expanding educational opportunities for people with disabilities, but very often it is also about expanding access to higher education itself. Thus, students (the so-called first generation students) whose parents, for various reasons, did not have the opportunity to receive higher education study at the university.
Goal 14: Life below water. Irkutsk State University implements both educational and scientific programs aimed at conservation and sustainable use of the water resources. Firstly, the university carries out several large-scale scientific projects related to the study of human impact on water bodies (most particularly Lake Baikal). The project of long-term environmental monitoring of Lake Baikal “Point № 1”, which is implemented by ISU Research Institute of Biology, is even included in the Russian Book of Records as the longest project of regular environmental monitoring in the history of science.
A number of projects are aimed not only at obtaining new scientific knowledge, but also at the active work with the local population. In particular, one of the significant results of the project to study the impact of microplastics on the Baikal ecosystem was a popular science film posted on social media.
Goal 15: Life on land. This Sustainable Development Goal is closely connected to the implementation of the projects aimed at combating climate change, preserving biodiversity and holding various events to promote environmental responsibility among people of different age groups. In this regard, the Botanical Garden of the Faculty of Biology and Soil Studies, created in the middle of the XX century, is a unique place for the Baikal region. The Botanical Garden has the largest collection of plants in Eastern Siberia: about 5 000 species and varieties, including rare and endangered species listed in the Red Book of the Irkutsk Region and the Red Book of Russia. Educational events, interactive classes and themed guided tours for children, teenagers, students and adults are held at the Botanical Garden.
Goal 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions. The implementation of ISU social mission is carried out within the framework of the third university mission concept and is aimed at effective interaction with the regional community, business and government. ISU sees its social mission in the development of an effective mechanism for interaction between science, business and the regional community to improve the quality of life in the Irkutsk region. The university staff act as experts when discussing programs at the regional or federal level in a wide range of areas, including: improving the investment climate in the region, improving social policy, issues of developing a system for monitoring the anthropogenic impact on the environmental situation, etc.
