Lingnan University rises to 63rd globally in THE Sustainability Impact Ratings Retains World No. 1 in Quality Education Tops 6 SDGs in Hong Kong SAR, and places in the global top 100 for 7 SDGs

Prof S. Joe Qin, President and Wai Kee Kau Chair Professor of Data Science of Lingnan University, expressed his delight at Lingnan’s record rankings in so many categories of the United Nations’ 17 SDGs, and winning six “Hong Kong SAR firsts” this year. As well as “SDG 4: Quality Education”, which topped the chart, these were “SDG 1: No Poverty”, “SDG 2: Zero Hunger”, “SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth”, “SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities”, and “SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals”, all of which represent Lingnan’s recent cutting-edge breakthroughs in SDGs both internationally and locally.

President Qin said “To encourage the sustainable development of higher education in the digital era, Lingnan University has become one of the first institutions in the world to provide free generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools to all faculty and students, and has integrated them into compulsory courses to support equal learning and the responsible use of AI within the university community. Lingnan leads the development of IDEAL-Gen.AI, a free and innovative bilingual teaching platform in Chinese and English, which helps to create high-quality teaching activities quickly and enhance learning effectiveness, and has at the same time co-established Asia’s first UNU Hub on Humanitarian Innovation and Technology at Lingnan University with the United Nations University, so that faculty and students from diverse academic backgrounds can develop humanitarian innovative technologies through interdisciplinary knowledge such as engineering, data science, and design innovation, thereby responding to societal needs and creating tangible social and economic benefits.”

President Qin also pointed out that “Lingnan University has retained its global No. 1 position in the highly competitive ‘SDG 4: Quality Education’ category. This reflects the recent integration of sustainable development concepts into curriculum design, scientific research, and community engagement in order to create outcomes with international impact. These ratings measure a university’s development, and more importantly drive innovation and promote inclusion through rigorous education, making a long-term contribution to the sustainable development of the Hong Kong SAR, the nation, and the global community.’’

THE Sustainability Impact Ratings rate universities from all over the world based on their steps toward achieving the 17 SDGs, and this year 1,646 universities from 116 countries or territories were graded. “SDG 4: Quality Education” was one of the most fiercely competitive, with 1,335 institutions contending.

Lingnan University has made giant leaps in major international rankings recently. In its debut in the THE Asia University Rankings, it broke into the top 100 in Asia, coming 84th, and in the newly released Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2027, Lingnan rose by 120 places to 581st globally, its largest leap in recent years.