The SDG Academy is the flagship educational initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

No. The SDG Academy is a non-profit educational initiative that creates free massive open online courses (MOOCs), educational videos, webinars, and other educational resources on sustainable development and makes them available as a global public good. 

If you are interested in pursuing a degree in sustainable development, consider enrolling in an Online Master’s program with one of our university partners. The programs offer rigorous, comprehensive curricula focusing on the pressing issues of our time, taught by leading academics. The programs are fully online and use the power of technology to combine live teaching with the SDG Academy’s online materials.

The SDG Academy is also the host of the Global Association of Master’s in Development Practice (MDP) Programs. The MDP is a two-year graduate-level curriculum in development practice offered at more than 30 universities worldwide. Consult this list of MDP Partner Institutions to see where MDP programs are available.

The SDG Academy is committed to providing both content and community to support education for sustainable development in post-secondary institutions and through lifelong learning. 

Content:

• Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) – To date, the SDG Academy has created nearly 50 MOOCs on sustainable development and the SDGs. They are available for free and can be accessed on edX.org, one of the world’s largest online learning platforms.
• The SDG Academy Library – A searchable repository of more than 2,000 educational videos on sustainable development and the SDGs. It contains lecture videos and case studies from our MOOCs, exclusive video series, recordings of webinars and expert Q&As, and videos curated from select partners. Users can search for content by SDG, subject, lecturer, language, series, or keyword. The SDG Academy Library is a free resource available to everyone.
• Expert Webinars – We host expert webinars and Q&As on topics relevant to sustainable development, including pedagogy and curriculum development around the SDGs. Follow the SDG Academy on social media to learn when these events are held.
• Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs podcast – Hosted by Professor Jeffrey Sachs, the eminent thought-leader in economics and sustainable development, the podcast features conversations with renowned authors about their groundbreaking work in sustainability, economics, history, social justice, and more.

Community:

• Online Master’s Programs in Sustainable Development – The SDG Academy has partnered with Sunway University in Malaysia and University College Dublin in Ireland to offer two innovative Online Master’s Programs in Sustainable Development. 
• Global Association of Master’s in Development Practice Programs – Since 2019, the SDG Academy has hosted the Secretariat of the Global Association of MDP Programs. The MDP is a two-year graduate-level curriculum in development practice offered at more than 30 universities worldwide. 

A massive open online course (MOOC) is comprehensive, educational content provided in a globally accessible, online format. Many MOOCs consist of lecture-style videos, assessments, readings, and discussions. 

To date, the SDG Academy has created nearly 50 MOOCs on the SDGs and related topics in sustainable development. Our MOOCs are hosted on edX.org, one of the world’s largest online learning platforms. Browse our course catalog or enroll directly on edX.

At this time, most of our content has been developed in English. Some course videos include subtitles in additional languages. Please see individual course pages for the subtitle languages available for each MOOC.

Subtitles in English and additional languages are also available for most videos in the SDG Academy Library.

You can enroll in any SDG Academy course on edX for free via the Audit Track. As an Audit Learner, you will have access to all course videos, readings, discussions, activities, and ungraded assessments. 

Learners who want to pursue an edX Verified Certificate will need to pay a fee to upgrade to the Verified Track. Verified Learners who pass the course will receive an edX Verified Certificate signed by the course instructor(s). Please consult the grading policy for each individual course.

EdX offers financial assistance for learners who cannot afford to upgrade. Click here to learn more about the edX Financial Assistance program. 

Anyone with internet access can take an SDG Academy course. There are no age restrictions, applications, or prerequisites required. However, some courses are more advanced than others. Please refer to individual courses for details.

To sign up for a course, you must first register for a free user account on edX. Once you have registered on edX, you can enroll in any available course by choosing the course you want and clicking the “Enroll” button.

Unfortunately, we cannot grant access to courses that are currently closed. Please subscribe to our newsletter or follow the SDG Academy on social media for updates on when a course will be available again.

Even if a MOOC is not running on edX, you can find most of the course videos in our SDG Academy Library. Click “By Series” to find video lectures from the MOOC you wanted to take.

If you are logged into edX, you should be able to access all of your enrolled courses from your Dashboard. If you are still having trouble accessing the materials or logging in, please contact edX Support for technical assistance.

If you are only interested in watching videos, you can find them in the SDG Academy Library.

To earn an edX Verified Certificate in an SDG Academy MOOC on edX, you must upgrade to the Verified Track and verify your identity. Once verified, if you successfully complete the course, you should be able to find a link to your certificate in the course under the “Progress” tab. Consult the grading policy for each individual course.

Please note that learners who want to pursue an edX Verified Certificate will need to pay a fee to upgrade to the Verified Track. EdX offers financial assistance for learners who need support to upgrade.

Not directly. The SDG Academy is not an accredited educational institution and does not grant academic credit.

However, our Master’s Pathway in Foundations of Sustainable Development on edX provides a pathway to accreditation at University College Dublin. Click here to learn more.

Additionally, some universities have allowed their students to complete an SDG Academy MOOC as part of an “independent study” or other academic program. Consult your institution to see if this is an option for you. 

Please note that the SDG Academy does not provide proof of completion or credit hours.

If you are an educator interested in using SDG Academy content in your classes or incorporating our MOOCs into your curriculum, we encourage you to skim this webinar, recorded in 2020, where we offer ideas on how to integrate SDG Academy resources into your lessons, workshops, or trainings.

Yes! In edX, you should be able to download videos, video transcripts, and most reading materials directly from the course platform. 

You can also access course videos in the SDG Academy Library. This searchable repository makes course videos available as standalone resources, so you can watch them outside of the MOOC environment.

Yes! We encourage sharing of our content (with proper attribution) so you can help spread the knowledge.

Unless otherwise noted, content on this site, SDG Academy courses on edX, and videos in the SDG Academy Library are available under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license. While we have always encouraged the sharing, integration, contextualization, etc., of our content, becoming officially “open” under a Creative Commons license sends a clear message that our educational resources are meant to be used in the ways that are most useful to you! We are actively working to move our older courses to a CC BY-NC license, but some items are not yet officially “open.” Please review individual courses on edX and videos in our SDG Academy Library for terms, and contact us with questions if you’re not sure.

If you are an educator interested in using SDG Academy content in your lessons or incorporating our MOOCs into your curriculum, we encourage you to skim this webinar, recorded in 2020, where we offer ideas on how to integrate SDG Academy resources into your lessons, workshops, or trainings.

Please contact us at sdgacademy@unsdsn.org to discuss course hosting or creation partnerships.