Sustainability advocates for a universally shared common vision of progress towards a society that is just, safe and sustainable for humanity. Beyond environmental protection, the concept recognizes the urgent need to improve life quality through strategies that build socio-economic growth and address a wide range of cross cutting issues. While consensus abound that a more sustainable society serves everyone, opinions on what sustainability means and how it can be achieved are diverse. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), through the 2030 Vision and the 2020 National Transformation Program (NTP) outlines an agenda for a more balanced growth and socio-economic development. The extent to which the vision systematically aligns with sustainability principles, however, remains unexplored. This research is a maiden attempt to investigate how much sustainability substance is in the 2030 Vision and the NTP of Saudi Arabia. The Sustainable Society Index (SSI) has been employed to examine the 2030 Vision and the NTP to understand the Kingdom’s commitment to building resilient, inclusive and sustainable societies. The vision and NTP texts were matched against five broad measures and 22 sub-measures of the SSI to identity the points of convergence. While both the 2030 Vision and the NTP align with the SSI measures in some respect, the goals and objectives are, at best, a reflection of the needs, aspirations and context of Saudi Arabia. The paper concludes that the success of the 2030 Vision rests on the active involvement and empowerment of relevant stakeholders at all levels as well as the development of comprehensive assessment mechanisms based on which to measure progress towards sustainability.

Universities are paramount change drivers in bringing about a culture of sustainability in society by setting themselves up as models and nurseries for sustainable development. Thus, assessment of sustainability integration within universities is key to their impact on sustainable development. This study conducted an assessment of different public sector universities of Saudi Arabia based on five components: (i) Teaching and Curriculum; (ii) Research and Scholarship; (iii) Campus Operations; (iv) Management and Community; and (v) Financial Management. The sustainability assessment questionnaire (SAQ) was utilized as a tool to discern the component-wise sustainability assessment for Saudi universities. The outcomes of the survey reveal that, in stark contrast with the universities of the developed world, offerings of sustainability relevant academic courses in Saudi Arabia are still lacking. Most Saudi universities still need to integrate research and scholarship in the area of sustainability; sustainable-campus operations in the current scenario are not sufficient. The results also reveal that sustainability-related projects are not prioritized within universities and sustainable financial management practices are not significant. This article concludes by proposing some recommendations emphasizing the importance of adopting sustainability practices in Saudi universities.

For the past three decades, sustainable development (SD) at higher education institutions (HEIs) has been receiving increasing global attention based on the recognition of their vital roles in fostering sustainability teaching and practices on their campuses and influencing the larger society to embrace sustainable behaviors. As one of its key dimensions, an institutional framework is a fundamental step and indicator of commitment to advancing SD at universities. However, some universities, especially in the countries of the Global South, are either missing this dimension or have inefficient institutional frameworks due to the lack of standard practice or guidance. This study assesses the extent of establishing an institutional framework for SD in Saudi Arabian universities (n = 44). Data were from a desk study and a survey of university websites and analyzed using content analysis and descriptive statistics. The study found that 72.7% of the universities have shown a commitment to campus sustainability by having sustainability visions; 52.3% have established a dedicated office for SD governance, 68.2% are involved in community outreach and 63.6% collaborate with external agencies in SD efforts. Although there is no evidence of specific campus sustainability plans in the universities, 45.5% of them have SD coverage in their campus development plans or strategic plans. Sustainability assessment and reporting are generally lacking. The findings can improve our understanding of the extent of the commitment of the universities to SD and how they communicate their SD efforts through their websites, which can foster engagement in campus sustainability. The study concludes that a sound institutional framework is vital to implementing SD at universities.