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Abstract The objective of this paper is to test a procedure for assessing the adoption of sustainable practices in higher education technological institutions services, known as institutes of technology and polytechnic universities. The model, named Sustainability Assessment for Higher Technological Education (SAHTE), consists of 134 criteria that cover five aspects: 1) Governance/Policies, 2) People, 3) Food, 4) Energy/Water, 5) Waste/Environment. This structure is based on international frameworks and standards as GRI, AISHE, SAQ, GreenMetric, Green Report Card, and Campus Ecology. Seven higher technological education institutions are studied, providing data for testing the SAHTE model, as well as auditing the adoption of sustainability practices. The case studies, besides direct observations and document analysis, collected data from 170 interviews to faculty, staff, and students, and they show the lack of governmental incentives toward sustainability in Higher Education Institutions (HEI). Although, there is no external incentives that contribute for the adoption of best practices as green offices, the studied institutions show isolated initiatives that mostly are related to solid waste management. There is a consensus among the studied HEI directives that their educational programs does not address properly sustainability issues, which create a barrier for the academic community to perceive the importance to develop a sustainability model for managing HEI institutions. Sustainability in these organizations could be approached in the perspective of service operations and connect their contribution to value creation. In turn, that hinders the implementation of selective waste collection, for instance, a basic service operation that is still incipient in at least six of the seven institutions analyzed. In technological education, the correct treatment and disposal of laboratory waste offer a great opportunity to raise awareness among students, collaborators, and the community while preparing students for situations they will possibly face in companies. The results obtained by the SAHTE model may be useful for planning and developing policies concerning sustainable development, especially in service operations at the HEI examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the long-term impact on earnings of attending a tuition-free, top-quality university in Brazil. We identify the causal effect through a sharp discontinuity in an admission process based on test scores. If admitted, low-income students are found to increase their earnings by 26% ten years later. However, admission has a small and insignificant effect on high-income students. The difference between income groups is not explained by educational attainment, program choice, or selection into better-paying jobs. The evidence suggests that most low-income applicants, if not admitted, still graduate from college but with much lower returns to education. High-income applicants who just miss the cutoff, however, can find other opportunities such that earnings trajectories are unchanged. Our results underscore the role of affordable higher education in promoting social mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education institutes (HEIs) have made a deep commitment to prioritizing sustainable development (SD). Their task is to support practices that improve conditions in societies with respect to ecological, economic, and social issues, e.g., tackling the wicked problems of the world. In this case study, which took place at Feevale University (Feevale), Brazil, and at Häme University of Applied Sciences (HAMK), Finland, the following topics were studied: (1) whether there are international and national SD steering policies that might be relevant to higher education development in these particular universities; (2) whether this steering has impacted HEI's own SD policy and steering; (3) whether such in-house operations are affecting SD content within curricula; and (4) how a pedagogic approach influences the incidence of SD-oriented content at the bachelor's degree level. The analysis of policy level data was based on international and national policy papers recognized separately in both universities. As an indicator of the university's level of commitment to sustainability activities, we measured the incidence level of UNECE's SD themes in the curriculum. A hermeneutical approach was applied to the analysis to demonstrate possible systemic interactions between (inter)national SD policy and SD education at HEIs. At HAMK, some evidence was found of a national level top-down steering process in the university's SD activities. At Feevale, the enhancing of SD education is more of a bottom-up process. International steering appeared to be weak in both universities. The study uses unique quantitative data to show how the incidence of SD content in the curriculum is related to the pedagogical approach in each university [content (Feevale) vs. competence (HAMK)]. It was concluded that differences in national SD steering policy and pedagogical approach in the HEI led to divergent curricula structures in relation to the volume of the SD education between the two HEIs. Regardless of such a divergence, an appropriate balance between epistemic and ethical SD competences should be guaranteed for all bachelors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The positive results of manufacturing companies adopting lean production practices certainly impacted the adaptation of Lean Manufacturing principles to the service sector, culminating in what we know today as Lean Office. Based on this approach, many Universities have adopted lean principles and practices to improve their administrative processes and thus add value to their students, faculty and staff. From this perspective, but going further, the present research has the general objective of raising the main sustainable impacts generated by a University through the application of Lean Office in its administrative processes. Methodologically, the research is supported by a case study at a Federal Public University in Brazil, where two service processes will be analyzed, one aimed at students and the other at employees (teachers and technicians). The work is conducted according to the phases and steps recommended by the LEFI Method (Lean Evaluation and Future Improvement), with a significant part of the results obtained by the steps related to Value Stream Mapping. As the main results, it is observed that the elimination of waste in administrative processes at the University target of the present study culminated, only in the year 2021, in the saving of 444,754 sheets of printed paper that, due to all its consequences, indirectly impacted the economy of 1,380,000 L of water, in the non-emission of 43.82 kg of CO2 and the preservation of 67 trees. • The Lean philosophy has been gaining relevance in service processes • There is a synergy between Lean principles and Business Sustainability • The Lean office contributes to the users' satisfaction with university services • Value Stream Mapping is an excellent starting point for eliminating waste • The application of Lean Office in Universities contributes to Sustainable results [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rational use of water can be a powerful tool to promote sustainability on university campuses. Other than resource and financial savings, it aims to support technological and behavior innovation towards a more balanced relationship between human activities and nature. This work reports on a water saving program case study, led by a research group at a university in the northeast of Brazil. It describes and discusses methods used and results obtained. From 1999 to 2008 the program reduced per capita water use by half at the university. It has brought significant resource savings to the institution. Internal results foster the implementation of cooperative projects between the university and public and private partners. All these projects involve engineers, social workers and undergraduate students from different courses. However, internal and external results have been insufficient to guarantee the internalization of the program in routine activities of the university. The permanence of the program still depends on the research group that created and manages it. The paper also presents the difficulties faced in sustaining a program like this at a Brazilian university and discusses future action to be taken to achieve the program's goals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper contributes to research on affirmative action by examining issues of equity in the context of racial quotas in Brazil. We study the experience of the University of Brasilia, which established racial quotas in 2004 reserving 20% of available admissions slots for students who self-identified as black. Based on university admissions data and a student survey conducted by the authors, we find evidence that race, socioeconomic status, and gender were considerable barriers to college attendance and achievement. For example, first-difference regressions involving pairs of siblings indicate that black identity and gender had a negative effect on entrance exam scores. Moreover, we compare displaced and displacing applicants and find that racial quotas helped promote equity to some extent. Nevertheless, the scale and scope of redistribution were highly limited, and the vast majority of Brazilians had little chance of attending college, suggesting that more still needs to be done. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper analyzes the effects of a higher education accountability system in Brazil. For each discipline, colleges were assigned a grade that depended on the scores of their students on the ENC, an annual mandatory exam. These grades were then disclosed to the public and colleges were rewarded or penalized based on them. I find that the ENC had a positive effect on the education and the proportion of full-time faculty and that it increased the number of vacancies offered, applicants and enrollments. Colleges were affected differently depending on grades, ownership and academic organization, changing the distribution of students among them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]