Shaping sustainability responsibly

Our activities are not limited to our own organisation, but are also demonstrated by our accession to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and our memberships

• with the UN Global Compact Network Austria,
• at respACT - austrian business council for sustainable development - Austria's largest network for responsible business,
• in the "Alliance for Sustainable Universities" (since Oct. 2021),
• as well as in the representation of the tertiary education sector in the Board (former Steering Committee) of the Global Compact Network Austria.

By joining the UN Global Compact, the UAS for Business & Society BFI Vienna supports the ten principles of responsible action in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, as well as the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our activities at the University of Applied Sciences, as well as our degree programmes and the Executive Programme MSc Sustainability & Responsible Management reflect this.

In June 2025, the UAS for Business & Society BFI Vienna completed its first greenhouse gas inventory (base year 2023) using ClimCalc, an Excel-based tool developed for Austrian universities and higher education institutions to calculate GHG emissions – the result is shown in the graph.

The calculation tool was developed as part of the project ‘ClimCalc – Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Reduction at Austrian Universities and Higher Education Institutions’ by the ‘Climate-Neutral Universities & Higher Education Institutions’ working group (consortium: Centre for Global Change and Sustainability (BOKU Vienna), Science Technology and Society Unit (Graz University of Technology), Federal Environment Agency GmbH) as part of the Alliance for Sustainable Universities in Austria. The GHG inventory provides universities and higher education institutions with an insight into the areas where the majority of their GHG emissions originate, enables them to monitor trends over the years, and allows them to implement measures aimed at reducing CO₂ emissions. Accordingly, the GHG inventory is now being analysed in a further step, and proposals for measures to reduce CO₂ emissions are being gathered. The UAS for Business & Society BFI Vienna will compile the GHG inventory every two years.

Our second Communication on Engagement report again focuses on four areas that we have set ourselves as targets for support - governance, teaching, research and events:

University of Applied Sciences BFI Vienna – Communication on Engagement_032021 | UN Global Compact

Under the title "Comprehensive Implementation of Sustainability at the University of Applied Sciences", we presented our commitment to continuously expand and implement sustainability in teaching, research, governance and events and thus achieved 2nd place in the category "Structural Anchoring".

In addition, as a member of the Alliance for Sustainable Higher Education (BNH), we were awarded 2nd place in the category "Regional Cooperation" together with the 12 other alliance partners from across the universities.

Here you can find more information on the topic of sustainability and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

Our UAS has specified its principles and contribution in the area of CSR and sustainability in the sustainability strategy "Sustainability Policy UAS for Business & Society BFI Vienna. Responsibility Management at the UAS BFI Vienna" (March 2019).