ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION: QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF INSTITUTIONAL PRACTICES IN LATIN AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES

Abstract

This article quantitatively examines institutional environmental sustainability practices in universities in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) based on recent indicators and public reports. External evaluation sources – UI GreenMetric, THE Impact Rankings and QS Sustainability – are integrated and compared with UNESCO Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) guidelines. The findings show a sustained expansion of regional participation in sustainability rankings (e.g., 138 LAC institutions in QS Sustainability 2025) and heterogeneous advances in operational dimensions (energy, waste, water, mobility, and education) reported by GreenMetric. Gaps persist between declarative commitments and measurable outcomes, especially in curriculum integration and data transparency. A synthetic index of practices (ISU-LAC) and a reproducible methodological design for annual monitoring are proposed. Implications: Strengthen standardized measurement, the curriculum-operation link, and regional comparability.