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U7+ Alliance of World Universities

U7+ Alliance of the world universities global summit hosted by Northwestern. November 2020

U7+ Alliance of World Universities

Convening university leaders to develop solutions to the world’s most pressing issues.

100+
university presidents and leaders
20
countries from six continents represented

The U7+ Alliance of World Universities is the first coalition of university presidents aimed at defining concrete actions universities can take to collectively address global challenges in coordination with government leaders in G7 countries and beyond. Alliance members meet annually to establish a common agenda and identify key areas for coordinated action. Together, U7+ university presidents take stock of their universities’ unique civic and social responsibilities and pledge concrete action on behalf of their institutions to address the world’s most pressing challenges at local, regional and global levels. 

In 2021, Northwestern University was elected to serve as the first Secretariat of the U7+ Alliance.  During its three-year term, the Secretariat will be housed at the Northwestern Roberta Buffett Institute for Global Affairs and convene a series of intergenerational roundtables on climate change, the global gender gap and more. Northwestern leaders and faculty will also play a role in each of the alliance’s working groups dedicated to fulfilling U7+ university commitments ranging from improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions to developing students’ inclusive leadership and global citizenship capacities.