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DURHAM, N.C. – 91��������’s Nicholas School of the Environment has joined the United Nations Global Compact’s (PRME) initiative.

PRME is a worldwide effort aimed at training future generations of responsible leaders by embedding the core values of corporate sustainability into universities’ educational, research and campus practices.  

More than 650 leading business and management schools from more than 80 countries participate in the initiative. 

The Nicholas School is the first school of the environment invited to join it.

“By becoming a PRME signatory, we are making a long-term commitment to advancing values such as sustainability, responsibility and ethics in our teaching, research and thought leadership,” says Deborah Gallagher, director of professional studies and chair of the Master of Environmental Management (MEM) concentration in Business & Environment at the Nicholas School. 

Membership in PRME will afford Nicholas School students and faculty new opportunities to collaborate with peers from other member institutions on corporate sustainability and sustainable development research, and to present their findings at high-level forums, Gallagher says. 

“PRME membership opens new doors for our students and faculty to showcase their applied research to global leaders and forge stronger connections with corporations that participate in the ,” she says. “This can lead to new employment or internship opportunities for students, and new research and teaching resources for faculty.” 

As representatives of a PRME signatory, faculty who attend the annual meeting of the Alliance for Research on Corporate Sustainability will have access to data from partnering corporations. They will also have year-round access to innovative teaching tools and frameworks posted on a members-only section of the PRME website. 

“As the core values of corporate leadership and environmental leadership become increasingly entwined, we’re seeing more and more students who are interested in careers where they can help companies implement practices that benefit people, our planet and profits,” says Jeff Vincent, Stanback Dean of the Nicholas School. 

“Our school launched a new MEM concentration in Business & Environment this year to meet this growing demand,” Vincent says. “Our membership in PRME augments our curriculum by making a world of new resources available to our faculty and students.”  

To learn more about the opportunities and resources available through PRME, contact Gallagher at deb.gallagher@duke.edu.

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