NEWS

Through a unanimously approved resolution by the Student Senate, all new accredited student organizations on campus now have the opportunity to affiliate themselves with one or more of the United Nations’ seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

The resolution, which is believed to be the first in the nation, has just graduated from its ad hoc phase to one of permanency, per a vote on Tuesday. In the time since its introduction, 10 student clubs have aligned with an SDG, and the resolution itself will now form a permanent committee as a result of its passage. The committee will be headed by LU/UN Partnership intern Grace Williams, ‘27. Williams, a Programs intern, has been attending every Student Senate SDG Committee meeting this semester, working with members of the Senate to help visualize what incorporating the SDGs into Lehigh’s clubs and organizations would look like. Williams said of the efforts, “It was really interesting for me to learn the ongoing process of Student Senate and how it’s run from an outside perspective. Bill Hunter, LU/UN Partnership Director, was the one who made the initial presentation to the Senate, which led to the bill’s passage, but I took the initiative from there.” 

In addition to working with the Senate members, Williams has also been advising student groups applying for Senate recognition on which SDGs would align best with their specific organization, saying “Clubs on campus now can align themselves with one of the SDGS to broaden their overall purpose and increase awareness and knowledge of how relevant the SDGs are to a wide variety of topics and clubs. Their events can each be tied to an SDG or two and marketed as such to show this connection.” 

One way in which the Partnership has aided in this alignment with the SDGs is through the connection of networks and resources, like marketing in the Partnership’s newsletter and Instagram, as well as access to additional funding to support the club efforts. Most recently, this took form at Phi Alpha Delta’s Prosecuting War Crimes Zoom event. This event was not only a collaboration with the Partnership, but also with the World Affairs Club. 

Phi Alpha Delta, the nation’s oldest Pre-Law Fraternity, just joined campus in the Fall 2024 semester and received Senate accreditation in the Spring 2025 semester. The Sustainable Development Goal chosen by Phi Alpha Delta is Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions or Goal 16. 

The program featured “a dialogue with the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs,” and 40 people were in attendance. The event served as a model for how other Lehigh organizations can create similar, meaningful programming that reflects their commitment to SDG coherence, while also reaping the benefits of engaging with global experts. 

During the conversation itself, Ronja Bandyopadhyay, a representative from the UN Office of Legal Affairs, explained a brief but comprehensive history of the United Nations’ trials and triumphs in its pursuit of prosecuting war crimes. Bandyopadhyay made sure to underscore the value of not just ensuring that those who violate international law are properly punished, but also that history reflects the reality of their actions and the true damage caused as a result. The Office of Legal Affairs has been especially vigilant when it comes to denialism and revisionism in retellings of history, as these can be an early indicator that these behaviors were never acknowledged in the first place, and are at risk of being repeated. 

Although this was only the first event in collaboration with the LU/UN Partnership and Student Senate’s new initiative to align Lehigh University clubs with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, it proved to be quite rewarding. As the initiative progresses, the LU/UN Partnership will continue to aid in connecting interested clubs with UN resources, as well as guiding them in selecting corresponding SDGs. The LU/UN Partnership congratulated the Student Senate for its global vision and looks forward to welcoming all potential collaborations in support of the SDGs.