Our University is involved in the development of national government SDG policy by supporting the decision making process with in-depth studies and research which target identifying problems and challenges, developing policies and strategies, modelling likely futures with and without interventions, monitoring and reporting on interventions, by initiating conferences with national and international participation of specialists and representatives of NGOs and business environment for discussing actual topics, or by drawing attention towards sensitive topics in media. Some of these are mentioned below:

Professors from the academic community of ASE are part of the Advisory Council for Sustainable Development: prof. Drăgan Gabriela, prof. Olaru Marieta, assoc. prof. Carmen Trică, according to the Prime Minister Decision 372/2021 regarding the appointment of the members of the Advisory Council for sustainable development. The role of the Commission is to be actively actively involved in drafting documents and providing expertise for the implementation of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development 2030.

Professor Gabriela Tigu within ASE is member of the World Committee for the 2021 – 2025 and 2023 – 2027 periods of the World Tourism Organization within United Nations. World Tourism Organization is the agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

ASE professors involved in the design and creation of strategic documents related to sustainable development. Assoc. prof. Andreea Paul was an expert in the project “Development of the strategic and institutional framework for the implementation of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development of Romania 2030”, coordinated by the Department for Sustainable Development. The Action Plan was approved by the Government of Romania and is being implemented under the coordination of the Department for Sustainable Development.

In 2022, the Centre of Excellence in Foreign Trade within ASE acquired the status of a permanent guest at the Consultative Councils for Tourism, Entrepreneurship and SMEs organized in the first week of each month by the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism. During these meetings, the representatives of the Centre had the opportunity to express their point of view regarding the financing programs administered, managed and carried out by the relevant ministry. (Details here, p.148)

ASE provides the “Public Administration for Sustainable Development” postgraduate study program for the central public administration. The course is organized in collaboration by the Faculty of Administration and Public Management and the Faculty of Agro-Food and Environmental Economics for 150 students, employed in the central public administration. Romania is a trailblazer in terms of creating and promoting the profession of expert in sustainable development. Through this course, experts in sustainable development from the public administration at the central level are trained in the spirit of the principles of the UN Agenda 2030 for sustainable development and to contribute to the achievement of the global objectives, as they are transposed in the National Strategy for the Sustainable Development of Romania 2030.

ASE, through the Faculty of Business and Tourism, launched the postgraduate training and continuous professional development course “Tourist destination manager”. The Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism supports this course directly, through the partnership concluded with ASE in October 2022. The course is accredited by the National Qualifications Authority for the occupation of tourist destination manager, provided by the current tourism legislation as mandatory in the organization chart of a Destination Management Organization.

The Centre of Excellence in Foreign Trade within ASE reflects the university’s involvement in providing expertise in policy making. The Centre is well connected to the Export Council, the Department of Foreign Trade and the Bucharest Chamber of Commerce and Industry and organizes symposiums and conferences on the topics of Romania’s trade balance deficit, respectively the country’s position in the international geopolitical context characterized by the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and the crisis of raw materials, the war in Ukraine and blockages in supply chains. It also facilitates the collaboration with Ministries, such as the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism. The focus in 2022 was in measures regarding the development of short-, medium- and long-term measures regarding balancing the trade balance; identification of financing sources for the development of Romania’s National Export Strategy;  the sectoral approach with priority: the agro-food sector, the chemical industry, IT services. (Details here, p.148)

Bilateral research project between ASE and SINTEF Energi AS, a non-profit research institute in Norway, with the aim of:

• co-creating, together with relevant stakeholders, of a mapping of the biomass legislative and regulatory landscape in Romania.
• analysing the options available at national level to reduce the country’s GHG emissions from fossil fuel energy sources and to improve the performance of existing thermal and cogeneration plants
• analysing the current state of the biomass market in Romania
• identifying the high-potential towns and cities for introducing modern heating solutions
• performing a case study for a coal to biomass industrial transformation process at Paroșeni power plant.

“Big data solutions in demand side management enhancing market strategies and settlement for distribution grid operators” – project supported by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research with the main aim of creating a modular and scalable web-based prototype, composed of two functional modules to streamline the management of electricity network operations, so as to allow the application of Demand Side Management models.

The research project “Analysis of the impact of current uncertainties on the economic environment” aims to carry out a series of in-depth multidisciplinary studies on the Romanian economy to analyse the impact of current uncertainties on the economic and social environment. At the same time, the main effects of these uncertainties were identified, as well as strategic and tactical approaches to minimize the negative effects of these disturbances. (Details here, p.56)

The project “Romanian Business Environment Index 2022” is already a tradition within ASE for presenting the state of the Romanian business environment through the development of the business environment index. The conclusions are useful for potential investors and government institutions responsible for developing and monitoring economic policies and supporting the business environment. In 2022, the Romanian Business Environment Index analysed the responses of 1057 Romanian companies, representative of the Romanian business environment, regarding the level of confidence of the business environment analysed through seven pillars: turnover and market, profitability, investments, workforce and company size; costs and access to finance, interaction with the authorities from the perspective of the company and the evolution of the national and global economy. (Details here, p.56)

Meeting between ASE management and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for the establishment of concrete modalities for continuing the approach regarding the development of the Romanian model in agriculture in the view of a better integration in the EU.

Discussion on ASE’s provision of training programs for Predeal town hall staff and the opportunity to draw up a city development strategy.

ASE participated in the debate on “Challenges of Romanian agriculture in the context of the EU strategy” – “From farm to consumer” and the new common agricultural policy, organized by the European Institute in Romania and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The objective of the conference was to promote the transition to sustainable agricultural and food systems and improve food safety to stimulate production quality.

ASE and the leadership of the Hunedoara country put in place concrete actions for the development of an institutional collaboration. Moreover, the set up of a logistics support center in the field of business management and administration is planned, in order to carry out projects for the business environment in the area.

ASE and the members of the academic community were involved in organizing and participating in events related to the cross-sectoral dialogue about the SDGs, among which:

The International Scientific Conference “Competitiveness of Agro-food and Environmental Economy” (CAFE), the 11th edition, organized by ASE, debated aspects in the field of agro-food systems, regional and rural development, sustainable development, agro-food economy, environmental policy and management. The participants analysed and evaluated agro-food developments and challenges, the strategic approach to competitiveness in the agro-food and environmental economy, as well as the policies in this branch within the framework of globalization and European integration.

ASE organized the the 19th International Conference on Economic Convergence in the European Union, “Paradigm shifts towards the green economy”.

ASE organized the 16th edition of the International Conference on Business Excellence (ICBE) with the theme “New Challenges of the Century. Digital Economy and the Green Revolution”, in partnership with the Society for Business Excellence and the Department of Business Administration, with teaching in foreign languages (UNESCO Chair). CA mar

Workshop on the topic: “Creating the culture of sustainability – premise of the adoption of competitive and healthy economic practices from the perspective of the environment and social responsibility”, organized by ASE. The workshop had a series of debate topics related to: The transition to ESG and the impact on Romanian companies; Sustainability – central element of the business strategy. Accessing “green” sources of financing; Sustainable tourism; ASE’s applied research potential in the field of sustainable development: ASE’s experience; Good practices of ASE partner companies, in the field of innovation and digitization from the perspective of environmental protection and social responsibility.

Participation in the „Blue Talks” Conferences, which also gathered representatives of the Embassies of Portugal, Japan and Norway in Bucharest, the Ministry of the Environment, Waters and Forests, the local authorities, the university and business environment in Romania.

Participation in the BASIQ 2022 International Conference on “New Trends in Sustainable Business and Consumption”, which was held in Graz, Austria.

ASE lobbied for a national export strategy, within the Commercial Diplomacy Week at the ASE which brought together external economic advisors with members of the Export Council, Advisory Councils for Tourism, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, and members of the Center of Excellence in Foreign Trade. 

ASE participated in the conference “Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development III” organized by the Institute of Agrarian Economy in Belgrade, Serbia, with topics related to the challenges in the field of agriculture and rural development in recent years, and the need to support workers in the field to overcome the difficulties encountered.

The conference organized by the Centre of Excellence in Foreign Trade within ASE with the theme “Challenges and opportunities for the business environment in the current international context” during which there were debates on the problems facing the Romanian economy and implicitly Romanian companies in the context the current international situation. The symposium was attended by representatives of the Institute of Economic Forecasting within the Romanian Academy, the National Institute of Statistics, the Export Council, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Department of Foreign Trade of Romania, representatives of the employers’ associations that are members of the Export Council, Chimcomplex, Eximbank, other representatives of the business environment.

ASE hosted the conference: “Romania and leading industries: How we can use the opportunity of the accelerated reset of the European economy”, in which the Minister of Economy and the Minister of Research, Innovation and Digitalization participated. The discussions and debated topics focused on solutions for the accelerated reset of the European economy, under the pressure of re-establishing the poles of economic power triggered by the war in Ukraine. The event was attended by ASE officials, experts, businessmen, teachers and students.

The 7th edition of the international conference “International Conference on Digital Economy” (ICDEc) included sections dedicated to digitization in the age of Covid 19, digital business models for education and health, IT user behavior and satisfaction, digital marketing or transformation digital.

ASE organized the 8th edition of the International Conference on Public Administration and Management, with the theme “Challenges of Digital Transformation and Human Resources Management Reform in Public Administration”.

The “Perspectives of European Business Law” International Conference, organized by ASE, addressed important topics, relevant in the European context: company law, the single market, competition, European contract law, tax law, banking law, labor law, consumer law and law criminal. The conference addressed practitioners, researchers, PhD students, students and academics, representing a platform for debates. Representatives of the main professional organizations in the field participated.

ASE is involved in the project “The Potential for Sustainable Biomass in the Romanian Energy Sector” in collaboration with the non-profit research institute SINTEF Energi AS in Norway on the topic of GHG emissions from fossil fuel energy sources, improvement of the performance of existing thermal and cogeneration plants, using sustainable biomass.

The Faculty of Accounting and Management Information Systems within ASE is part of CEEPUS (Central European Network for Sustainable and Innovative Economy), the regional network dedicated to SDGs.

ASE is part of several projects developed in consortium, in which the topics of sustainability are targeted, such as (Details here, p.85):

• Erasmus+ KA2 – Strategic Partnership Project 2020-1-IS01-KA203-065832 – “Teaching Institutional Resilience and Prompt Reaction to Crisis: Good Governance Experiences in Europe” 
• Erasmus+ KA2 – Strategic Partnership Project 2020-1-EE01-KA203-077886 –” Joint Master’s Curriculum in Rural Community Development”
• Erasmus+ KA 2 – Project 2020-1-TR01-KA202-092185 – “The RURALTOUR: A Trading Programme For Sustainable Rural Tourism”
• Erasmus+ KA 2 – Project 2020-1-TR01-KA226-HE097737: “A Digital Learning Platform for Generation Z: Passport to IFRS”
• Erasmus+ KA 2 – Project 2021-1-IT02-KA220-HED-000023199: “Data Science in Human & Social Science for Women Empowerment “
• Erasmus+ KA 2 – Project no. 2022-1-IT02-KA220-HED-000088742: “Promoting Resilience and Employability in university”
• Erasmus+ KA2 – Strategic Partnership Project 2020-1-RO01-KA203-080368, “Flexibility and Resilience in Digital Transformation and Intelligent Automation – Advanced Skills and Tools for Academia and Entrepreneurs”

ASE is part of the project “Boosting the Blue Economy in the Black Sea Region by Initiating a Business Collaboration Framework in the field of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Coastal and Maritime Tourism and Maritime Transport”, aiming to aims to develop a collaboration framework that will bring together Blue Economy stakeholders in EU and eligible non-EU Black Sea countries to identify and tackle local capacity building needs to boost innovation, digitalization and investment in the Black Sea Blue Economy with the main focus on Fisheries and Aquaculture, Coastal and Maritime Tourism and Maritime Transport.

The project “The potential for starting and developing a business for integrated technology based on heat pumps (HP), thermal energy storage and smart control systems in order to enable the decarbonization in Romania”, highlights the existing potential in Romania for the implementation of integrated systems with heat pumps in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 
Within the project, studies were developed on the potential of the heat pump market in Romania and the main companies active in this market, as well as the existing legislative framework. Also, case studies were developed, in which the energy profiles of public buildings in Crucea village, Tulcea and Craiova municipalities, as well as the ASE, were analyzed. For the objectives selected based on the technical and economic efficiency criteria, integrated system solutions based on heat pumps were proposed.

ASE participated in the project “Empowerment through liquid Integration of Migrant Youth in vulnerable conditions (MIMY)”, meant to better understand and support the liquid integration processes of young migrants in vulnerable conditions in Europe and increase social and economic benefits of and for them.

ASE organized the debate with the topic “Vision, resilience, transformation – an agenda for Romania 2030“, held in partnership with the Romania 2030 Association and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation. The Deputy Secretary General of NATO also participated in the event. The rector of ASE spoke about ASE’s commitment to identify the problems facing our country’s economy and to offer scientifically based solutions to solve them.

ASE organized the International Knowledge Fair, the 7^th edition, on the topic “Universities and sustainable development objectives”. The event benefited from the participation of academics from Belgium, Canada, Italy, Great Britain, Romania, the United States of America, together with international students and partners from the business environment and various institutions, such as: the European Association of Regional Sciences – ERSA, the Government of Romania, the Network of Universities from the Capitals of Europe – UNICA, and included debates on various topics regarding sustainability. The presentation of the Gender Equality Plan of ASE 2022-2030 also took place during the event.

Book as a result of international collaboration and research:

• “Social Innovation in Higher Education. Landscape, Practices, and Opportunities”, Eds. C. Paunescu, K.L. Lepik, and N. Spencer, Springer, 2022
• “The management of protected natural areas. Case study: The Management of the Razelm-Sinoe Lagoon System, a component of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve”, authors: Albert Scrieciu, Bogdan Chiripuci, Veronica Toza, ASE 2022 – a book that brought up topics of reflection and study of urgent relevance: sustainable development, protected natural areas, the Danube Delta.

ASE has a tradition in partnering with non-governmental organisations for providing internships, establishing volunteering programmes and carrying out joint research programs or adapting the educational output to the needs of the labour market, promoting sustainable development in the community and others. Among them, there are:

ASE concluded a collaboration agreement with the PartNET Association – Partnership for Sustainable Development, for the selection and training of the target group, as well as the involvement of ASE experts in teaching courses within the “SMART STUDENT – Innovative students, young entrepreneurs” project.

As a result of the cooperation in recent years between the Coalition for the Circular Economy – CERC and ASE, the Faculty of Agri-Food and Environmental Economics, started in 2022 the Master’s Program Sustainable Development of Businesses and Economic Organizations, whose main component is Circular Economy.

The Romanian Farmers Club, which is the non-profit association of successful farmers in Romania, financed the study on “The role of biomass in environmental conservation, rural development and resilience of agricultural farms”, carried out by the Faculty of Agri-Food and Environmental Economics within ASE and USAMVBT.

The representatives of the NGO Embassy of Sustainability in Romania participated in the course of “Sustainable business ethics and social responsibility of organizations”, within the master of Sustainable development of businesses and economic organizations, and discussed with the students about CSR challenges in Romania, greenwashing and the transition to a sustainable economy of EU member states.

ASE has introduced the elective course “Agro-food consumer protection” into the curricula, following the collaboration with InfoCons – Organization for Consumer Protection, which is a partner of the Faculty of Agri-Food Economics and the Environment. This will facilitate the adaptation of ASE’s graduates to the demands of the labour market.

ASE concluded a partnership agreement with SC G.S. TRAINING SERV SRL, in order to facilitate the implementation of the project “Start in innovative entrepreneurship in the SE region”.

The Agrifood and Environmental Economics Club reunite students with interests in climate change and environmental economics within ASE for developing activities meant to improve progress in achieving SDGs.

The annual event “The NGO’s night” provided ASE students with the opportunity to get to know the student associations within ASE, to visit the headquarters and talk with their representatives about what volunteering means and how they can take advantage of all the opportunities that student life offers. More than 600 students interacted with USASE, ASCIG, SISC, BOS, VIP, AIESEC, ECOTUR, AEGEE, ASD, ASEAM, ASER volunteers.

 The development, in collaboration with the ASE Alumni Association, of an online platform intended for university graduates, which will facilitate access and interaction between alumni, including representatives of public and private economic organizations, external partners of the organization, and students.

The Research Centre for Sustainable Development within ASE was established in 2022, as a mean to enhance education for both the academic community and the wider public.

The UNESCO Chair for Business Administration in foreign languages is the main academic department providing the study programs at the Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages. Through the existing network, the UNESCO Chair within ASE contribute to addressing pressing challenges and contributing to the development of societies acting as think-tanks and bridge-builders between academia, civil society, local communities, research and policy-making. Thus, ASE is part of the global higher education and research community and joined forces with UNESCO to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Advisory Council of ASE is formed by the representatives of the economic and social environment with the aim of encouraging research and educational events and project, on current and interesting topics, which offer viable and optimal solutions to the challenges that arise in the economy. (Details here, p.99)

ASE also went through a process of improving the quality of study programs in order to concretely respond to the requirements of student training for the labour market, creating new master’s degree programs, in the fields of national and international interest. For example, ASE is the first and only non-technical university in Romania which has piloted an international energy Master Programme (the Energy MBA), enabling early- and mid-career professionals to acquire the needed skills in a field with increasingly higher complexity.

Accenture Romania expressed the intention to be more involved in the formal and informal training of ASE students. Gianrodolfo Tonielli, country manager director Accenture Romania, visited the university for establishing the strategy of Accenture involvement in providing training for students.

ASE has several dedicated courses that address sustainability and the SDGs, both mandatory and electives:

Mandatory:

The UNESCO Chair for Business Administration in foreign languages within ASE is focused on addressing pressing challenges and contributing to the development of societies, sustainability and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) being one of the most important topics. The chair manages 138 subjects taught in English, French and German in the Faculty of Business Administration in Foreign Languages bachelor and masters’ programs, as well as research and consultancy projects.

Courses during the bachelor degree that present SDGs or are focused on sustainability: Environmental Management, European Policies – Environmental Policy, European Governance – Green Deal, Ecological Policies, European Models of Spatial Planning, Integrated Sustainable Development, Organization, arrangement and development of Romania’s space, which are organized within the Faculty of Public Administration and Management. The course in Entrepreneurship and Consulting in Rural Economy, within the Faculty Agri-Food and Environmental Economics.

Full degrees:

Master programme in Entrepreneurship and Business Administration in Energy.  

Master’s program in Ecological Economics within the Faculty Agri-Food and Environmental Economics.

Master’s program in the Management of Rural and Regional Development Projects within the Faculty Agri-Food and Environmental Economics.

Master’s program in Sustainable Development of Businesses and Economic Organizations.

The Master’s programs in Accounting, Auditing and Management Informatics and Accounting, Auditing and Management Informatics have a discipline aimed at studying the impact of the SDG on corporate reporting.

Electives:

Elective course on Sustainable Development within the Faculty Agri-Food and Environmental Economics

Postgraduate programmes:

Collaboration between the Faculty of Administration and Public Management and Faculty Agri-Food and Environmental Economics for providing the course “Public administration for sustainable development” for central public administration employees.

Faculty of Administration and Public Management: “Management of smart cities” and “Public administration for sustainable development”.

Faculty of Agri-Food and Environmental Economics: “Economy And Waste Management”.

Faculty of Management: “Modern governance and local development”, “Eco-responsible IT systems in the sustainable organization”.

The Faculty of Accounting and Management Information Systems developed the project “The implications of the sustainability reporting on the accounting profession”, in which it enhances partnerships with national and international professional associations and organizations to strengthen sustainability reporting and promote education in the area of sustainability reporting.

ASE is providing the MOOC course Sustainable Rural Social Entrepreneurship, as part of as a part of the Erasmus+ project Joint Master’s Curriculum in Rural Community Development (RuralCOM).

Faculty of Agri-food and Environmental Economics in partnership with the National Agency of the Mountain Region, organized a Professional Training Program Regarding Local Gastronomy Points.

ASE is yearly organizing the interdisciplinary competition on economic topics “Today’s students, tomorrow’s professionals”, which is as interdisciplinary competition on economic topics addressed to all pupils in final years of high school for harnessing the theoretical knowledge in economics.

ASE has distance learning centers in different regions of the country, such as the cities of Tulcea and Deva, where projects for the business environment or courses for the public administration in the region are organized, in addition to the standard distance learning courses. Also, ASE has two professional training centres, in Predeal and Covasna, where activates educational hubs for the purpose of training practical skills are active.

 “Challenges for 2030: Economy digitalization and the energy revolution” Summer School took place in Constanta and was intended as a program for those who want to learn more about how economies are transforming in the context of web 3.0 and the transition to the “green economy”.

“Advanced data analysis tools applied in the field of sustainable development” – Summer School took place in Covasna and involved debates and topics the field of sustainability, the use of advanced data analysis tools to improve environmental problems and energy security.

“Health and beauty through Tourism” Summer School took place in Băile Tușnad. The students carried out the project “Băile Tușnad resort promotion plan among young people using digitalization” as a tool for improving the visibility of the region.