ESG - Environmental, Social and Governance

Training on Social Sustainability Aspects

TRAINING ON SOCIAL ASPECTS OF SUSTAINABILITY

Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT)

Estimated Annual Hours of Social Sustainability Training

Staff (faculty and professional employees): Approximately 18 to 22 hours per employee per year, drawn from mandatory and targeted programmes listed below.

Students: Approximately 20 to 30 hours per student per year, across embedded course modules, workshops, awareness campaigns, and co-curricular activities.

Note: These figures are estimates based on programme schedules and course contact hours. Exact totals vary by college, department, and level of participation in co-curricular activities.

1. Introduction

As part of its commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), AASTMT mandates annual training on social aspects of sustainability for all faculty, professional staff, and students. These programmes address the social pillar of sustainability, covering topics such as human rights, equality and inclusion, community resilience, social justice, gender equity, disability rights, peacebuilding, and responsible governance.

Training is delivered through multiple channels: mandatory staff development programmes, embedded academic course modules, annual workshops in collaboration with external organisations such as Caritas Egypt and UNHCR, student-led initiatives, and international engagement events including the World Youth Forum.

This document provides evidence of the breadth, frequency, and social sustainability focus of training provided to both staff and students.

2. Social Sustainability Focus Areas

AASTMT's social sustainability training addresses the following thematic areas, each linked to one or more UN SDGs:

SDG 5, SDG 10: Equality, diversity, and non-discrimination (gender, disability, race, age, religion, refugee status)
SDG 16: Human rights, civic participation, and access to justice
SDG 4: Inclusive education and equitable access to learning
SDG 8: Decent work, social mobility, and fair employment practices
SDG 11, SDG 17: Community engagement, social responsibility, and civic action
SDG 1, SDG 2: Poverty reduction and economic inclusion
SDG 16: Peacebuilding, conflict resolution, and institutional integrity
SDG 5: Gender-responsive policy and women's empowerment
SDG 13, SDG 14: Social dimensions of climate action and marine conservation
SDG 3, SDG 10: Health equity, disability support, and psychological wellbeing

3. Staff Training on Social Aspects of Sustainability

3.1 Mandatory Annual Staff Training Programmes

The following programmes are delivered annually to all faculty and professional staff. Each has a clearly identified social sustainability dimension. Hours listed are per employee per year.

No.	Training Title	Social Sustainability Theme	Audience	Approx. Hours	SDG Alignment
1	Using Compassionate Communication Skills (استخدام مهارات التواصل التراحمي)	Empathetic communication, psychological safety, inclusive and respectful workplace culture	Staff	3 hrs	SDG 3, SDG 10
2	Pedagogical Preparation for Teaching Assistants and New Lecturers (الإعداد التربوي لمساعدي التدريس)	Inclusive teaching methodologies, student wellbeing, equity in academic support	Staff	6 hrs	SDG 4, SDG 10
3	Dealing with Students with Special Needs (التعامل مع الطلاب ذوى الاحتياجات الخاصة)	Disability inclusion, reasonable accommodations, anti-discrimination practice	Staff	3 hrs	SDG 4, SDG 10
4	Career Development in Educational Institutions (التطور الوظيفي في المنظمات التعليمية)	Social mobility, professional equity, fair progression and inclusive career pathways	Staff	2 hrs	SDG 8, SDG 10
5	Entrepreneurship in Educational Organizations (ريادة الأعمال في المنظمات التعليمية)	Social entrepreneurship, inclusive innovation, economic empowerment	Staff	2 hrs	SDG 8, SDG 9
6	Quality Standards in the Educational Process (معايير الجودة في العملية التعليمية)	Educational equity, inclusiveness, institutional accountability	Staff	2 hrs	SDG 4, SDG 16
7	Performance Indicators in Educational Organizations (مؤشرات قياس الأداء)	Social sustainability metrics, inclusion and equity KPIs	Staff	1 hr	SDG 16, SDG 17
8	Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Awareness (per AASTMT EDI Policy mandate)	Gender equality, race and ethnicity, disability rights, refugee and asylum seeker inclusion, age and marital status protections	Staff	3 hrs	SDG 5, SDG 10, SDG 16
9	Disability and Accessibility Awareness (per Disability Support Policy and AEC mandate)	Universal Design, reasonable adjustments, disability rights, accessible campus and digital content	Staff	2 hrs	SDG 4, SDG 10
10	Organizational Agility and Sustainable Institutions (المنظمات المستدامة)	Adaptive leadership, social responsibility, organisational wellbeing	Staff	2 hrs	SDG 8, SDG 17

3.2 Estimated Annual Hours per Employee

Based on the programmes listed above, the estimated total annual hours of social sustainability training per staff member is:

Training Category	Estimated Hours per Employee / Year
Core mandatory social sustainability training (items 1-7 and 10)	~18 hours
EDI and Disability awareness (items 8-9, aligned with institutional policy obligations)	~5 hours
Total estimated annual hours (social sustainability)	~18 to 22 hours

Estimated Annual Hours of Social Sustainability Training

Faculty and professional employees: Approximately 18 to 22 hours per employee per year, drawn from mandatory and targeted programmes listed above.

Note1: These figures are estimates based on programme schedules and course contact hours. Exact totals vary by college, department, and level of participation in co-curricular activities.

Note2: These are conservative estimates based on documented programme schedules. Staff who participate in additional voluntary sessions, external conferences, or inter-departmental workshops on social sustainability topics will accumulate higher totals.

3.3 Policy-Mandated Training

Two programmes (items 8 and 9 above) are directly mandated by institutional policy:

The AASTMT Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Policy requires all staff to be informed of and trained on the institution's EDI obligations, covering age, gender, disability, race, religion, marital status, refugee status, and pregnancy and maternity.
The Disability Support Policy and Accessibility Center mandate requires faculty and academic support staff to complete awareness training on disability inclusion, Universal Design, and the reasonable adjustment process.

4. Student Training on Social Aspects of Sustainability

4.1 Embedded Course Modules and Co-Curricular Programmes

Students at AASTMT engage with social aspects of sustainability through a combination of formal academic modules, annual workshops, student-led initiatives, and international engagement events. The following programmes have been identified as directly addressing social sustainability themes.

No.	Training Title	Social Sustainability Theme	Audience	Approx. Hours	SDG Alignment
1	Human Rights Course (Political Science Department, CMT)	Gender equality, reduced inequalities, protection of human rights, foundations of just societies	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 5, SDG 10, SDG 16
2	Conflict Management and Resolution (Political Science Department, CMT)	Peacebuilding, post-conflict reconstruction, environmental and social peacemaking	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 16
3	Economic Development (Political Science Department, CMT)	Poverty reduction, inclusive economic growth, social dimensions of industrialisation	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 1, SDG 8, SDG 9
4	Model United Nations (MUN) Annual Programme	Climate action negotiation, SDG implementation, international human rights cooperation	Students	~10 hrs (per cycle)	SDG 13, SDG 16, SDG 17
5	Workshops with Caritas Egypt and UNHCR on Climate Change and Gender Equality	Gender-responsive climate policy, social inclusion, refugee and asylum seeker rights	Students	~4 hrs (annual)	SDG 5, SDG 10, SDG 13
6	Sustainable Entrepreneurship Workshop (Caritas Egypt collaboration)	Social enterprise, economic inclusion, community-based sustainable business	Students	~4 hrs (annual)	SDG 8, SDG 10
7	Arab League Day Programme (Regional SDG awareness event)	Water security, desertification, regional social cooperation and Arab solidarity	Students	~2 hrs (annual)	SDG 6, SDG 13, SDG 17
8	Sudan-Egypt Day: Environmental Peacebuilding	Cross-border social cooperation, environmental justice, conflict and peace	Students	~2 hrs (annual)	SDG 16, SDG 17
9	International Women's Day Programme	Gender-responsive climate and sustainability policies, women's rights and leadership	Students	~2 hrs (annual)	SDG 5, SDG 10
10	World Youth Forum, Sharm El Sheikh (Youth-led climate action and governance)	Youth empowerment, inclusive global governance, social dimensions of climate action	Students	~8 hrs (annual)	SDG 13, SDG 16, SDG 17
11	Polisci Weekly Reporter Initiative (Environmental and social policy journalism)	Environmental justice reporting, social accountability, policy literacy	Students	~6 hrs (semester)	SDG 13, SDG 16
12	Go Green Charity Day	Community solidarity, social responsibility, environmental civic engagement	Students	~3 hrs (annual)	SDG 11, SDG 13, SDG 17
13	Field Visits to Egyptian Parliament, Arab League, and Bibliotheca Alexandrina	Real-world sustainability policy-making, democratic participation, civic education	Students	~6 hrs (annual)	SDG 16, SDG 17
14	Towards Clean Blue Seas Workshop (CFAT, in collaboration with Ministry of Environment)	Social dimensions of marine conservation, community livelihoods, fisheries and food security	Students	~4 hrs (annual)	SDG 2, SDG 14
15	By Fisher to Fisher Training (CFAT sustainable fisheries programme)	Social inclusion of fishing communities, community-based resource management	Students	~4 hrs (annual)	SDG 2, SDG 14
16	Human Resource Management (College of Management and Technology)	Ethical workplace practices, employee wellbeing, social sustainability within organisations	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 8, SDG 10
17	Organizational Behavior (College of Management and Technology)	Ethical behavior, workplace culture, social responsibility	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 8, SDG 16
18	Principles of Sociology (College of Management and Technology)	Social structures, inequality, sustainability and society	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 10, SDG 16
19	Marketing and Society (College of Management and Technology)	Ethical consumption, corporate social responsibility, sustainability awareness	Students	30 hrs (semester module)	SDG 12, SDG 10

4.2 Estimated Annual Student Hours

The estimated annual engagement with social sustainability training for students, combining academic modules and co-curricular activities, is approximately 20 to 30 hours per student per year for direct workshop and event-based training, and significantly higher for students enrolled in semester-long modules with embedded social sustainability content (where a single module typically represents 30 or more contact hours).