5-Day 'DIU Sustainability Week 2026' Concludes with a Call for Industry-Academia Synergy and SDG Integration

The five-day mega event 'DIU Sustainability Week 2026' concluded on Wednesday, October 14, 2026 at Daffodil International University (DIU) with the grand celebration of 'Sustainability Day'. The closing day featured high-level policy dialogues, departmental recognitions, and an award ceremony graced by national and international dignitaries.

The day's events began at 9:00 AM at the International Conference Hall (ICH) of the Knowledge Tower with the Opening Session, where Her Excellency Shiuneen Rasheed, High Commissioner of the Maldives to Bangladesh, delivered the keynote address.

This was followed by the first High-Level Policy Dialogue titled "Readiness for a Sustainable Economy: The Government's 3-R Strategy & the LDC Graduation Landscape". During this session, speakers emphasized the crucial role of universities in building a sustainability-knowledgeable workforce to establish a sustainable economy in Bangladesh.

The second Policy Dialogue focused on the "Role of Industry-Academia in Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions". Industry experts discussed actionable steps to bridge the existing industry-academia gap. A major highlight of this session was the presentation by the Director of DIU's Industrial Innovation Center, who showcased the university's product commercialization culture and patents. The industry experts were highly impressed by these innovations and officially invited DIU to collaborate on solving real-world industrial problems.

Between the dialogues, special Departmental Recognitions were awarded to various DIU departments for their outstanding contributions and inclusion in the QS and THE Global Subject Rankings.

At 2:30 PM, the Grand Award and Closing Ceremony took place. Professor Dr. S. M. Abdul-Awal, Principal Coordinator (SDG Affairs) of the Prime Minister's Office, graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. In his address, he highly praised DIU's sustainability initiatives and passionately presented the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to the students. He lauded the Sustainability Week as a "unique initiative in Bangladesh" and declared DIU’s achievements in World University Rankings especially the Sustainability Rankings as a groundbreaking milestone for the nation. Furthermore, he outlined the current government's initiatives, stressing that the active participation of universities like DIU is extremely vital for national progress.

The ceremony also featured Lucia Miadoková from the Slovak University of Technology as a Distinguished Guest. The mega event successfully concluded with the distribution of awards to the winners of the Sustainable Project Competition, the Social Business Exposure Program (SBEP), and the SDG Youth Dialogue, along with tokens of appreciation for the organizing departments and clubs.