Sustainability Literacy and Awareness Assessment Completed at Hitit University
Hitit University has released the 2025 Sustainability Literacy and Awareness Assessment Report, prepared by its Sustainability Office. Conducted with 462 respondents, the study examined sustainability awareness, behavioral habits, and satisfaction with campus infrastructure within the university environment. The report highlights that the findings provide a data-based framework for the steps to be taken in line with Hitit University’s “Green Campus” goals.
According to the report, participants demonstrated strong awareness in some areas of sustainability, while important knowledge gaps were identified in several key concepts. Awareness of the environmental impact of public transportation and bicycle use reached 87.4%, while 81% of participants correctly recognized that water conservation helps reduce energy consumption. On the other hand, the report identified 79.2% misunderstanding or uncertainty regarding biodegradable plastics, alongside notable conceptual gaps related to recycling practices.
The assessment of campus infrastructure found that participants' main concerns were water access and transportation infrastructure. 43.7% of respondents considered water refill opportunities on campus insufficient, while 36.4% pointed to the inadequacy of bicycle lanes and parking spaces. Dissatisfaction with the preservation of green areas was reported at 30.3%. Open-ended responses also indicated that automation systems, such as sensor-based lighting and automatic faucets, were well received, while improvements were still needed in water management, energy-saving culture, and waste separation practices.
In the conclusion section, the report, aiming to reflect the results in 2025, emphasizes that strengthening the culture of sustainability at Hitit University requires both education-based and infrastructure-based actions. In this context, the report recommends expanding purified water dispenser networks on campus, improving visual guidance systems at recycling units, organizing item exchange events to support secondhand use, and more actively using the university website and social media channels for awareness-building efforts. The report concludes that applications that reinforce Hitit University’s sustainable campus vision can become more effective through greater student engagement and stronger institutional coordination.
