Driving Global Impact: Fara Azmat’s PRME Champion Journey

When Professor Fara Azmat joined as a PRME Director at Deakin Business School (DBS) in 2016, the university’s engagement with PRME was modest. “Before I came on board, our involvement was mostly submitting SIP reports,” she recalls. But with her deep passion for sustainability and social inclusion, and support from senior leadership, Fara saw an opportunity to transform Deakin’s commitment to the Seven Principles of PRME and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Her dedication paid off when, under her leadership, Deakin became a PRME Champion for the first time - a select group of highly engaged Signatory Members that have significantly transformed their curricula and research around the Seven Principles, while providing roadmaps for other Signatories to follow. Deakin Business School has not only maintained this title for four consecutive cycles, spanning from 2018 - 2025, but also earned accolades like 2020 SIP Excellence Award for reporting. In reflecting on the evolving role of PRME and DBS’s strong commitment to it, Fara also added that the PRME portfolio has been expanded to include two Co-Directors: Associate Professor Ameeta Jain, focusing on Carbon Literacy, and Dr. Ruby Ma, leading Student Engagement. The team is supported by Manager, Quality Standards and Performance Dr. Kylie Bellisini, with overall oversight provided by DBS Dean Amanda Pyman. This expansion reflects DBS’s continued and serious dedication to sustainability and responsible management education.

Creating Global Impact through Collaboration

For Fara, the PRME Champions network is a space where ideas are exchanged freely among peers who share her dedication to community engagement and the integration of the SDGs. “You don’t have to convince anyone here about the importance of sustainability because they’re already committed. It’s a safe space for sharing and peer learning,” she says.

Her commitment to collaboration led to her role as research team lead for the influential SDG Blueprint project, which united nine business schools worldwide to create a comprehensive guide for integrating the SDGs into curriculum, research, and partnerships. This contribution is a clear example of how PRME Champions generate knowledge by the community, for the community, pooling expertise to create resources that benefit the wider PRME network.

She is now an active member of two PRME Champions sub-groups. The first, Champions for Climate Leadership (C4CL), is an initiative designed to support faculty in embedding SDG 13 (Climate Action) into their teaching without requiring deep climate expertise. The project enables educators to continue teaching their core disciplines while integrating climate perspectives through case studies, assignments, class discussions, electives, and curated readings.

The SC4CL is developing a Climate Action Playbook, to be released in December 2025, which is an open-access, multidisciplinary toolkit to help educators embed climate action and literacy in their curriculum. “When educators start teaching climate action, they often lack accessible, practical resources. This Playbook will change that, giving them case studies, frameworks, and tools they can adapt anywhere in the world. It’s about building capacity for educators and students alike to address one of the most urgent challenges of our time.”

The second, the PRME Champions SIP 2.0 Project: Reporting with Purpose, brings together leading schools to share learnings and strengthen the quality and impact of Sharing Information on Progress (SIP) reports. “As a member of this project, I am committed to advancing a reporting system that positions business schools at the forefront of measuring, communicating, learning from peers and amplifying their impact” Fara adds.

Her climate leadership has also spurred local change. After completing her Carbon Literacy Training in 2019, and working closely with her Co-Director, Associate Professor Ameeta Jain, she facilitated DBS’s joining an alliance with three other Australian universities to deliver accredited carbon literacy training for academic and professional staff in 2022. In 2025, this initiative was expanded to include students, marking a pivotal shift from awareness to action.

Fara also added that, together with Associate Professor Jain, DBS is actively contributing to national and regional sustainability dialogue through the Australian Business Dean Council (ABDC)–PRME ANZ Climate Action Working Group and the Australia–New Zealand PRME Steering Group. As part of the ABDC–PRME ANZ Climate Action Working Group along with other universities, they delivered two Climate Literacy Trainings in 2024 across Australia and New Zealand, engaging 116 staff and students, and convened Communities of Practice to advance pedagogy, policy, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Their efforts were recognised with the prestigious Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) Award for Transformative Change in Carbon Literacy in 2024. Fara further notes that in 2025 DBS proudly achieved Bronze Carbon Literacy Accreditation, making it one of only three business schools in Australia to receive this recognition.

Innovating in the Classroom

By embracing the Principles of PRME, it has shaped her own teaching in tangible ways. In her undergraduate Entrepreneurship and Innovation unit, Fara uses the Impactful Five (i5) pedagogical approach to make learning more joyful, meaningful, and creative. Working with her co-chair of the teaching team Dr Andrew Creed she replaced a traditional written assignment with an infographic project, challenging students to design entrepreneurial solutions to real-world SDG-related problems.

“The students loved it,” she says. “It opened their creative mindset while deepening their understanding of sustainability.”

Institutionalizing Sustainability

Fara also highlighted that, in 2023, working with her team, she introduced the DBS Annual Sustainability Awards (across teaching, research, and people and culture categories), which have institutionalized a values-driven culture, inspiring staff to embed sustainability and climate responsibility into everyday work, their teaching and research and creating a ripple effect across the School.

Looking Ahead

As Deakin prepares to apply for its fifth PRME Champion cycle, Fara’s priorities are clear: embed SDGs more systematically across curriculum and research, progress from Bronze to Silver Carbon Literacy accreditation, and expand student engagement through initiatives like the newly formed Student Sustainability Group.

Her advice to institutions considering PRME Champion status is simple: “Just join. You don’t have to be perfect to start. Even if you’re meeting the basic PRME requirements, join the Champions. You’ll grow faster, connect with inspiring peers, and have the freedom to lead projects that truly matter to you.”

For Fara, the role of PRME Director is more than a title, “I feel privileged to be a PRME Director. The Champions experience has given me a global platform, meaningful collaborations, and the chance to make a tangible difference in education for sustainability.”

Interested in joining the 2026-2027 PRME Champions Cycle? Learn more.