What SDG Academy does

SDG Academy is the flagship education and training initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), producing free educational resources on the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and global sustainable development. Its core product is a catalog of 50+ Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) delivered through the edX platform, supplemented by the SDG Academy Library — a searchable repository of 1,800+ educational videos built on Kaltura — and a Global Classroom live, 14-week web-based course originally initiated at Columbia University's Earth Institute in 2008. Adjacent offerings include the Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs podcast, the Mission 4.7 Education for Sustainable Development initiative co-founded with the Ban Ki-moon Centre and Global Schools Program, and Special Issue Journals with academic publishers.

The platform architecture is not proprietary end-to-end: SDG Academy relies on edX as its distribution and certification layer, Kaltura for video hosting, EdCast for social sign-in, and WordPress for marketing surfaces. Content is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 as a global public good. The organization also operates the Master's in Development Practice (MDP) program network (30+ programs in 26 countries) and degree-pathway partnerships with Sunway University (Master's in Sustainable Development Management) and University College Dublin (Professional Diploma at €2,690 and MSc at €5,360/year), which together form the credentialed back end of the funnel.

The business model is predominantly freemium: free MOOC audit access for the vast majority of the 1M+ learner community across 193+ countries, with paid upside coming from optional edX Verified Certificates, the $147 Master's Pathway Professional Certificate on edX, and partner-issued degrees and diplomas routed through university partners. The organization is a non-profit, not VC-backed; operating support comes primarily from foundations and institutional partners — chiefly the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation / Sunway University and IDRC — rather than direct commercial revenue. The team is small (7 named personnel across New York, Kuala Lumpur, and Paris), and SDG Academy is governed under SDSN, with Jeffrey Sachs as its most prominent public figure.

Name

SDG Academy

Legal name

SDG Academy

Website

https://sdgacademy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Short description

SDG Academy is the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network's flagship education initiative, offering free MOOCs on sustainable development via edX to 1M+ learners across 193+ countries, with paid Master's pathways through partner universities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Kuala Lumpur

HQ country

Malaysia

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Free MOOCs: Core offerings are free massive open online courses accessible to anyone with internet access. Revenue is not generated directly from course enrollment; operations are supported by foundations and partners.
2. Verified Certificates: Optional edX Verified Certificates available for a fee to learners who want formal certification. Additional partner-issued certificates available for select courses.
3. Academic Pathway Programs: Partnership-based degree pathway programs with partner universities. The Master’s Pathway Professional Certificate on edX costs 147 USD; UCD Professional Diploma costs 2,690 Euro; UCD MSc costs 5,360 Euro per year.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

SDG Academy creates, curates, and distributes free massive open online courses (MOOCs) and educational resources covering the UN Sustainable Development Goals, hosted on the edX platform with optional paid verified certificates. The organization also operates the SDG Academy Library video repository, the Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs podcast, the Global Classroom live cohort course, and accredited degree pathways in partnership with Sunway University and University College Dublin.

Product overview

SDG Academy is the flagship educational initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, offering a comprehensive portfolio of free educational resources and degree programs on sustainable development and the 17 SDGs. The core offerings include 50+ Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) hosted on edX and the SDG Academy Library containing 1,800+ educational videos. The platform integrates with the SDG Academy Library video repository, Global Classroom real-time courses, and Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs podcast. Professional development is supported through professional certificates and the Master's Pathway program providing credit pathways to university degrees. SDG Academy also partners with universities worldwide to deliver accredited Online Master's Programs and hosts the Global MDP Program network. Additional offerings include thought leadership through special issue journals, Mission 4.7 for education acceleration, and Open Education Resources developed with UNESCO. Content is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0 and available as a global public good.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SDG Academy Library: A searchable repository of more than 2,000 educational videos on sustainable development and the SDGs, containing lecture videos and case studies from MOOCs, exclusive video series, recordings of webinars and expert Q&As.
• Book Club with Jeffrey Sachs
• Mission 4.7

Quantifiable outcome

• 50+ free MOOCs on sustainable development
• +3 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• Better Insurance NetworkmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMoU signed in August 2024 to produce the online course on Insurance and the SDGs. Joint development of educational content on insurance’s role in sustainable development.
• Sunway UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Master’s in Sustainable Development Management (MSDM) program. Hosted office in Kuala Lumpur. Contributes faculty and educational expertise.
• University College Dublin (UCD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Master’s Pathway in Foundations of Sustainable Development. Provides accredited pathway to Professional Diploma and MSc in Sustainable Development.
• edXcoreTechnology or IntegrationPlatform partner hosting all SDG Academy MOOCs. Provides global online learning infrastructure and verified certificate services.
• UNESCOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint committee on Open Education Resources (OER) Recommendation. Collaboration on developing, implementing, and maintaining OERR. Partnership for Transforming Education Summit.
• UNITARmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in launching the Insurance and SDGs online course on edX. Collaboration on insurance sector education for sustainable development.
• Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global CitizenscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of Mission 4.7 initiative to accelerate Education for Sustainable Development. Partnership for SDG 4.7 implementation.
• Columbia UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of SDG Academy leadership. Jeffrey Sachs serves as Professor at Columbia. Center for Sustainable Development partnership in Mission 4.7.
• Swiss RemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Insurance and SDGs initiative. Featured in resilience summits and professional training workshops on sustainable development.
• GeneralimajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Insurance and SDGs initiative. Contributions to sustainable insurance thought leadership and course development.
• Hannover RemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Insurance and SDGs initiative. Participation in sustainability conferences and panel discussions.
• UNEP FI (UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for courses on Climate Risk Management and Environmental & Social Risk Analysis in the banking sector.
• Global Schools ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of Mission 4.7 initiative. Both are flagship programs of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Coursera: Leading MOOC platform offering sustainability, development, and ESG-related specializations from top universities. Directly comparable as a peer in open online learning at global scale with a similar freemium + paid certificate model.
• edX (2U): MOOC platform that actually hosts SDG Academy's courses and provides verified certificate infrastructure. Comparable as both a distribution platform and a competing publisher of sustainability and development course content.
• FutureLearn: UK-based MOOC platform offering courses from global universities, including sustainability and global development content. Comparable in offering university-branded open courses with paid upgrade certificates.
• Khan Academy: Non-profit free education platform with global reach, offering video-based learning and a freemium model. Comparable as a non-profit, large-scale OER provider delivering free education globally.
• UNITAR (United Nations Institute for Training and Research): UN training institute that has partnered with SDG Academy on the Insurance & SDGs course. Comparable as a UN-affiliated provider of online training programs for professionals and policymakers on sustainability topics.
• Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership: University-affiliated sustainability education provider offering executive programs and online courses on sustainability leadership. Comparable in delivering high-quality sustainability education to professionals globally.
• Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Academy: Standards body's professional education arm offering paid sustainability and ESG training and certifications. Comparable in selling professional sustainability credentials and corporate training programs.
• University of the People: Non-profit tuition-free online university with global reach offering accredited degree programs. Comparable in combining free access with pathways to formal academic credentials at global scale.

Emerging players

• Smithsonian Institution (Education programs): Large cultural institution offering free online courses and educational content on global topics including sustainability. Comparable in operating a globally-recognized brand publishing free OER-style educational content.

Others

• UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN): Parent network of SDG Academy that commissions research and policy work on the SDGs. Listed as an adjacent ecosystem player because SDG Academy is its education arm, making the parent both an enabler and a closely related entity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SDG_Academy
• Facebookfacebook.com/sdgacademy.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sdg-academy
• Instagraminstagram.com/sdg_academy
• TikToktiktok.com/@sdg_academy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SDG Academy