Abstract
Sustainability is a concept that has gained significant attention in recent years for the growing recognition of the impact of human activities on the environment. Innovative solutions are required to achieve sustainable development goals, and digital technologies have been increasingly argued to enable sustainable business models. At the same time, universities are increasingly integrating sustainability into their operational, research and teaching activities and working closely with industries to address sustainability challenges.
The aim of this article is to give a complete overview of the current literature and future topics on the linkage of universities and industries in promoting digitalization to achieve sustainability goals. The purpose is to provide a comprehensive picture on topics under consideration, highlighting established, emerging and niche topics.
A systematic review of the literature published between 2010 and 2023 was conducted using bibliometric techniques, enriched by the study of papers emerged from bibliometric analysis.
The study shows that attention to the topic analysed is recent. The countries most sensitive to the topic are China, Italy and the UK. The most consolidated themes are the need for industry's transformation to more sustainable practices, the importance of a circular economy business model, and the role of digital technologies and Industry 4.0 for sustainable development. On the other hand, there is little scientific production on the role of the university and industry link in this process of digital transition for sustainability.
Future research could compare the results of other databases with those proposed by our study by extending our protocol to obtain better results.
The topic analyzed is still underdeveloped in the literature, this paper suggests the need for the university to pay more attention to its contribution as an actor in sustainable growth.
This paper is one of the first studies that attempts to systematize the literature on the university and industry link to foster digitization for sustainability, highlighting which issues are the most developed and emerging trends