In 2014, the Caribbean Sustainable Development Solutions Network was launched at the UWI and its SDG Hub, together with the Vice Chancellors’ Corps, strengthens knowledge among young people on the SDGs, climate adaptation and action at the institutional and community levels. The UWI’s core SDG activities are in Research, Teaching, Institutional and Community Engagement.  In terms of the Times Higher Education SDG impact rankings, The UWI ranks in the top 200 for goal 3; in the top 300 for goals 5 and 13; and in the top 400 for goal 17.  In 2017, one of its faculty was appointed to the Independent Group of Scientists to produce the UN Global Sustainable Development Report 2019 and another UWI academic is the current co-chair of the Independent Group of Scientists for the 2023 report.

The UWI partners with universities and international actors across the globe as part of its Sustainable Development agenda. In 2019 it established two centres in Latin America (with UNIANDES, Colombia) and the Caribbean (with the University of Havana, Cuba) geared specifically towards the sustainable development of the region. Also in 2019, it established the Office of Global Partnerships for Sustainable Futures reflecting “the shift in emphasis in international discourse from ‘development' to ‘sustainability' and to incorporate a ‘futures thinking perspective' into the University's strategic engagement on development issues.”