Dickson, Brandon2025-07-022025-07-022025-06-23https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-11-2024-0805https://hdl.handle.net/10012/21927This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact permissions@emerald.com.Design/methodology/approach Comparing sustainability policies with the overarching goals of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through the approach of narrative policy analysis, this research explores the priorities present and what patterns emerge in these priorities. Purpose Universities are significant in their sustainability action not just for the education that they provide, but how they operate as mini cities, with massive environmental footprints, meaning that, their sustainability direction matters. As a result, this research investigates the priorities present in university sustainability policy documents from 33 Canadian universities. Findings Findings include that across Canada, planet related sustainability priorities, particularly those focused on cities, climate action and consumption are the most present, while people and prosperity elements of sustainability often fall outside the scope of these policies. Some regional variation emerges in key areas such as energy and climate action, and size also sees a correlation to prioritization of specific areas of sustainability such as waste. Originality/value This research will be of interest to researchers in the emerging field of sustainability in higher education, practitioners and administrators in university sustainability and policy makers looking to understand sustainability prioritization shape the future of nuanced sustainability directions.enAttribution-NonCommercial 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/sustainable development goalssustainability policysustainability strategyCanadian universitiesregional sustainabilityArticle