Academic Impact is a global initiative dating from 2010 that allies the United Nations with institutions of higher education and research throughout the world. The U.N. established ten universal principles in the fields of human rights, literacy, sustainability, and conflict resolution, and participating universities are expected to actively pursue one of these principles each year. J. F. Oberlin has been selected as a core university for Principle 1, “a commitment to the principles inherent in the United Nations Charter as values that education seeks to promote and help fulfill,” and as such is expected to actively work for the realization of truly global initiatives.