24 October 2017: On the 72nd UN Day, UN Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Ministry of Education, in partnership with the Hatton National Bank, launched the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Action Campaign to educate and encourage students from across the country to design and implement SDG projects in their communities. The Campaign will provide seed funding and mentoring to kickstart 25 sustainability projects across the island.

The SDG Action Campaign seeks to mobilize Sri Lanka’s youth to advocate and work towards the SDGs and to inspire their communities to work in partnership to achieve the SDGs. The Campaign has circulated a national call for applications to all schools across Sri Lanka that offer advanced-level streams, inviting students to send in ideas on projects that could contribute to the 17 SDGs. The application deadline is 31 January 2018.

The SDG Action Campaign Application Toolkit provides guidances for students on how to develop SDG projects in their communities.

To support applicants, the organizers have prepared an SDG Action Campaign Application Toolkit that provides information on the SDGs and the Campaign. The toolkit includes guidelines that specify elements participants should incorporate in their project proposal, including: the main SDGs that the project addresses; other SDGs to which the project contributes; anticipated differences in the community; key project components and plans for their implementation; and key individuals and partners needed to make the project successful. The guidelines also request applicants to specify how funding provided to the project will be utilized, and suggests using guidance from teachers in the accounts, mathematics or economics streams to formulate a simple budget proposal.

Also on UN Day, Luis Gustavo Cavalheiro Silva, a student at Universidade Estadual Paulista in São Paulo, Brazil, was declared the winner of the SDG Student Photo Contest during an award ceremony hosted by Sophia University, Japan. The winning photo, ‘Woman of Coocassis,’ depicts a woman who earns her income to support her children by collecting recyclables. In a comment attached to the photo, Silva notes that “thanks to the community’s support, the woman can support her family and at the same time contributes to keeping the community environmentally sustainable.” Other award winners include students from Bangladesh, Ghana, Japan, Peru and the Russian Federation. The UN Information Centre (UNIC) and Sophia University in Japan, with special cooperation from the Getty Images Japan, organized the competition. According to the UN, students from 73 countries participated in the 2017 contest, which drew more than 1,000 entries depicting elements of SDGs in communities.

UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force of the UN Charter in 1945, and 24 October has been celebrated as UN Day since 1948. [Sri Lanka SDG Action Campaign Website] [Sri Lanka SDG Action Campaign Application Toolkit] [UN Sri Lanka Press Release] [UNIC Website Photo Contest on SDGs] [UN Press Release on SDG Photo Contest Winners] [UNIC Press Release on SDG Photo Contest]