12 April 2018: A public education project has won a UNESCO prize for its clear explanation of how the world can move towards achieving the SDGs. The UK-based non-profit organization Hard Rain Project created a photo exhibition, short film and website that briefly explain the challenges represented by each of the 17 SDGs, and highlights policy and personal actions that society can choose to take. The Hard Rain Project is one of three winners of the 2017 UNESCO-Japan Prize on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), with the Government of Japan, awards three prizes annually of US$50,000 in recognition of work to advance ESD. The prize has been awarded since 2015. Besides the Hard Rain Project, the other two prize winners for 2017 were Zikra for Popular Learning, which is a private enterprise in Jordan, and the Sihlengeni Primary School, Zimbabwe.

Hard Rain’s photo exhibition titled ‘Whole Earth? A citizen’s guide to the SDGs (and how to save the world)’ is being displayed on the railings of UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris, France, during April 2018. A short film on the project’s website uses photographs in synchrony with singer-songwriter Bob Dylan’s classic song, “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.” The exhibition has been touring universities since 2015, and recently was adapted to specifically address the SDGs.

UNESCO’s Global Action Programme on ESD (GAP) seeks to scale up ESD efforts and accelerate progress towards sustainable development. Target 4.7 of SDG 4 on education calls for ensuring that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including through ESD. [UNESCO Press Release] [UNESCO Webpage on the UNESCO-Japan ESD Prize] [Hard Rain Project Website] [Whole Earth Exhibition Website]