The SDG Global Festival of Action is a ground-breaking event designed by and for the international SDG action community and powered by the UN SDG Action Campaign with the support of the German Federal Government. The Festival partners bring together SDGs activists, artists, innovators and leaders to find new ways to inspire individuals and organizations to take action for people and planet.
Six years into Agenda 2030, 2021 is crucial for accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. The theme for this year’s SDG Global Festival of Action was “A Turning Point for People and Planet.” As the world is grappling with the effects of the pandemic, and with many countries still in lockdown, the SDG Global Festival of Action gathered leaders and changemakers to explore how we can accelerate action on the SDGs and for a just and sustainable recovery.
The virtual Festival program was even more engaging and diverse than previous years, as it was possible to virtually bring in speakers from across the world! Talks, performances, interactive workshops and exhibitions engaged 24,000 people from over 200 countries over two days, making the 2021 Festival the largest and most geographically diverse ever.
The Festival featured 12 short conversations and lightning talks, as well as 6 knowledge-sharing panels, to take participants through the complexity of current global challenges, while identifying bold and transformative actions. If you were looking for hands-on learning experiences, the Festival had you covered! Various organizations and experts helped organize workshops focused on ideation, up-skilling, campaign activation and well-being, creating an interactive experience for those who want to get started on taking concrete action. Government and private sector leaders, experts, activists, innovators and creatives gathered to exchange views on how to mobilize action across countries, industries and generations, so we recover better after the pandemic.
One of the key issues of the conference was gender equality. COVID-19 has stalled or reversed progress made over the last decades. An important question was how quickly or slowly countries are moving towards gender equality and how we can speed up the pace of change to make sure we meet SDG 5 Gender Equality by 2030. Experts from Africa, Asia, and Latin America gathered to discuss five key issues affecting the rates of progress: access to contraception, girls’ completion of secondary school, women in leadership, laws protecting workplace equality, and perceptions of safety.
It is crucial that we keep this momentum going. Let’s #TurnItAround: the clock is ticking - the time to act is now. Be that ripple of transformative change in this Decade of Action.
If you missed any of the amazing content at the Festival, don‘t worry, sessions, performances, creative content and workshops are available to view on-demand at bit.ly/FestivalOnDemand21 #TurnItAround.