Launch SDGs in Action' App to Increase Awareness of and Engagement with the Sustainable Development GoalsNew York: At the 2016 Social Good Summit, the GSMA today announced a collaboration with the United Nations and Project Everyone, a non-profit global campaign, to increase awareness of and engagement with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Together, the organisations have developed and launched the SDGs in Action' mobile app, which provides a global forum through which industry, governments and individual citizens can collectively realise the promise of the SDGs.
The agenda set forth by the Sustainable Development Goals is far-reaching and ambitious, from ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all, to achieving gender equality, to making cities and settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable, to helping to combat climate change and its impacts, said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA. Mobile networks have the power to accelerate this journey in a way that no other technology can. And through the partnership with the United Nations and Project Everyone, we are able to engage industry, governments and individuals in working together to achieve the SDGs.
The Goals were adopted by Member States, but it is up to everyone - civil society, businesses and citizens alike - to achieve them. That is why the SDGs in Action mobile app is so timely. The app will bring the Goals closer to people and help make them more understandable and relatable to everyday life, said Cristina Gallach, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information. So many people and groups around the world are already undertaking innovative projects in support of the Goals. What is special about this app is that it connects people and activists who want to make a difference in this world. I'm looking forward to seeing and reading about all these grassroots projects and achievements.
The United Nations is pleased to be working with GSMA on a multi-year road map for cooperation and harnessing the critical role that the mobile industry can play in advancing the Goals, said Under Secretary General David Nabarro, the Special Adviser on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This includes a broad range of efforts in support of the SDGs - from inviting leading companies to join hands and support initiatives on women and children's health, disaster relief, data collection and analysis, to aligning industry-wide sustainability business practices with the Goals.
It is critical to the success of the UN Global Goals that all citizens can have their voice heard and actively engage in playing a part towards the Goals being achieved by 2030, said Richard Curtis, Founder Project Everyone, Filmmaker and Founder of Comic Relief. Which is why it has been so exciting to play our own role in creating the first app to give everyone, everywhere, the opportunity to share with both their friends and world leaders, what they want and how they themselves are taking an action to make it happen. This is the year when everyone can start to play a part towards achieving the Global Goals and the SDGs in Action app really is the place to do it.
The UN provided detailed information on each of the 17 Goals for the SDGs in Action app, which also includes associated SDG targets, explanatory videos, key data, and suggestions on how people can take action to help achieve them. Project Everyone has created exciting and fun films in multiple languages, including an introduction to The Global Goals 2016', created by film writer and director Richard Curtis; a series of original and interactive animations with the world's most popular fictional character Mr. Bean; the World's Largest Lesson', introduced by actress and activist Emma Watson; and The Global Goals Mobile Show - the very best of Goals Week', presented by YouTubers Estee Lalonde and Akilah Hughes, going out on mobiles globally at 6:00 pm EDT on Saturday, 24th September as a lead-up to the Global Citizen Festival that evening.
The app is a dynamic, collaborative tool that puts a spotlight on how innovation is helping to achieve the SDGs. The app includes the latest sustainable development news from around the world, as well as case studies that illustrate the mobile industry impact in achieving the goals. Features such as sharing, likes, scoring and a leader board are designed to drive engagement with the app and increase global activity to achieve the SDGs.
Users can tailor their experience based on the SDGs that are of the greatest interest to them and can sign up to receive notifications about those specific goals. Further, users can interact with others around the world, find nearby events to join in supporting the goals, and create actions' in their community and invite others to join.
The app is available for iOS or Android devices. To download the SDGs in Action app and enjoy the exclusive content, visit: https://sdgsinaction.com/.
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Notes to Editors
About the Sustainable Development Goals:
The UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, featuring the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, was unanimously adopted by world leaders at a historic UN summit in September 2015. By aligning national priorities with the 2030 Agenda and working together with the private sector and civil society, governments have started mobilising efforts to end poverty, address inequalities and tackle climate change by 2030. For more information on the Goals visit http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment.
About the GSMA
The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting nearly 800 operators with almost 300 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet com
