UN SDG Action Campaign

MY World 2030 launches next phase

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Did you know, the MY World Survey is comprised of much more than one simple question now?

On July 18, 2016, the UN SDG Action Campaign, in partnership with UNDP, ODI and Global Pulse, launched the next phase of MY World in the UNHQ. Partners from multiple sectors joined in the discussion, reporting on methodologies and strategies. They also presented lessons learnt and preliminary results from early pilot testing and representative studies.

See what our speakers and panelist have said during the MY World 2030 Launch!

“MY World is an opportunity to hear from voices across the spectrum, voices of the people who really shifted this agenda” – Rosemary Kalapurakal, Lead Advisor, 2030 Agenda Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, UNDP
“We really need to work together to make sure that the spirit of the MY World campaign lives” – Haoliang Xu, Assistant Administrator and Director for the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, UNDP
“MY World 2030 is about monitoring progress, satisfaction and awareness” – Mitchell Toomey, Global Director, UN SDG Action Campaign
“The main focus of a questionnaire has got to be on the individual respondent” – Hayk Gyuzalyan, Methods Director, TNS Opinion
“Partnership is not about engaging varying entities, but also engaging all individuals in ensuring we leave no one behind” – Muhsin Syihab, from Indonesia
“Local actions must be taken to make impact, particular by youth” – Maria Fernando Olvera, Director of Injuve
“We must continue unfinished business of MDGs through implementation of SDGs” – Princess Orelope-Adefulire, from Nigeria

The UN MY World 2015 survey (2013-2015) showed that it is both possible and useful to bring peoples’ voices directly into policy making at a global level. MY World was designed to bring the voices of individual people into the political deliberations on the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and it has been highly successful in doing so. Almost ten million people have responded to the survey, and the results have fed into every part of the political process for creating the new goals. MY World has been cited as part of the High Level Panel deliberations, the Open Working Group discussions, the PGA consultations and the Independent Expert Group on Data. The SG, DSG, Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning, Secretary General Youth Envoy and chair of the UNDG regularly reference the MY World data.

MY World 2030 will have two clear areas to contribute to, enabled through four different channels.

Main goals of MY World 2030:

Contribute to efforts to report back on progress. The aim here will be to collect globally comparable (both at scale and nationally representative) data to monitor how people feel their lives are changing. This data could feed into official monitoring efforts both locally and globally and contribute to an enhanced mechanism for the effective monitoring and implementation of the goals.
Mobilise and build dialogue between decision makers such as parliamentarians, local governments, mayors and citizens, in particular young people in order to contribute a “people’s perspective” on how to implement the new agenda at different levels and establish accountability mechanisms. This data and citizen voice will be focused at the community; municipal and provincial level and provide a rich source of information for national decision makers. It is envisaged that this dialogue will be aggregated at national, regional and global levels. The demand for this has been demonstrated by the MY Municipality initiative in Macedonia and the continued expansion of U Report globally.

Continue reading “MY World 2030 launches next phase”

SDGs: A People-powered Agenda – Leave No One Behind

The SDGs Exhibition Launches July 18 at the United Nations!

Throughout the post-2015 process and following a call to action from the United Nations Secretary-General in 2012, over ten million people shared their hopes and dreams with the UN to help shape the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As we enter the era of Agenda 2030, the challenge now is to show that the SDGs are in fact achievable through partnership and action from everyone everywhere. Will YOU become a part of this movement to build a better world?

INTRODUCTION

The exhibition recounts how millions of ordinary people have ensured the Sustainable Development Goals are a bold and ambitious agenda through the most inclusive and transparent process the UN has ever seen. It also provides some concrete examples of the actions people can take now to help their governments with the implementation of the SDGs by 2030.

We need YOU to help ensure the SDGs become widely known and to ensure that as the Agenda 2030 is implemented, and NO ONE IS LEFT BEHIND.

The exhibition was curated, designed and produced by the UN SDG Action Campaign on behalf of the UN Development Group (UNDG), in partnership with: the Federal Government of Germany, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

It features voluntary input and stories from millions of people around the world through data visualizations, photographs, videos, virtual reality. It also allows interactive ways to share your opinion, make your commitment and explore how to take action on the SDGs.

HOW TO VISIT

The exhibition is open to the general public during official UN visiting hours, 418 July 18 – 7 September 2016,

Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm
Saturday & Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm
All visitors must exit the building by 5:30pm

The entrance is at 46^th Street and 1^st Avenue, New York, NY 10017. Visitors without an official UN Pass will have to first obtain a guest pass at the screening station on 46th and 1st across the street from the UN. Be sure to bring a photo ID.

If your delegation or mission would like to schedule a special exhibition tour, please kindly contact Alice Chen at alice.chen@undp.org (6096510945)

FEATURED CONTENT

MDGs to SDGs

Learn about the process that led us from the Millennium Development Goals to the Sustainable Development Goals with a special emphasis on peoples’ voices. By using cutting edge technology and data visualizations, the voices of over 10 million people, especially the voices of the most vulnerable populations, are told through the following initiatives:

MY World 2015 Survey – over 10 million people, most of them youth, have told the UN their top six of sixteen priorities for a better world, data that has fed into the post-2015 agenda
World We Want – a knowledge platform hosting documentation, and data visualizations including those from online, national and thematic civil society consultations
Humans of MY World – a photo exhibition telling the stories of MY World voters around the world
Virtual Reality – immerse yourself in the life of some of the world’s most vulnerable using high-tech 3D VR headset

Action to Engagement Arena

The action and engagement arena allows visitors to “get their hands dirty” and take action for furthering the SDGs: right here, right now! These are some of the ways to take action:

MY World Survey2030 – Modeled after the first phase of MY World, this citizen satisfaction survey will monitor Global Goal progress and allow further specialization at a local level
Women’s Economic Empowerment– tell us what you think would help to empower women economically by filling out our survey
Own Your Voice– Virtually “Meet” six young women from around the world who are using their voice to change the world, they are the Youtube Change Ambassadors!
Commitment Corner – How will you help achieve the SDGs by 2030? Make your commitment on our SDGs blackboard and take a selfie, tag us @SDGAction

There’s more, but you’ll have to come see for yourself. Visit the SDGs Exhibition before September 7^th 2016 and see what actions you can take for the SDGs!

IMAGINE a World Where Every Voice Counts – Celebrating 7 Million Voices

12 December 2015, NEW YORK

Special Event — Ms. Anna Gurney hands over “We the Peoples – Celebrating 7 Million Voices” to UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson. Photo Credit: UNPhoto/Yubi Hoffmann

“Let’s stand for the world as it SHOULD be. That’s what the 7 Million Voices are telling us” – Deputy UN Secretary-General Jan Eliasson

Last week, the MY World global survey achieved its 2014 goal of reaching 7 MILLION people around the world!

Thanks to the dedication and hard work of MY World partners, 7 million people from 194 countries have had their say at the United Nations. A special thanks is owed to the government of Nigeria which has led an incredible outreach during the past two months.

In celebration of this achievement, and to ensure that the UN is listening to these voices, We the Peoples – Celebrating 7 Million Voices, a special report detailing the global results of the MY World survey was launched at United Nations Headquarters in New York last Friday.

Photo Credit: UNPhoto/Yubi Hoffmann

According to Corinne Woods, Director of the UN Millennium Campaign, the report details how the results of the MY World survey reveal important trends for the Post-2015 Development Agenda, “The existing Millennium Development Goals continue to be important, but we also see new issues which people prioritize highly, such as ‘An honest and responsive government,’ ‘Protection from crime and violence,’ and ‘Better job opportunities.’”

“We need a paradigm shift and a coming together. MY World results show there is more that unites us than divides us. Working together we can be the generation that ends poverty and preserves the planet,” added Ms. Woods.

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My World 2015 in SIMONU Bogotá 2014

Blog by MY World Youth Ambassador, Julián Rodríguez

UNDP Colombia, the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) Bogota and the Secretary of Education of Bogota organized the largest Model UN in Colombia – SIMONU (Simulación de las Naciones Unidas). As a UN initiative, SIMONU was conceived in late 2012 in an effort to bring students together from different background.

In early 2013, 150 schools were convened to be part of this initiative. More than 1500 students from almost 105 public and private schools participated in the largest simulation in almost 40 committees with a wide range of topics.

This year, 2100 students from around 220 schools in Bogotá participated in the simulation in 54 committees themed around the Respira Paz campaign (Breath Peace).

Undoubtedly, this learning experience is an achievement for Colombian Education. For this reason, the MY World Colombia team participated in SIMONU with two of its partners, doing different activities around the campaign. Almost 2200 people answered the survey and others reflected on the survey in their SIMONU committees. The MY World team also recorded participants sharing what their most important MY World priority was and why.

In Colombia, MY World 2015 is supported by UNDP Colombia and the Bogota Secretary of Education. These two organizations have shown their commitment to the Colombian youth with this opportunity to participate in the Post-2015 Agenda. Thank you for the great collaboration, without you this would not have been possible.

Want to learn more about SIMONU Bogota?

https://www.facebook.com/SimonuBogota

@SIMONUBogota

MY World in Bhutan: an inspiration to become active citizens and volunteer

Text and photos by UNV/Riikka Suhonen

Riikka Suhonen, from Finland, has served as international UN Volunteer in Bhutan, advocating for the recognition of volunteerism as a vital component of the Post-2015 development agenda and its implementation mechanisms. As part of her assignment, Riikka organized an advocacy campaign on youth volunteerism for Post-2015 with support from UNDP Bhutan and the Bhutan UN Resident Coordinator’s Unit. From May to June 2014, the campaign raised awareness on the UN and the Post-2015 process among young Bhutanese and promoted youth volunteerism for development in Bhutan.

Yonten, student at the Royal Thimphu College, collecting MY World votes from fellow students.

“MY World proved to be a good way to introduce the theme of Post-2015 to young Bhutanese and to connect it with volunteerism as a way to become active citizens”, says Riikka. “In ten days, our two-member team visited three secondary schools, three colleges and one vocational institute covering five districts in Central and Eastern Bhutan”, she adds. “Students, particularly those involved in volunteering clubs such as scouting, environmental, or social service clubs, were invited to join our interactive workshops. The Royal University of Bhutan and a local NGO, the Tarayana Foundation, helped to connect with teachers in these different schools and institutes”.

After filling out the ballot, participants were asked to select their top priority –“good education”, for the majority – and think about how they as volunteers could help address that priority. “Student volunteers came up with very diverse ways to address the development priorities they had identified, such as helping elderly or children with less financial means, giving free tuition classes, planting trees and disposing waste properly, educating people, promoting organic farming, and solving problems by taking collective action together. For college students, we also explained how the MY World survey works and encouraged them to gather more votes from their community”, Riikka explains.

Kencho Dorji, 22, Bhutanese youth volunteer who co-facilitated the workshops of the Post-2015 advocacy tour, and Wangdi Phuntsho, 22, one of the active volunteers for the MY World campaign in Bhutan.

Wangdi Phuntsho, 22, was one of the active volunteers who coordinated the collection of MY World votes in his college, the Institute for Language and Cultural Studies in Taktse. After the post-2015 workshop in the college, seven student volunteers reached out to different people in the village – friends, neighbours, monks and shopkeepers – to involve them in this global discussion on people’s development priorities.

Wangdi believes that MY World is a good way to raise awareness on the work of the United Nations and on the sustainable development goals, although it requires special efforts to be communicated, for example, to illiterate people.

“I feel that the MY World survey gives an opportunity to people to share their views on development challenges and potential solutions. People expressed their gratitude for getting the chance to have their say through such an important survey. Also, decision-makers can better understand the real scenario at the grassroots level and plan accordingly”, Wangdi explains.

After this experience, Wangdi was even more motivated to volunteer. “MY World creates the space for youth volunteers to realize their roles in a rapidly changing world. We got to understand and feel the pain of local people as we interacted with them. It really inspired us to volunteer and help finding solutions for the difficulties faced by our community”, he notes.

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Youth Volunteers in Irbid, Jordan: The World We Want

Irbid Youth Volunteers is a youth initiative that works on training and empowering youth and provides them with the needed experience and skills to create positive change in the community. The have made tremendous efforts through volunteerism. In collaboration with the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator’s Office in Jordan, they have implemented an initiative as part of the post-2015 consultations in Jordan, which is helping them to shape the dialogue and to achieve the future they want.

As of April 15th, 65% of the almost 40,000 MY World voters in Jordan were people aged 30 and under (11% are aged 15 and under, and 55% are 16-30). 53% of voters 30 and under are female.

The top priorities of voters 15 and under are: “A good education,” “Better Healthcare,” “Affordable and nutritious food” and “Better job opportunities.”

The top priorities of voters 16-30 are: “Better job opportunities,” “A good education,” “Better healthcare” and “An honest and responsive government.”

Have your say in English / Arabic
Download the country report on Jordan MY World Results
See the MY World data in real time

MY World in Sudan

In Sudan, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is holding a number of workshops in 6 states: White Nile, Kassala, Gadarif, Blue Nile, Genina, Sinnar. The participants are coming from various national universities, such as the University of Khartoum, Jazeera University, Sudan University, Ahfad University, but also volunteer groups, NGOs, the Scouts and the Y Peer Networks. During the workshops, students and youth activists are lead through interactive sessions for raising awareness, youth empowerment, discussion on the new development agenda and promotion of the offline roll out of the MY World survey.

So far more than 1000 votes were collected; the volunteers were present in a national radio show and visited more than 4 universities. The MYWorld engagement will continue in the future, since they are planning to keep spreading the offline roll out and to engage national celebrities for the “Mark the Difference” Campaign.

AFRC INDIA: Youth Volunteers Catalysts of Active Citizenship 

A team of 20 enthusiastic youth took it upon themselves to reach out to their communities in Wayanad District of Kerala (India) to hear their unique perspectives for a better world, through the Offline My World Option Survey. For nine days, this team of youth volunteers traveled extensively throughout the district and collected approximately 500 votes, exhibiting the great role volunteers could play in development efforts.

Continue reading “AFRC INDIA: Youth Volunteers Catalysts of Active Citizenship ”

Secretary-General Meets Volunteers of Global Survey, “My World”

Secretary-General Bam Ki-moon (centre) yesterday met with volunteers of “My World”, the UN-led global survey of people’s priorities for a better world. The results of the survey will be shared with international leaders in setting the next global development agenda.

You can have your own say on the post-2015 MDGs here.

MY World Survey the focus of UNIC Canberra’s information stall at the National Multicultural Festivalstival

UN Youth volunteers taking a photo with replica of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon after collecting votes from the public for MY World global survey.

The MY World global survey was front and centre of UNIC Canberra’s promotional activities at the National Multicultural Festival. With almost 300 thousand attendees, this year’s National Multicultural Festival was the biggest ever and proved a perfect opportunity to promote the MY World global survey as well as other UN initiatives and programmes.
To help garner support for the MY World global survey a real voting booth was set up together with a large colourful banner, factsheets, stickers and even a replica Secretary General, who proved very popular with the crowds. On what was a very sunny Canberra day, a group of UN Youth volunteers were also on hand to encourage people to vote and have their voice heard. Despite some finding it difficult to narrow down what is important to them to just six choices, almost 400 votes were collected from people of all walks of life, with some even from as far away as the United Kingdom and Sweden.

This year again UNIC Canberra partnered with the regional United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office (UNHCR) to promote the wider role of the United Nations in areas such as peace and security, human rights and environment.

UN Youth volunteer Kon Taw casting a vote for her future as part of MY World global survey campaign.

The festival provided a great opportunity for UNIC staff to interact with the community and raise awareness about the UN’s role in the region and its priorities for this year.

The National Multicultural Festival is an annual event hosted in Canberra which this year is celebrating its centenary. The festival celebrates cultural diversity and showcases an array of multicultural arts, music, dancing and food.