Monday, September 19, 2016

Social Good Summit kicks off Global Goals Week

UNDP



New York, 18 September – US Secretary of State John Kerry and UNDP Administrator Helen Clark spoke at the 2016 Social Good Summit today, kicking off the first ever Global Goals Week.

UNDP, in partnership with Project Everyone, United Nations Foundation and The SDG Action Campaign, is celebrating the first anniversary of the adoption of the 17 Global Goals with a week of action, awareness and accountability for sustainable development.

The week’s events will highlight how the Goals contain the answers to the world’s problems, from the refugee crisis to disease, humanitarian disasters to terrorism and war.

As Secretary of State Kerry said on stage at the Summit: “There is a world to develop out there and that is what (Agenda) 2030 is about.”

Earlier in the day UNDP Administrator Helen Clark told the audience: “Last year world leaders agreed on an ambitious plan to end poverty, fix climate change, and address inequalities by 2030. But this plan cannot be achieved without everyone across the world working together. That is why we are coming together for the first ever Global Goals Week so that all of us can engage with these incredibly important issues.”

Global Goals Week will happen each year in September to coincide with the UN General Assembly and will be a time to reflect and celebrate the goals and to measure progress in the years to come.

US Vice President Joe Biden will be at the Summit on Monday to talk about the importance of global collaboration in the fight against cancer, while singer Demi Lavato and Apple’s Lisa Jackson will also be speaking.

As well as the event in New York City, UNDP is organising Social Good Summit events in more than 80 countries, including Egypt, Colombia and Mongolia.

The Social Good Summit is an annual event that takes place as world leaders come together at the United Nations General Assembly to discuss global issues and ways in which to tackle them.

Recognizing that the voices and ideas of concerned global citizens connected by social media and technology can be powerful forces for change, Mashable, 92nd Street Y, the United Nations Foundation and the United Nations Development Programme partner to host the Social Good Summit to expand the UN conversations to include innovators, activists and entrepreneurs around the world.

Last year, the Social Good Summit in New York connected people throughout the world with live streams in seven different languages, and in-person or online meetings organized by people in their own communities in over 100 countries.

About UNDP

UNDP partners with people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. On the ground in nearly 170 countries and territories, we offer global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations.

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