As I wrote in an earlier post, I have finally time for some reflection. I was hoping to be bored for a while, but that still didn’t happen. Too much is going on around us. After the announcement that I would soon leave my previous job, I have been in touch with many people who wanted to hear about my next journey, but I really don’t know what this will be. A few opportunities have come along, but I don’t want to take any decision soon. What I know for sure is, that a next activity will need to have a lot of impact. Among others climate change and the current Covid Pandemic are showing the need to do more good in this world. While researching about making impact, I stumbled upon the Sustainable Development Goals, also know as the Global Goals, of the United Nations. A combination of those goals will be part of a next journey.

Ensuring peace and prosperity

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. In fact it is a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.

At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries – developed and developing – in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.

If you would like to learn more about the SDGs the following movie is worth watching. This post will continue under the video.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, world leaders agreed to 17 Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs. Quite some time has passed since then, and we have more work than ever to do. These goals have the power to create a better world by 2030, by ending poverty, fighting inequality and addressing the urgency of climate change. Guided by the goals, it is now up to all of us, governments, businesses, civil society and the general public to work together to build a better future for everyone.

And when it is up to all of us, that means it is up to me as well. So, what can I do?

Of course I understand I can turn down the heater, buy responsibly, eat healthy, get enough movement, separate garbage, fly and drive less, eat healthier, etc. But I am afraid that still has little influence on the massive goals ahead. I will have to do more and therefore, I prefer to dedicate my skills to at least one of the goals, but preferably even more than one.

Below you will find all 17 goals and more detailed information can be found on the United Nations website. Below the image I will focus on the goals that I would like to have impact on.

My focus goals

All of the above mentioned goals need to be worked on and none of them is probably more important than the other. The following topics seem most urgent to me and are topics that I feel I could support with:

• No Poverty
• Zero Hunger
• Good Health and Well-being
• Affordable and clean energy
• Decent work and economic growth
• Industry, innovation and infrastructure
• Climate action

A combination of a few of them might work well together. For example organizing decent work and economic growth, will most likely have a positive impact on reducing poverty and hunger. At the same time we have to be aware that we should not increase other already existing problems, like the climate challenges. Therefore, economic growth will have to be as sustainable as possible.

Thanks to a project I am currently doing, I will be able to explore a few of these goals in more detail and hopefully this will guide me towards my new future journey as well.