Our world and our future are under threat from persistent poverty, growing inequality, and the climate crisis.  We’ve made some progress but nowhere near enough to deliver on the promises made by all nations in 2015 to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and create a future of peace and prosperity on a thriving planet, with no-one left behind.  We have to accelerate and rejuvenate efforts if we are to achieve these Goals.

The Global Week to Act for SDGs is an annual call to action for individuals and organisations across the world to accelerate action for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs – also known as Global Goals).

The  Global Week to Act for SDGs rallies public support for the Sustainable Development Goals throughout the world while world leaders are meeting at the UN Headquarters for five milestone UN Summits: the Climate Action Summit, the UN High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage, the first-ever SDG Summit after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development and the SAMOA Path-way Midterm Review.

In September, from the 20th to the 30th, organizations and individuals around the world united for the largest Global Week to Act4SDGs ever to drive action.The Global Week took place in thousands of cities and communities across the globe with world-leaders gathered in New York, calling for acceleration on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

As you could already read, Añañau also participated in this Global Week and we made our voice heard! The Añañau project works within the framework of these sustainable development goals, the so called SDGs. These are 17 goals that have been registered by all countries worldwide to work together for a better future for everyone. Añañau focuses primarily on goal 4 on inclusive and quality education and opportunities for lifelong learning for everyone by organizing a daily after-school program, offering educational activities for children, young people and adults, and through the power of community awareness. In addition to our main focus, which is on education and training, we have also taken action this year against climate change. For example, we organized a poster competition for all children, both at the project in San Jeronimo and at the school in Huancaro, where the children had to design a poster about the environment or the climate. They had to use at least one recycled material. All children started designing and drawing with great enthusiasm and at the end of the Global Week, on September 30, the proud winners were awarded! They proudly presented their winning poster and each received a beautiful prize. In addition, a few other educational activities were organized around goal 13 and climate action. We watched the film Pachamama and different interesting documentaries and we also followed Greta Thunberg in the media. A discussion around this topic was held as well with the older children and they were invited to come up with creative ideas for improving the climate and how we can take care for the environment. Finally, the students from the school in Huancaro also held a real climate march in their neighbourhood.