The You and I Teens Projects are initiatives we run in partnership with other like-minded organizations to enable more teens to take part in changing the world.
“Empowering schools and teachers globally to educate children on the SDGs”
Global Schools is an initiative led by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network – Youth Initiative (SDSN Youth) in support of UNESCO’s Global Action Program on Education for Sustainable Development (GAP-ESD). The vision of the program is to generate interest about sustainable development in schools in an effort to educate and engage students with the SDGs and to encourage them to prioritize the goals in their lifestyles, behaviors, education and professional careers as these goals provide a framework for a better world that children could live in the future.The program aims to do this by transforming learning environments globally and making schools the hubs of education and leadership on SDGs, ultimately becoming vehicles for empowering and mobilizing students and young people to help implement the SDGs in their communities.
Theory of Change
Today, more than half of the world’s population is under 30 years of age, making millennials the biggest generation of young people the world has ever seen. Being the best-educated generation that has ever existed, millennials have the potential to change the course of history and lead the planet on a path to greater prosperity, peace, and, ultimately, sustainable development. For successful implementation of Sustainable Development Goals, young people’s imagination, creativity, and idealism must be cultivated and used as a means to achieve this dream. However, to harness the power of youth, firstly, there is an urgent need to educate them about the importance of the SDGs and secondly to provide them with opportunities to implement these goals through local action. Currently, many young people are not familiar with the concept of sustainable development and its global implications. This reinforces the need for a program that brings SDGs closer to students, teachers, and schools in a serious attempt to build consciousness and leadership around this agenda.
“Generate interest about sustainable development in schools in an effort to educate and engage students with the SDGs and to encourage them to prioritize the goals in their lifestyles, behaviors, education and professional careers.”
Aims & Objectives
Support the implementation of the Global Action Programme on Education on Sustainable Development through the Global Schools Program:
- Integrate the Sustainable Development Goals into school settings.
- Increase the capacities of educators and teachers to more effectively deliver education on the
- Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Provide youth with opportunities to engage with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level.