By Shambhawi Sahoo
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Amrita Giridhar, a grade nine student of American International School, Chennai, presented this workshop highlighting the important aspects of organising a project for the upliftment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She is a part of the leadership team at the MUN Impact club in Chennai. As the title of the workshop aptly speaks, Amrita brought out the importance of collaboration and working to achieve one SDG at a time.
MUN is a highly effective tool to get involved with global problem solving. But, how to put those solutions into action? That’s when organising projects comes into play.
Amrita talked about several activities one could get involved with. Awareness campaigns are instruments which involve educating the community about global issues, making posters and brochures to spread awareness about the targeted issue. The goal is to ensure maximum engagement. MUN Impact Chennai organised a project called ‘Yes Food: No Poverty targeting SDG 1: No Poverty & SDG 2: Zero Hunger. Service activities could be long-term activities such as fundraising events and welfare programs. Our club at Chennai in association with the Teach For India organisation taught kids of financially backward families to debate and instilled confidence in them. Short-term service activities include organising a charity drive such as distributing food, stationery, etc. In one of their charity drives, the club got a chance to talk to women of an NGO called Kranti Organisation which rescues girls from Red Light areas. They even organised a lapathon which involved donating a few dollars for every lap one runs. Interactive activities involve the whole community working together for a cause. This incorporates SDG 17: Partnering for the goals.
Amrita added that outlining goals for your project is crucial for it to become successful and make an impact. She also pointed out that working with local NGOs turns out to be a very effective method to ensure maximum engagement. However, it is important to note the NGO’s relation to your project as well as question the alignment of interests of both parties. It is also necessary to have good communication with the NGO as well as have a project proposal ready beforehand.
Next followed a highly interactive activity where participants were assigned breakout rooms to create their own project! They were given ten minutes to plan the project. One of the groups planned on organising a fundraising debate to address food scarcity, while the other group planned to assist displaced people by organising a yard sale.
She brought out the importance of planning by creating action plans and check-lists in order to achieve desired results. Communication within a team is important for the project to be a successful one.
The workshop called its participants to take action in order to achieve the SDGs. Check out MUN Impact Chennai’s website for more information. The full recording of this session can be accessed here.