Community Organizations Invited to Learn about United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals

VIU research institute is offering free training sessions for community groups in Nanaimo, Duncan, Parksville and Powell River.

Eradicating poverty. Ending hunger. Tackling climate change. It can seem overwhelming for the average organization or individual to make an impact. 

How can someone build a better and more sustainable world? The United Nations has created a blueprint – the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – which aim to address global challenges.  

These goals are an urgent call to action for all countries to create peace and prosperity for people and the planet. While it is important for countries, governments and large-scale corporations to address the goals, it is equally important for individuals, community groups and local organizations to take action, says Courtney Vaugeois, Assistant Research and Community Engagement Coordinator for Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute (MABRRI).

“We know the power that individuals and community groups have to make change,” says Vaugeois. “We want to support them and give them information about the SDGs to help them take action and contribute to the larger global framework.”

VIU’s research institute is hosting free online SDG Training Sessions for groups and organizations within communities surrounding VIU campuses, which include Nanaimo, Duncan, Parksville and Powell River. The free training sessions, offered via Zoom video conferencing, are October 28, 5-6:30 pm, and November 4, 5-7 pm. The first session will introduce the goals and provide information about how organizations and groups can implement them. The second session is a workshop that focuses on diving deeper into implementing them. While the two sessions build upon each other, it is not necessary to attend both.

The sessions aim to raise awareness about the goals and have conversations about how groups can implement them into their work. Increasing awareness about the Sustainable Development Goals and implementing them locally can benefit community groups by identifying shared values and like-minded individuals to strengthen community bonds, foster inclusion for all community members, improve community resilience and interdependence, and increase support for sustainable and innovative growth strategies.

Vaugeois says many groups are already working on initiatives that contribute to goals without realizing it, and the sessions can help share information about how to align those actions to the goals.

Register for the sessions on the Eventbrite website. To request an SDG information package please email Vaugeois at Courtney.Vaugeois@viu.ca. Organizations that can’t attend the sessions but are interested in attending one in the future are invited to email Vaugeois to be placed on a list for potential alternate sessions.

The SDG Training Sessions for Community Groups are part of VIU’s Universities and the SDGs project and are funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Sustainable Development Goals Funding Program.

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Media Contact:

Rachel Stern, Communications Officer, Vancouver Island University

C: 250.618.0373 l E: Rachel.Stern@viu.ca | T: @VIUNews