Storytelling can go a long way in capturing people’s imagination, and what’s more, inspire the kind of action that lasts. Showcasing stories that illustrate people and organizations working to build a better world and realize the Sustainable Development Goals is at the heart of the SDGs in Action Film Festival. The event, to be held outdoors on the North Lawn of UN Headquarters on the evening of 11 July, is the culmination of a global contest asking for short film submissions showing action on the 17 global goals.

Nearly 1,000 films were submitted during an open call this spring, and six winning filmmakers from Brazil, Italy, Kenya, the Philippines, Portugal, and Trinidad and Tobago will present their short films to the public on the sidelines of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.

In addition to the SDGs in Action Film Festival, this year’s special events organized by UN DESA include a wide array of events meant to include more voices in the UN’s conversations about how to inspire accelerated action for the SDGs. They include:
  • The Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI): How can higher education institutions better integrate the SDGs into their sustainability strategies, research, teaching, pedagogy and campus practices? This event will bring together these institutions and a wide array of UN partners seeking to showcase the best examples and generate new ideas for engaging youth in the SDGs through the academic world. (10 July)
  • Philanthropy & the SDGs: Philanthropic organizations are playing a growing role in supporting sustainable development, and this first-ever event provides them with a dedicated space at the margins of the HLPF to discuss how to use their resources effectively. Representatives will discuss current models of philanthropic engagement to implement the SDGs and identify opportunities to scale up philanthropic leadership and transformational action to further accelerate SDG action. (16 July)
  • Lead, Transform, Succeed: Chief Sustainability Officers for SDGs: UN DESA and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development will again bring together Chief Sustainability Officers and sustainable business leaders to explore practical solutions around how we can bring about the transformation of some of the world’s key economic systems to realize the ambitions of the SDG agenda. The event will allow experts to dive into the challenges in integrating the SDGs into business strategy and underline groundbreaking examples of collaboration for achieving impact at scale. (17 July)
  • Local 2030: Local Action for Global Commitments: The UN-wide Local2030 network is facilitating a two-day event focused on inspiring local-level SDG financing and highlighting local implementation of the goals. The event will convene and connect experts from the public, private and non-governmental sectors, local leaders, and representatives from multiple UN agencies. (16-17 July)
  • SDG Learning, Training and Practice Capacity-building Workshops: This series of 10 courses, co-organized UN DESA and UNITAR, features speakers and experts from academia and other sectors on crucial topics related to the implementation of the SDGs, for instance “Designing and managing SDG partnerships for greatest impact.” (9-15 July)
All of these events will seek to put the world on a better path towards achieving the SDGs by 2030, through increased dialogues, networking and partnerships.

The 2019 winning films in each category will be posted on the SDGs in Action Film Festival website on 11 July. Find out more about all of DESA’s special events during HLPF here.