4th February, 2022
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 SDGs are integrated—they recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic and environmental sustainability.
As mentioned in our 2nd post on Instagram, air pollution and land pollution are the most serious environmental problems in Hong Kong. Therefore, we will put our focus on Sustainable Development Goals 12, 13, and 15 to raise awareness of air and land pollution and to promote sustainability among youths in Hong Kong.
SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production
Hong Kong is a wealthy and resourceful city where people can consume anything they want, and firms can carry out mass production of goods. However, the overwhelming consumption and production patterns have contributed to a large amount of waste, causing pollution to our environment. Therefore, by promoting a universal understanding of sustainable lifestyles, we wish to encourage youths in Hong Kong to adopt the ‘think before you buy’ consumption pattern to reduce waste generation.
SDG 13 Climate Action
The annual mean temperature of Hong Kong in the past six years has risen by 1°C, which is a significant increase. Factories, power stations, and vehicles in Hong Kong pollute a great amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which traps heat and intensifies the greenhouse effect. This severely worsens the problem of global warming. Therefore, we wish to promote green and sustainable living so that all of us can help reduce the negative impacts on the environment and put global warming to an end.
SDG 15 Life on Land
The ecosystem of Hong Kong has become vulnerable in the past few years, facing severe challenges such as deforestation, desertification, and various pollution created by us. As responsible citizens, we have to act immediately and prevent the environment from being damaged further. We not only hope to raise awareness of this issue, but also physically contribute to the environment, such as initiating cleanup events around Hong Kong with enthusiastic young volunteers. We wish our actions will help protect biodiversity and natural habitats in Hong Kong, and ultimately end desertification and restore degraded land.
For more information, feel free to visit https://edu.unicef.org.hk/en/index.