September 25, 2020 (New York, NY) – As the world marks the fifth anniversary of the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, a coalition of partners including Project Everyone, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network’s Thematic Research Network on Data and Statistics (SDSN TReNDS) and the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data (GPSDD) are celebrating the theme of ‘Factivism’ – campaigning to change the world by using facts backed up by timely and accurate data to drive action.
The Global Day of Factivism is part of Global Goals Week, an annual event held alongside the UN General Assembly. The chosen theme is Factivism in recognition of the need for verified information, timely data, and citizen action to drive change
On the day, the partners are encouraging civil society organizations, governments, policymakers and citizens around the world to take part in a social media advocacy campaign by sharing up-to-date facts and actions that people around the world can take to drive real change.
Speaking about the day, Claire Melamed, CEO of the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data said:
“COVID-19 has showed the world that up to date data is sometimes a life or death issue, but also that far too much of our data is out of date. Today we are shining a spotlight on real-time data. We need to have the picture of the world as it is today, so that governments, campaigners and business have the information they need to build the better world of tomorrow that is promised in the Global Goals.”
Kate Garvey, co-founder of Project Everyone said:
“This is the first Global Goals Day. We’ve chosen the theme of factivism because it’s no good knowing about the facts without also taking action to change them. We hope on the day people from around the world will share the facts they care about and commit to actions from backing advocacy campaigns to changing their own behaviour.”
The facts in this campaign are drawn from SDGs Today – a new data platform developed by SDSN in partnership with Esri and the National Geographic Society – providing timely data on sustainable development measures. The campaign includes new datasets on issues, such as water stress levels, access to healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa, global hunger, and air pollution levels revealing that:
- Nearly a billion people right now don’t have enough to eat.
- 84 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa currently can’t access essential healthcare.
- Our planet is getting hotter. And right now, almost 615 million people suffer from water stress.
- Almost two-thirds of the world’s population is breathing polluted air.
Hamzat Lowal, Co-founder of the Follow the Money campaign and one of the activists taking part in the day said:
"In rebuilding from COVID-19, data plays a critical role. It helps show us where investments are going, where we're lacking investment and where we need to mobilize for more action. Data has allowed us to organize more, to mobilize, but also to take action. This day is a welcome moment, but it must be the start of a renewed focus on data, facts and action.”
For more information, visit www.globalgoals.com/factivism.
Notes to Editors
The Global Goals Day of Factivism website can be found here.
The SDGs Today Platform can be accessed here.
Promotional assets can be downloaded here
Media inquiries should be directed to joldfield@data4sdgs.org
Hashtags - #Factivism #GlobalGoals
Handles - @TheGlobalGoals @Data4SDGs @sdsn_TReNDS
The Global Goals Day of Factivism is organized by Project Everyone, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network’s Thematic Research Network on Data and Statistics (SDSN TReNDS), the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data. In partnership with Pentagram - a multi-disciplinary, independently-owned design studio.
About Project Everyone
Project Everyone was co-founded by writer, director, and SDG Advocate Richard Curtis, Kate Garvey and Gail Gallie with the ambition to help achieve the Global Goals through raising awareness, holding leaders accountable, and driving action. Find out more at www.project-everyone.org.
About SDSN TReNDS
An initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the Thematic Research Network on Data and Statistics (TReNDS), mobilizes technical and policy-oriented solutions to advance the data revolution for sustainable development. Find out more: https://www.sdsntrends.org
About the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data
The Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data was established to help stakeholders across countries and sectors fully harness the data revolution for sustainable development, using this new knowledge to improve lives and protect the planet. Find our more: https://www.data4sdgs.org/
About the Sustainable Development Goals
On 25 September 2015, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, 193 world leaders committed to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (or Global Goals). These are a series of ambitious objectives and targets to end extreme poverty and hunger, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change, by 2030.