The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), as part of its outreach efforts about the?, shares this story submitted by Andrés Bello Catholic University, a UNAI member institution located in Venezuela.
12 October 2018 - (Venezuela), a member institution of the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), has developed an innovative program for leaders of community-based organizations about key issues related to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The initiative aims to facilitate a space of interactive dialogue, training and development of skills, in order to enable the formulation of practical ideas to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and generate concrete actions for the transformation of the social realities that arise from them.
The United Nations General Assembly adopted the aformentioned Goals in 2015 and its achievement would be reflected in a better world for all of us. While Latin America and the Caribbean has been able to reduce poverty it does remain as the most unequal region of the planet in terms of income and distribution of wealth. This condition certainly prevents sustainable growth, attempt against democratic progress and impedes the return to a path of inclusive growth.?In this context it is essential and urgent to enhance all the efforts to address this and other relevant issues.
The latter is of critical importance for the production and dissemination of knowledge in relation to the dynamics of generation of poverty and the actions required to transform this social reality. The complexity of the Venezuelan national context and therefore the complexity of decision-making, involving the formulation, management and implementation of policies and social programs, as well as the significant resources involved, require professionals gifted with knowledge and expertise, as well as citizens committed to the transformation of the social environment.
Within the framework of the Country Challenge (Reto País, in Spanish) initiative launched earlier this year, the training on the SDGs was conceptualized and designed.?This program has the purpose?to promote with the active participation of various key stakeholders, the construction of a shared future that incorporates and integrates the aspirations of all social sectors and the interests and needs of everyone, in particular the most marginalized and the most vulnerable.?So far, the Country Challenge has counted with the participation of a large number of local communities and groups of interest across the country and?has also served as a tool to improve conditions of life.
The training on the SDGs is focused on local?development processes within the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The idea is to?familiarize participants with the 2030 Agenda and its implications in the Venezuelan context,?provide tools to design and implement social intervention processes from the perspective of the 2030 Agenda,?link knowledge and skills to achieve more efficient and effective social actions, and?understand the challenges for the achievement of the SDGs. The courses as part of this training program will be delivered on line as MOOCs (massive open online courses), conceived as modules of learning independent and complementary, each of them with its own evaluation units.?