Walk the Global Walk is a European project aiming to enhance European partnerships between local authorities and communities by creating a common educational framework within the formal education system that can support and promote awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals. Oxfam Italy, together with the Region of Tuscany, is working with other European partners in 10 different countries1to develop and implement innovative educational practices to address the challenges connected to pursuing the SDGs, and to form and mobilize young leaders aged 11-18 from all over Europe to promote awareness-raising activities involving both local authorities and their communities.

Each year of the project focuses on one Sustainable Development Goal. During the 2019-2020 school year, students and teachers participated in workshops and learned about SDG 13 “Take urgent action to combat climate change”. In the course of the school year, young people participating in the project took action at the local level, through different awareness-raising activities organized as part of “SDG weeks” held in and addressed to their local communities. Each country also produced a National Manifesto on SDG 13, detailing a series of proposals for local authorities to combat climate change.

In January 2021, young leaders from all the partner countries came together in the International Winter School, held online due to Covid-19 restrictions, to create a unified European Manifesto. The European Manifesto gathered contributions from each national version, and focused on the environmental, social, and economic aspects of the fight against climate change. It details a list of pledges and proposals, which were presented to local and European authorities in attendance. The International Winters School was also an opportunity for engaging and informed discussion, both among students and with authorities from municipalities and local governments from all over Europe, as well as the European Commission.

The project has shown that young people indeed have a strong interest in global issues and are especially concerned about the challenges of taking urgent action to combat climate change to secure a safe and sustainable future. Their energy and enthusiasm can be channelled with opportunities for them to learn, raise awareness, and become ambassadors of change.

Click below to read more about Walk the Global Walk.