About the Campaign

Around the world, the 2030 Agenda has helped catalyze and support a wide range of innovative, grassroots-led work around SDG16+ with a variety of civil society actors. While the actions and commitments of civil society at the national level are often overlooked in global-level discussions, the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) provides a unique opportunity to bring civil society from a wide range of contexts together to showcase best practices and innovative initiatives supporting SDG16+ implementation, and a chance to explore opportunities for further civil society collaboration at all levels around SDG16+ going forward.

An agenda that promises to ‘leave no-one behind,’ needs to be inclusive of all voices, particularly those working at the national or local levels. With growing momentum to mobilize actions and commitments to achieve peaceful, just and inclusive societies, particularly amongst civil society actors, the HLPF presents to showcase national and local-level work to implement SDG16+ that must be seized.

What is "Voices of SDG16+"?

  • A video-campaign to showcase civil society SDG16+ work from around the world
  • An event at HLPF featuring activists working to advance SDG16+ in their communities
  • A social media presence (#ActOnSDG16) throughout 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and now 2024 to raise the profile of SDG16+

Voices of SDG16+: Stories of Global Action

is a collaborative campaign to bring the work of civil society on SDG16+ to the global level of discussions at the United Nations. Individuals and partners from around the world will have the opportunity to submit short videos telling their “stories” of best practices and extraordinary efforts being undertaken towards SDG16+ at the national and local levels. The campaign intends to provide a unique and dynamic opportunity for an interactive dialogue between civil society partners working to take forward SDG16+ in their own national contexts around the world, and to showcase their stories – featuring both challenges and successes – and their concrete commitments to advancing SDG16+.

Stories will showcase examples of how SDG16+ is being implemented and is helping to positively impact people’s lives. Finalist stories will have the opportunity to be exposed in a hybrid side-event at the 2024 HLPF. They will also be featured on a dedicated web platform and be promoted widely via social media.

Background

In 2019, a group of organisations joined forces in launching a campaign dedicated to showcase civil society SDG16+ work and to call for global action. Individuals and partner organisations from around the world were invited to submit video stories that were to demonstrate compelling examples of how SDG16+ is being implemented globally and how it is helping to positively impact people’s lives. The Voices of SDG16+: Stories for Global Action campaign was initiated to generate a collection of stories to be used to present best practices from civil society around SDG16+ by enabling peacebuilders across the globe to spread their voices and local experiences and by involving the producers in discussion around practices documented. 

Since the initial launch of the campaign in 2019, yearly campaigns have proved to be a resounding success, as included in the Voices SDG16+ Alumni Booklet. Over the years, selected videos have been showcased during the High-level Political Forum in New York, both during in-person meetings and through official online side events. Through this, the campaign provided an opportunity to showcase best practices and insert localised experiences into policy discussions at the HLPF. 

Building on the success of previous campaigns we are now pleased to announce the 2024 Voices of SDG16+ Campaign! In the context of the 2024 United Nations High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development which takes place in July 2024, this sixth edition of the Voices of SDG16+ campaign will be centred around the theme “Ensuring effective delivery of SDG16 in times of multiple crises by reinforcing the 2030 Agenda”. This year’s 6th campaign anniversary will provide space to showcase the crucial work done by local actors in implementing SDG16 – entries are also called for that shed light on the interlinkages with the SDGs under review at HLPF2024 (SDG1 on No Poverty, SDG2 on Zero Hunger, SDG13 on Climate Action, and SDG17 on Partnerships for the Goals). Entries tackling the review of SDG16 with the Summit of the Future are also welcomed.

The 2025 Voices of SDG16+ Campaign

  • A new 2024 video-campaign to harvest and showcase civil society SDG16+ work from around the world around the theme “Resilience, Adaptation & Transformation: Local Voices reclaiming SDG16+"
  • A side-event during HLPF 2025 showcasing stellar contributions from civil society and opportunity to engage in a community of local voices of SDG16+.
  • A social media presence throughout #HLPF2025 to highlight the critical role of civil society in the global SDG16+ space and calling for action.

Our Organizations

Be a part of "Voices of SDG16+"

The 2025 Voices of SDG16+: Stories for Global Action is a collaborative campaign for organisations that wish to showcase examples of innovative SDG16+ implementation work. We invite partners to reach out to us and become involved. For more information about becoming a partner organisation, please contact: [email protected] or [email protected] 

Individuals and partners from around the world are invited to submit short videos (maximum 3 minutes) sharing their stories of best practices and extraordinary efforts to advance SDG16+ at the national and local levels. In the face of increasingly interlinked challenges, this campaign seeks to spotlight the resilience, creativity, innovation, and determination of civil society actors working to uphold peace, justice, and inclusion. We welcome all types of video formats, recognizing that technical or resource limitations should not be a barrier to participation. Whether captured on a phone, in a community setting, or through a creative medium, what matters most is the story you tell.

The submitted stories should reflect how local actors are responding to the complex realities of today: growing conflict and polarization, funding cuts, shifting political priorities, the impacts of climate change, restricted access to justice, and the erosion of civic space. These lived experiences and grassroots solutions will help to reaffirm the centrality of SDG16 as a foundational and cross-cutting enabler of the 2030 Agenda—and as a vital compass for navigating the storms of our time.

The 2025 Voices campaign builds on the successes of previous years. Selected videos will be featured on a dedicated website and shared in the context of key side events throughout the 2025 HLPF and beyond.

How to submit a video:

Visit the webpage “Share your Story” for instructions on how to submit a video for this year’s campaign.