Representatives from RCE Belarus recently participated in the online game 'Sustainable Development Goals: Think and Act', held in Belarus оn 25 September, 2019 on the UN's Global Day of Action (#Act4SDGs).

Sixty youth teams from various regions of the country took part in the game, among them 307 school students, 40 university students and 86 teachers, parents and other consultants in the field of sustainable development. The working languages of the game were Russian and Belarusian.

Game participants were asked to complete four tasks that stimulated youth activity aimed at providing educational support for the SDG localisation processes in local communities. This allowed participants to deepen their understanding of climate problems and knowledge of the SDGs associated with them, and to develop ideas and initiatives to improve life in their communities.

A further eight youth initiative ideas were proposed by participants that aim to achieve the SDGs via individuals, educational institutions or communities. These include a mobile application for attracting the attention of children and youth to environmental issues, rejecting the use of plastic bags and bottles, studying the peculiarities of cycling in small towns, educational activities on the SDGs, as well as volunteer movements to help the poor.

The online game was seen as a great resource for those who work in the Russian-speaking sphere, and want to realise the values ​​of sustainable development in cooperation with various actors and structures.

The participants will continue to develop their ideas within the National online project 'Sustainable Development Goals: Think and Act'.

The educational technology of the online game ‘Sustainable Development Goals: Think and Act’ was developed in 2004 by the NEWLINE Youth Educational Club. The initiator of the online game in 2019 is the Inter-University Club of SDG Friends, supported by the Coordination Center ‘Education for Sustainable Development’ of the Belarusian State Pedagogical University, as well as the Education for Sustainable Development Association.

(Photo credits: RCE Belarus)