In March, the global non-profit NewCities is hosting a conference right here in Victoria called Leading by Example: Implementing the SDGs in Canada. The Victoria Foundation is the lead sponsor, and I couldn’t be happier to have an event such as this taking place in our own backyard.
For the uninitiated, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a series of goals adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015 to help guide the world toward “a better and more sustainable future for all.” The goals are intended to be achieved by 2030.
I distinctly remember the first time I understood the SDGs as something we could engage with in a meaningful way, at the local, national and international level. I was presenting at a conference in Mexico City, and the UN reached out through the conference to encourage those of us in Canada, Mexico and the United States to embrace the goals and the change they encouraged.
It wasn’t long after that Community Foundations of Canada became involved in promoting the SDGs and founded Alliance 2030, in partnership with organizations across the country, including the Victoria Foundation. This really got the ball rolling by bringing together organizations working to implement the goals and helping to centralize their efforts.
Here at the Victoria Foundation, we took a long look at what we could do to help and then mapped out a plan for how we could contribute to moving the needle. Now, we have aligned our mission, our values and our actions directly with the SDGs, as it becomes more and more an integral part of all we do.
We’ve incorporated the SDGs into both our granting and donor processes, requiring all charities applying for grants to identify what SDGs their work addresses, and giving donors the ability to chose where their money goes based on what goals they wish to address. You can now find the SDGs throughout our annual Vital Signs report, too, helping to show how local problems and solutions can have global implications.
The SDGs are baked into our highest-level strategic priorities, with our commitment to food security and housing stemming directly from goals such as Number 2: Zero Hunger and Number 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. As we look forward, we are steering more of our attention to Number 5: Gender Equality, a guiding principle for some of our newest initiatives, such as our Women’s Giving Circle.
All of this is to say, I’m delighted to have this conference coming to our region. I believe wholeheartedly in the intentions and direction of the SDGs, and anytime anyone else feels discouraged about our ability to build a better future, look to the SDGs for both the inspiration and information to move forward.
For more information on the conference, you can visit newcities.org/leading-by-example.
Sandra Richardson is CEO of the Victoria Foundation.
