Mission 4.7’s Workshop Series on Eco-Innovations

 
 

Led by the Center for Sustainable Development, Climate School at Columbia University, Mission 4.7, University of Waterloo, Canada, and UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and as the result of an ongoing collaboration between 15 plus institutions, including higher education institutions in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, the latest workshop in the 6-webinar series “Fostering Youth-Led Innovation for the SDGs” was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly 2023 in New York. 

The all-day workshop, “Amplifying Student Voices: Inspiring Local SDGs Action Through Student Led Initiatives”, held on September 18, 2023, was led by Brock Dickinson and Issa Gonzalez-Peltier Leogal of the University of Waterloo as a part of the North American EcoInnovation Network (EIN), Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). 

The workshop extended an invitation to like-minded organizations and individuals to share:

  • Course design and curriculums fostering eco-innovations and global citizenship education and education for sustainable development at higher education institutions and K-12. 

  • Share cross-subject networks across educational landscapes.

  • Contribute to our Youth-led policy document for COP28

  • Share best practices and national policy initiatives on youth-led eco-innovations. 

The webinar series will contribute to the development of a white paper on sustainability education, which will be presented at COP28, emphasizing the need to link educational systems with youth leadership for climate action. The workshop was helpful in discussing the White Paper as a part of the Youth Eco-Innovation series for COP28. The members and managers of SDSN’s  networks in Canada, Mexico, and USA shared their vision to support Mission 4.7’s regional chapters through their network. The members discussed the ways in which the regional Mission 4.7 group can elevate youth voices. A toolkit for eco-innovations bringing together aspects of wellness, global citizenship education, SDGs, sustainability on an AI driven platform was also discussed. The meeting’s agenda also included a networking round to understand the interests of various members joining the hybrid meeting. 

This series was developed by Entrepreneurship and Environment at the University of Waterloo and Columbia University's Centre for Sustainable Development in partnership. Partnering organizations included the North American EcoInnovation Network (EIN), Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC), and SDSN’s networks in Canada, Mexico, and USA. More information on the series can be found on the SDSN USA website.