International Youth Forum of the CIS Member States on the Sustainable Development Goals (archive event)

The International Youth Forum of the CIS Member States on the Sustainable Development Goals was held on October 13-16  (October 12, 2022 is arrival day, October 17, 2022 is departure day) in Moscow and gathered SDG Youth Ambassadors, representatives of youth associations, leaders of the youth social movement, young professionals, representatives of government agencies and international agencies involved in the promotion and implementation of the SDGs in the CIS.

The International Youth Forum of the CIS Member States on the Sustainable Development Goals is part of the Action Plan for 2021-2022 for the implementation of the Strategy for International Youth Cooperation of the CIS Member States for the period up to 2030.

The purpose of the event is to develop cooperation and consolidate the efforts of youth of the CIS Member States to contribute to the work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and benchmarks for sustainable development in their countries and the world.

Tasks:

• raising awareness of youth of the CIS Member States about the SDGs and their involvement in activities for the implementation of it,
• formation of a pool of active youth leaders involved in the promotion and implementation of the SDGs in the CIS,
• formation of a regular open dialogue platform for the exchange of experience, the creation of new ideas and projects for the development and implementation of initiatives in the field of sustainable development in the CIS,
• stimulation of youth activity, support and development of youth initiatives in the field of sustainable development in the CIS,
• development of new effective forms of international youth cooperation, expansion and strengthening of international and interregional cooperation in the field of sustainable development in the CIS,
• encouragement of cooperation between youth public associations in the field of sustainable development in the CIS,
• combining the efforts of specialized state structures and youth public associations for the implementation of the SDGs in the CIS,
• development of proposals and recommendations for international youth cooperation in the field of achieving the SDGs in the CIS.

The work of the forum was carried out in the following areas:

• education and science,
• innovative development,
• social entrepreneurship,
• environmental sustainability,
• responsible consumption,
• health and wellness,
• volunteering.

Participants: 73 people (42 participants from the Russian Federation, 31 participants from the CIS countries). They were SDGs Youth Ambassadors, representatives of youth associations, leaders of youth social movement, young professionals, representatives of government bodies and international agencies involved in the promotion and implementation of the SDGs on  space of the CIS.

Key results: During the forum the participants got acquainted with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, discussed the contribution of youth to the achievement of the Agenda and considered the Strategy for International Youth Cooperation of the CIS States Members for 2021–2030 through the prism of the Sustainable Development Goals. Also, workshops for the participants to develop skills and competencies and a foresight session on the development of a national sustainability model were held. During the forum the participants also had the opportunity to visit the All-Russian Ecocultural Project #NEMUSEIMUSORA and the Ecocenter of the Sobirator environmental company.

As a result of the forum the participants developed and presented 15 projects aimed at achieving sustainable development in the CIS. Among them: the Eco-Consulting hackathon aimed at introducing eco-projects into the activities of enterprises and informing businesses about the possibilities of social entrepreneurship, creation of a web interface to help promote small businesses in regional, federal, international markets (CIS), a project on sex education in Kyrgyzstan, school of young researchers aimed at increasing the scientific and professional potential of future specialists by providing independent mentoring support in writing scientific papers / conducting research, creation of an electronic trading platform for the promotion and sale of creative works in the Russian Federation and CIS countries. Proposals such as creation of a system for collecting illiquid plant products in chain supermarkets, holding a series of information and educational lectures/seminars/competitions among population and heads of industries and companies on the topic of responsible consumption of water resources in the household environment, a project to raise awareness and eliminate stereotypes in the field of responsible consumption among older generation by placing advertising and art objects in public transport and at bus stops were also announced. Different projects such as a project to increase the attractiveness of the topic of ecology through training eco-influencers from scratch, creation of an educational program for volunteers on the formation of a value orientation in volunteer activities, a project to improve competencies in the field of social entrepreneurship for members of NGOs, holding a festival of culture, crafts and creativity, creation of a unified database of academic mobility programs in the EAEU were also considered.