MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Launched in 2015, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network Youth (SDSN Youth) is the global youth division of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), a non-government initiative meant to empower and engage young people to be part of the movement to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
Recently, SDSN Youth was included in the official UN Taskforce on COVID-19 response, with an institutional mandate to create solutions that respond to the current pandemic, as well as other pandemics when and should they appear. This mandate encompasses all established SDSN Youth divisions globally, including our very own UN SDSN Youth – Philippines.
Since its launch, the organization has impacted over 17,000 youth leaders throughout the Philippines, through capacity building sessions, youth summits, and project support. It is among the biggest and most active youth non-government organizations (NGOs) in the country, with a network of 150 youth organizations and 200,000 members.
As the world enters its new normal, and global governments all enact their own policies to squash the virus, the Philippine team was appointed to spearhead the regional projects for Asia for SDSN Youth’s COVID-19 efforts. The first of its COVID-19 response initiatives is the creation of a consolidated and comprehensive Interactive Philippine Dashboard on COVID-19. As the first and only youth-led online knowledge platform on COVID-19, this platform was specifically designed to be understood by the youth.
This interactive online dashboard is youth-oriented, easily digestible, with accurate and verified information. The information that is accessible on the dashboard include (1) the symptoms and features of COVID-19, (2) a consolidated list of news from local and international media, (3) updates on the current cases in the country, as well as (4) donation and volunteering opportunities, among others. In order to make the online dashboard even more interactive, SDSN Youth has also added state-of-the-art features, such as Watson, an artificial intelligence chatbot designed to answer questions related to COVID-19, launched in partnership with IBM; and the vulnerability map, which offers a visual representation of the risk percentage of contracting COVID depending on an individual’s locality, using data gathered from the Commission on Population and Development (PopCom).
Apart from IBM, SDSN Youth is also proud to be partnered with Ayala Corporation, Asia Society Philippines, Aboitiz Foundation, GCash, as well as media partners which include Inquirer.net, The Manila Times, adobo magazine, WhatsHappening.PH, and WhenInManila.com.
If you would like to support SDSN Youth’s efforts, you may find details on donations and partnership opportunities at http://covid19.sdsnyouthph.org/donate. You can also learn more about the organization at http://facebook.com/SDSNYouthPH
