I BELIEVE IN A BETTER WORLD, AND YOU? MY 17 DAILY ACTIONS TO SUPPORT THE SDGs

[Laura Gagliardone]

Dear Gender and Evaluation Community, I am taking the initiative to show you an article I have written on my 17 daily actions to support the SDGs: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/i-believe-better-world-you-laura-my-.... It is working as engagement tool and, over the past weeks, I have received good comments which could be developed in ideas and projects. So I would be happy if you could add your thoughts.

Thank you in advance.

Warm regards, Laura Gagliardone

[Laura Gagliardone]

Dear Rituu, I am glad that you have liked my article. Its purpose is exactly what you have described: the answer to the question ‘what can a person do to contribute to the implementation and evaluation of the 17 SDGs?’. We should not be passive human beings but active actors to do our own part to accelerate development and security in a sustainable manner. Self-awareness, self-accountability, and self-monitoring allow a person to be engaged, to empower, and to improve.

Your focus is important as adopting inclusive models and approaches is the only solution to the ongoing challenges. We cannot design programs, projects, and initiatives lacking the voice of a part of the society, being that of children, youth, women, disabled people, and so on. And including other voices implies listening not to answer but to understand. There is always a reason behind human behavior but most of people judge things superficially because have neither analytical and M&E skills nor sensitivity. So I applaud your commitment to ‘go deeper’ to find authenticity and truth.

With the hope that we can collaborate more through EvalGender+ (http://gendereval.ning.com/) and EVALSDGs (www.evalsdgs.org), I thank you for amplifying my voice. Women who share similar interests should help each other because there is room for everyone to excel but nobody can get things done alone. Namaste, Laura Gagliardone

[Rituu B Nanda]

Dear Laura,

I found your post very inspiring. It made me think what I am doing personally towards SDGs? I did not own them as I was not involved in discussion around SDGs. Someone up there decided what was important for my future..Those working towards SDGs need to pay attention to it. If we want to make a difference we all have to take action in our own lives. 

What I am doing? I have become more conscious of recycling stuff and also not wasting electricity or water. I want to do something to bring about peace in this world...but am not doing anything about it. 

The most intriguing thing for me is the SDG call 'no one left behind'. Are we going to be saviours and include the most deprived in implementation, or get their issues in limelight through evaluation or do advocacy for them? I would like to go beyond it. I would rather focus on facilitating that those whose voice is missing take a lead in implementing and evaluating their own response to an issue. I am not talking about community monitoring the government, its about their response to an issue say youth taking responsibility about HIV and what actions they are taking and assessing their own progress. I am paying close attention to this through Constellation's community life competence process and SALT.

Another area I am studying is the power of listening. Who listens to whom and why? What do we listen to? What is the space that allows people to be themselves and share what is their authentic experience? 

I have written many blogs but here is one of self assessment of the community on response to immunization and how it provoked discussion on gender roles http://aidscompetence.ning.com/profiles/blogs/self-assessment-trigg...

Also as co-chair of EvalGender+ taskforce 'Participatory evaluation and are we listening' I am trying to collate experiences to feed into 'no one left behind'