217 schools from 70 countries have signed up for Wellington’s Global Goals Competition, which is run as part of our Global Social Leaders programme, in partnership with Future Foundations.

It is three years since the United Nations adopted the Global Goals, a set of 17 Sustainable Development goals ‘with the power to end extreme poverty, fight inequality and stop climate change… for a better world by 2030’. The Global Social Leaders (GSL) Global Goals Competition was designed as a way of developing students’ leadership skills and broadening their understanding of Global Citizenship through active engagement with the Global Goals.

The competition challenges students aged 11-17 to plan and lead a team project which addresses one or more of the Global Goals – the aim is to enable global change on a local scale. Future Foundations and The Wellington Community supports the teams, providing project-planning frameworks, resources and feedback.

One team of Wellington College students, for example, has partnered with a social innovation firm to support a brand-new school in Mozambique and establish an ongoing partnership. They are raising funds to offer scholarships so that underprivileged children can access the school and they will also contribute towards the cost of science equipment. Students and staff from Wellington visited Benga International School this October to cement the partnership.

Wellington’s GSL team is keen to encourage other school groups to sign up – the Global Goals provide a great framework for students to follow when running projects and students receive feedback on their projects from experienced mentors. This initiative is also a great way to connect with young people from across the globe – and it is free to enter.

Read more about the Global Goals Competition on the Global Social Leaders website.