UNDP inleder partnerskap med Heart17 i kampen mot COVID-19

21 April, Stockholm. As cases of COVID-19 continue to escalate, Heart17 - a global initiative to help accelerate the UN Sustainable Development Goals - has initiated a unique partnership model to raise awareness and engage youth to prevent, respond and recover.

“At its core, Heart17 is about instilling hope and building solidarity through the celebration of creativity. We work to bring partners together, from all sectors, to show that we can, as a global community, overcome this challenge, that we are in this together,” notes Anna Ryott of Heart17.

As the pandemic continues to develop in nearly every country on the planet, many are left feeling confused, hopeless and alone. The partnership draws on the key messages and experiences of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), which works in nearly 170 countries and is rapidly scaling up support on COVID-19, and extends this reach through private sector partners.

In its initial phase, the campaign is focused on handwashing, social distancing, and the need to stay at home, all of which have proven critical to preventing the spread of COVID-19. As the campaign proceeds, the focus will shift to how the global community must come together to support the most vulnerable, including those who are suffering economic impacts and residents of hard-hit developing countries.

“The only way we can solve global challenges is by working together, in partnership. We are extremely grateful and proud that companies within popular culture, such as H&M Group, instantly decided to act on the ask from UNDP to spread information among young people about the COVID-19 pandemic. There is fear around the world, we know that what we need to encourage now is hope and solidarity, that is how we will win this,” says Anna Ryott and Jörgen Andersson, founders of HEART 17.

The outreach coincides with the pre-launch of HEART 17, a global initiative that partners with UNDP and global brands within popular culture, to help accelerate the UN Sustainable Development Goals with a message of hope, creativity, and partnership. While the aim was to launch later in 2020, the global pandemic and the need for critical information to be shared globally led to a fast-tracking of the launch process.

“This virus is challenging even the strongest of healthcare systems and we expect the impact on developing countries to be severe. UNDP is working to support our partners around the world and we see Heart17 and its partners as a way to encourage global action, to bring people together and see this as an all-of-humanity endeavor. We are only as strong as our weakest healthcare system and we all must pull together if we want to defeat this,” says Ulrika Modéer, Director of UNDP’s Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy.

The campaign about COVID-19 directly addresses Sustainable Development Goal 3, Good Health and Wellbeing, as the first of many campaigns and partnerships to come.

For more information, please contact:

Anna Rindefjell, Heart 17 AB, Anna.rindefjell@heart17.com

Carl Mercer, UNDP, carl.mercer@undp.org

ABOUT HEART 17:

Heart17 is a newly formed, limited company that is focused on generating advocacy and action on the Sustainable Development Goals (hence the name ‘17’) in partnership with UNDP and global corporations.HEART 17 exists to activate and accelerate the UN Sustainable Development Goals through hope, creativity, and partnership. Heart17 wants to unbury the 17 Goals and make them exciting, desirable and actionable – make the Goals famous! The initiative will work tirelessly with partners to inspire people around the world to act, invoking human creativity and imagination to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. Heart17 emphasizes the power of partnership and creativity to create impact. #TomorrowTogether www.heart17.com

ABOUT UNDP:

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.

On COVID-19, UNDP is already working to support health systems in countries including Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Djibouti, El Salvador, Eritrea, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Nigeria, Paraguay, Panama, Serbia, Ukraine, and Vietnam. UNDP is currently working to scale this up to 100 countries globally.

UNDP disclaimer:

UNDP does not endorse and/or recommend any commercial or other products, goods, or services offered by any partners of Heart17 AB. UNDP does not endorse any commercial entity. UNDP makes no representations and gives no warranties of whatever nature in respect of the products, applications, goods or services, or any documents related to them, offered by Heart17 AB or their partners, which use the UNDP name. UNDP does not make any claim, warranty or representation whatsoever, expressly or implied, either as to the fitness or suitability of the referred products, goods, or services for any purpose for which they may be put.