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Celebrating women changemakers in India contributing to the #GlobalGoals

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Tuesday, 24 May 2022

In 2015, the United Nations adopted The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Also known as the Global Goals, the SDGs are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 interlinked Goals adopted by countries are designed to be a “blueprint” to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. If we look at the UN 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, women are rightly at its center. Gender Equality (SDG 5) is not only a goal in itself but also a prerequisite for achieving all the 17 SDGs. Therefore, unless we invest in women and girls, we cannot get closer to the global agenda.

India is one of the 193 countries that has formally adopted the SDGs, and has been driving a host of related initiatives in the last five years. Women have been active participants in India’s sustainability journey and their efforts and work directly contribute to the betterment of the country. Over the years, women changemakers have also used services like Twitter to engage in meaningful dialogues, stand up for issues that matter and empower their communities.

Every day several women Tweet to make a positive impact in their communities and the world at large. Twitter has been serving the public conversation for over 15 years, and we believe public conversation is better when as many people as possible can participate. 

We shared our first Global Impact Report, a cohesive representation of the work we’ve done across environment, social, and governance issues since Twitter’s founding in 2006. For this report, we organized our work into five key areas: Our service, Governance, People and culture, Twitter for Good, and the Planet. 

We also continue to work at scale and pace to build a healthier Twitter by stepping up the level of proactive enforcement across the service and investing in technological solutions to tackle abuse and malicious online behavior. We have been regularly engaged with nonprofits including @SayftyCom, @CSR_India‎, @INBreakthrough, @YouthKiAwaaz, @cyberpeacengo, @aarambhindia and others to organize timely and relevant conversations focussed on equal rights for all and participatory governance. 

In continuation of our efforts, Twitter India (@TwitterIndia) partnered with Sayfty Trust (@SayftyCom) to recognise exemplary women change makers and how they are leveraging Twitter to advocate for the #GlobalGoals. We embarked on a project aimed at driving greater participation of women in conversations relating to the SDGs with inclusion and safety as paramount. We came across diverse efforts that such women had taken upon themselves; and their zeal, passion and commitment was inspiring.

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The 17 women changemakers working through Twitter on the SDGs are changing the world one SDG at a time.  We launched the Changemakers Report, which recognises and honors these women changemakers who have been advocating for the #GlobalGoals and using Twitter for social good. In the words of some of the changemakers:

Lakshmi M. Puri (@lakshmiunwomen), former UN Women Assistant-Secretary General (ASG)

”I have been focusing on influencing governments to champion, internalize and implement the SDG project for humanity - in particular SDG 5 on gender equality and women’s empowerment. Social media platforms, like Twitter enable the mantra of SDGs to be propagated, and understood and reach the farthest first.  Twitter and social media can be used for bringing the lens  of innovation, which includes social, economic, political and technological innovation. Twitter as a platform is amenable to intergenerational conversations and it provides the ability to include everyone in them.”

Brinda Adige (@BrindaAdige), Human Rights Activist

“Twitter is a connector, which has enabled me to create impactful collaborations with government functionaries and organizations and has helped raise issues concerning women protection, safety, and governance through the service. Twitter helps to garner information from all kinds of people at various levels, which is forging connections, to not only build opinions and learn from one another but also strengthen campaigns and advocacy.“

Sahar Mansoor (@SaharMansoor1), Founder and CEO of Bare Necessities

“Twitter has helped me amplify access to information, while breaking down concepts around sustainability into fun pieces for everyone to be a part of the movement. We use Twitter as an invitation to show compassion towards the environment and use the rhetoric - ‘You can do it too’. The concepts of sustainability and climate change are hard to have a grasp on because it's not tangible but through Twitter we have been breaking them down into actionable steps to get people more involved.” 

Yuman Hussain (@yumanhussain), Executive Director of Azad India Foundation

“Twitter provides a platform for a social impact organization like ours to influence more people in joining our common vision of providing quality education to girls and women for a sustainable future in India. We have also been working with policymakers and parliamentarians to raise awareness about girls' education through Twitter campaigns.”

Rituparna Chatterjee (@MasalaBai), Deputy Asia Editor, The Independent

“I run a sisterhood thread via my Twitter DM that connects women to job opportunities. It has been a source of support for me, which has been possible largely because of the democratic nature of this platform, and I hope Twitter continues to remain a powerful tool to harness the good.”

Pragya Vats (​​@pragyavats), Head of Campaigns, Save the Children 

“Twitter is a space to share real stories of women shattering taboo around menstrual hygiene or breaking the barriers of child marriage. This is a space I leverage for not only what I do, but also for telling the stories of the women who are doing outstanding work, which makes it more democratic, and helps build a community of storytellers.”

Kudos to all the women changemakers. We celebrate your incredible work and sincerely hope that your contributions will not only inspire girls and women everywhere to pursue their dreams, but also advance women’s equality and leadership in meaningful ways.

 

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