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UNESCO Doha Office and GORD join forces towards Climate Action
On 27 October 2019 UNESCO Doha Office and the Gulf Organization for Research Development GORD signed a letter of Intent during Qatar Sustainability Summit The aim of this collaboration is to capitalize on expertise and network of both organizations to foster the role of educational institutions in contributing to Sustainable Development Goals SDGs of the 2030 Agenda with focus on SDG 13 to take urgent actions to combat climate change as well as SDG 12 to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
GORD is a nonprofit organization and a member of Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company Through their network of Centers of Excellence GSAS Trust GORD institute Global Carbon Trust and the Global Sustainability Academy the organization focuses on promoting knowledge sharing and exchange of best practices in i green building standards development ii multidisciplinary applied research as well as iii raising awareness through education and outreach activities
Recognizing the role of education as key enabler for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of 2030 Agenda UNESCO has been promoting Education for Sustainable Development through its extensive network of UNESCO Affiliated Schools ASPnet UNESCO Chairs and UNITIWIN program category I and II centers as well as throughout more than 2000 UNESCO designated sites around the world The objective of Education for Sustainable Development is to empower everyone to be able to reflect on their own actions taking into account their current and future social cultural economic and environmental impacts and to become key players in creating the change towards a more sustainable future
Moreover since one of the key thematic areas of Education for Sustainable Development is climate change UNESCO Doha Office and GORD decided to join forces and build on their extensive networks This collaboration will mainly focus on i enhancing knowledge on climate change impact of pollution and sustainable consumption practices and ii raising awareness and fostering the role of educational institutions in responding to climate change challenges and impacts on peoples lives and the planet
