UN SDG Action Campaign launches global campaign “Flip the Script”

Bonn, Germany — The UN SDG Action Campaign has launched the global campaign Flip the Script in February 2022 to mobilize, inspire and connect stakeholders and show that change is possible for a healthy, just and green recovery. In order to meet the challenges we face, we must change the way we do things and #FlipTheScript on prevailing narratives.

The campaign narrative emphasizes that “flipping the script” and making real progress depends on transformative action which must take place across peoples and issues, places and political perspectives. Flip the Script is envisioned to be a critical starting point to what people imagine that they can bring to life.

The campaign offers digital assets which are made available to the general public as open-source content. UN SDG Action Campaign has also been partnering with the creative industry, local governance, and civil society organizations to co-create and adapt multilingual assets that can be used by broader audiences at the local level. The campaign’s key messages and visuals can be found on its dedicated Trello board: Flip the Script toolkit and will be constantly updated throughout 2022.

The campaign aims to demonstrate that many people have taken the power into their own hands and brought new, seemingly small changes into their lives — from casting a vote to recycling to purchasing only from socially responsible businesses. Multiplied by billions of people, these actions add up to the most powerful wave of change. They will generate the real impetus for transformation. To support this idea people can register their profiles and log SDG-related actions on a global map.

The general public can also engage with the campaign by using the augmented reality filters, which include various SDG-inspired butterfly effect illustrations. Users are encouraged to publish this content on their social media accounts along with their own messages — and by doing so, they contribute to creating a ripple effect and inspire other community peers to do the same. Participants who add the hashtag #FlipTheScript and tag @sdgaction may also have their content featured on UN SDG Action Campaign’s channels.

Flipping the script for the SDGs

To #FlipTheScript, the UN SDG Action Campaign calls for a journey of advocacy and action. The very first step is changing how we talk to each other and work together to find solutions. And in doing so, we will inspire others to do the same.

“By advocacy to #FlipTheScript, we mean rethinking, recalibrating and reimagining our societies and economies to achieve the SDGs. And coming up with persuasive arguments for applying SDG principles in every part of life.

The SDGs have inspired many people. That’s because we all know, intuitively, that achieving the goals will lead to a better life for all on a healthier planet. We know that especially after two years of a pandemic that has turned our lives upside down. Frustration and division have erupted within and across our societies. It is time to react, reset, restart. Old models have not delivered. We need new ones.

We need to flip the script because the world is not working for most people and our planet. Yet, the SDG story is about what most people want: more inclusive, peaceful, and sustainable societies, no later than 2030.

Now we have eight years left to make the SDGs happen. And that will only be possible if we all start to flip the script — today. Flip apathy into action, fear into hope, divisiveness into togetherness.”

— Marina Ponti, Director of the UN SDG Action Campaign

For questions, please contact martin.samaan@undp.org; krisha.sia@undp.org
For more information, please visit act4sdgs.org/flip-the-script