GIZ’s commitment to social change

GIZ’S LOCATIONS IN GERMANY AND ITS COUNTRY OFFICES WORLDWIDE ARE ENGAGED IN A VARIETY OF ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE SUSTAINABILITY. THE MOTTO OF GIZ’S GERMAN SUSTAINABILITY ACTION DAYS IN 2017 WAS ‘RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION – FAIR ENOUGH!’. FROM SAFE CYCLING IN NEPAL AND A PLASTIC-FREE WEEK IN THAILAND TO SUSTAINABLE EVENT MANAGEMENT AT HOTELS IN RWANDA – A RANGE OF INITIATIVES WERE ORGANISED BY GIZ STAFF TO RAISE AWARENESS OF SUSTAINABILITY IN AND OUTSIDE GERMANY.

GIZ’s staff supported the 2017 German Sustainability Action Days by organising a total of 38 initiatives at its locations in Germany and 35 events in 21 countries, providing a wide variety of information and ideas about sustainable consumption. Events were organised by many of the company’s country offices around the world. Staff in the Philippines, for example, organised a sustainability week, while staff in Nicaragua worked in care homes and staff in Tanzania introduced a charity week in which each employee can devote their working time to a specific cause.

SUSTAINABLE TEXTILES

In Bonn, the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles highlighted the conditions in which our clothes are produced in developing countries. It also offered ideas on how we can make our own wardrobes more sustainable using resources such as special shopping guides.

ALBANIA: RESPONSIBLE USE OF RESOURCES

In Albania, GIZ and its cooperation partner, a university in Tirana, helped young people gain a better understanding of the topics of recycling, energy efficiency and regional produce in an entertaining way. They used experiments to test the energy and cost efficiency of different types of light bulb, and presentations and various quizzes to draw attention to the issue of plastic and recycling.

VOLUNTEER DAY IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

In November 2017, GIZ staff in Bosnia and Herzegovina organised a day of social engagement with various institutions there. Among the institutions taking part were an establishment for children without parental care in Sarajevo and Banja Luka and an institution for children and young adults with mental disabilities. Staff spent an enjoyable day making greetings cards and gift boxes with the children, learning songs about friendship and reading books. The young adults also had the opportunity to practise skills such as writing a CV and working with the Photoshop software.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Sustainability is up to each and every one of us. How can we as individuals contribute to it in our day-to-day lives? Staff commitment to sustainability