17 Flourish Prizes for 17 Global Goals
When has the whole world ever agreed on anything, and unanimously to boot?
What if the whole world got together and picked the 17 biggest goals for humanity to work on together? We’re talking things like ending poverty, eliminating hunger, sending every child to school, forestalling the worst of climate change impacts, and ensuring clean water and sanitation for every person on the planet. And then … what if they voted, and unanimously committed to achieving these goals by 2030? That would be pretty great.
This isn’t a dream. It happened in September 2015. Many of you already know about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, also known as the SDGs or Global Goals. These goals are hairy, audacious, and only a good start. When we achieve the 17 goals, we will have brought every person on the planet to the starting line of a decent and dignified life.
The Global Goals were ratified by representatives of 190+ nations, but they belong to each and every one of us. They are our responsibility in every facet of our being: as citizens, community members, business leaders, employees, educators, and change-makers.
In my own life, I believe that business is a powerful, positive force for good. I couldn’t be prouder to be part of a team that is working on preparing every business student in the world to be a Global Goals leader.
AIM2Flourish is an initiative within the Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit at the Weatherhead School of Management — Case Western Reserve University. We’re the world’s first higher-education curriculum, AIM2Flourish.com story platform and prize for the UN SDGs. Last year, business students around the world published 425 stories about business innovations for good on the AIM2Flourish website. A distinguished jury selected the 17 Flourish Prize winners, one for each Global Goal.
What sets AIM2Flourish apart is that students learn about a business leader who inspires them by asking positive questions in an Appreciative Inquiry interview. Appreciative Inquiry is a powerful strengths-based whole system method for positive change that was developed at Case Western Reserve University.
This June 14–16, we will award the inaugural Flourish Prizes, recognizing 17 innovations from around the world that align with the 17 SDGs. We’re bringing together business leaders, educators, and students to celebrate and showcase their successes. The awards are part of the Fourth Global Forum for Business as an Agent of World Benefit: Discovering Flourishing Enterprise: The Key to Great Performance.
It’s going to be an incredible event. Please come! For pricing and registration information, visit globalforum.case.edu.
