In light of the staggering developments concerning the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its rapidly-spreading pandemic nature, we have been monitoring the situation closely for the past weeks. COVID-19 has spread to more than 150 countries across the globe, currently affecting communities at an exponential rate.
As Co-Lab organizers, we are taking this seriously and we, together, must do our share to help flatten the curve and slow down the spread of the virus. The best way to do so is to call for collective physical distancing and social solidarity with our local and global communities.
The Melton Foundation and Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung, along with our network of Co-Lab partners, remain committed to the Co-Lab ideals and our focus. The work on SDGs 13-5-3, namely Climate Action, Gender Equality, and Good Health and Wellbeing will continue ahead steadfastly.
We shall confirm the revised timelines 3 months prior to the event to allow sufficient time for preparation and arrangements. We would like to emphasize that Health & Safety is one of our primary concerns and, as Global Citizens and SDG practitioners, we have the duty to lead by example and help contain the spread of the virus especially given the recent spike of infections across the globe. Please keep yourself and your community safe, and updated with useful advice from the World Health Organization at www.who.int.
Launched in 2018, the Global Solvers Co-Lab convenes emerging leaders from across sectors and geographies to learn, collaborate, and co-create meaningful solutions to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on a local level with the global context in mind.
The United Nations’ Agenda 2030 along with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) present a comprehensive plan for Sustainable Development on the planet, particularly emphasizing the need for collaborations across sectors and stakeholders.
With the Global Solvers Co-Lab, we’ve set out to use this power of collaboration as a guiding principle to catalyze collective action. “Co-Lab” stands for a collaborative laboratory where novel ideas, skills, and approaches emerge through action. A collaborative space that converges young leaders from across identities, cultures, sectors, scientific backgrounds and professions; the Co-Lab aims to advance the realization of SDGs across the street, and the globe.
About the Global Solvers Co-Lab 2020
After a vastly successful CoLab 2018, the Melton Foundation and the Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung are yet again calling SDG advocates and practitioners from across the globe to bring their know-how, passion, and curiosity to the Global Solvers Co-Lab 2020. And this time, we’re going deeper!
Building on decades of experience in Global Citizenship collaboration, the Melton Foundation together with Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung is launching the second iteration of the Global Solvers Co-Lab. The Co-Lab provides a platform for up to 20 young SDG practitioners to join hands, hearts, and minds to forge actionable pathways towards advancing sustainable development at scale.
Founded on a collaboration framework that embraces diversity, aspires equitable as well as sustainable solutions, and nourishes cross-boundary collaborations, the Co-Lab 2020 brings together emerging SDG champions to learn and build solutions to local and global issues concerning:
At the Co-Lab, 'it’s not just talk'. We expect to roll up our sleeves and get to work as we unpack global issues and work together on approaches to tackle them. As a participant, you’ll be a co-driver of the activities - expect to engage in intensive collaboration at the Co-Lab 2020.
Here’s the brilliance of collaboration that will transpire at the CoLab 2020…
By tapping into collective capacity, the Co-Lab drives insight and inspiration to hone skills and catalyze solutions with sustained impact on SDGs 13, 5, and 3 – all in six days.
You can be one of the 20 Global Solvers from around the world to participate in a life-changing experience!
The application to the Global Solvers Co-Lab: 13-5-3 UN-limited includes the following:
- A written application form
- A short minute video introducing yourself and how you’re tackling the SDGs 13, 5 and/or 3.
(We want to learn more about you and your work and will not award prizes for best director – so don’t worry too much about the video quality, we care about the content.)
The above must be submitted using our online application center. Should you encounter issues using this online interface or have specific questions regarding the application, please contact global-solvers(at)meltonfoundation.org.
TIP: Completing the application for the Co-Lab 2020 requires thought and dedication. To avoid last-minute rush or technical problems, we recommend to start working on your application early and submit it ahead of the deadline. You can download a copy of the application questions here if you want to work on your application ‘off-line’ first.
Extended Application Deadline is Sunday, 2 February 2020!
Following the application deadline, we will select up to 20 candidates to participate in the Global Solvers Co-Lab. Watch out for a message towards the end of February 2020 with an update about the status of your application.
Selected participants will receive detailed information about the next steps, including specifics about the payment of participation fees, travel planning and modalities to unlock financial support for travel, as well as the onboarding activities and materials to prepare for the Co-Lab in June.
The Global Solvers Co-Lab: 13-5-3 UN-limited is made even better, thanks to the incredible support of the following supporters and partners:
The Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung (EAS) promotes science, research, and innovation by providing the technical infrastructure and granting subsidies for diverse science projects. Named after the German physicist, entrepreneur and social reformer Ernst Abbe (1840-1905), EAS has been operating as a non-profit foundation since 1992 in Jena (Germany).
To facilitate knowledge transfer across sectors and support new businesses and young entrepreneurs, EAS operates the Ernst-Abbe-Centre for Research and Transfer in Ilmenau (Germany) and the Center for Bio Instruments in Jena (Germany). To advance the quality of research and teaching, they award faculty chairs at universities across the state of Thuringia (Germany) and provide scholarships to highly talented students at these universities. They also offer a junior funding program for Ph.D. students. EAS furthermore manages the Zeiss-Planetarium and the Optical Museum in Jena (Germany) in order to promote a significant contribution to science.
The Melton Foundation (MF) promotes global citizenship as a way for individuals and organizations to work together across boundaries of place and identity to address global challenges. To achieve this, the MF offers Fellowships to young change agents in order to develop their capacity as effective and ethical leaders, equipped to act locally, with a global context in mind. Along with its Fellowship program, the Melton Foundation also promotes the advancement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals by working with Global Citizens and changemakers in different parts of the world via ‘hubs’, thereby multiplying tactical reach to motivated individuals.
Our Fellowship entails a 1.5-2 years experiential learning program, which equips Melton Fellows with the necessary skills and tools to work together on shared solutions to the challenges of today’s interconnected world. After they graduate from the program, they join our “Senior” Fellows network to drive impact as a role model for global citizenship in their expanding network. We are also culminating a 1-year long Leadership program for more experienced and advanced SDG advocates and practitioners to tap into their skills and provide them with the resources to produce scaleable change.
Since its founding in 1991, the Melton Foundation has built a network of over 500 Melton Fellows. It carries out its programs in collaboration with experienced Global Citizens and myriad partner organizations worldwide.
The Gotha Research Centre is an academic institute of the University of Erfurt. It is closely affiliated to the Gotha Research Library, which holds one of the most significant collections of manuscripts and Early Modern prints in Germany. The Centre is devoted to initiating and promoting research centered on the holdings of the Research Library, including the Early Modern collections and the archive of the Justus Perthes publishing house, one of Europe’s most prominent cartographical publishers in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. To pursue this, the Research Centre initiates and supports projects, organizes international conferences, workshops and lectures, as well as offering a stipend program for researchers from Germany and abroad.
Development Perspectives is a development education NGO based in Ireland and forms part of a global network of curious, critical thinkers and development practitioners working for social justice. They contribute to lessening poverty, inequality and climate change through transformative education and active global citizenship. Among other activities, Development Perspectives organizes the #SDGchallenge, a project which aims to equip individuals with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to take informed action to contribute towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Development Perspectives is one of the key content partners at the Global Solvers Co-Lab: 13-5-3 UN-limited.
