Under the Starry Sky
A unique opportunity for young people with innovative ideas to receive high-quality training on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and project management, and then develop and implement a project throughout the year.
Program Name
Program Location
Ansvarling Merch
Central Norway
Bahtinet: Reviving A Fishing Community
Egypt
The B.E.A.N. Team: Building Excitement for Alternative Nutrition
Central Norway
Clean Cities Project
Malawi
Det Grønne Skiftet er Blått
Central Norway
EcoCharge Bikes
Switzerland
EcoFlow
India
Empowering Immigrant Women in the Canadian Workforce
Canada
Hand-in-Hand
China
Mea Salus
Central Norway
OceaNo Colillas
Argentina
Offshore BioSpots
Central Norway
One Pulse
Indonesia
Organised Matter
Australia
Pollinator Friends
Central Norway
The Project Suicide
Pakistan
Reconnecting Mother Nature
Brazil
ReSki
Central Norway
Seneclean 3.0
Senegal
Sports for All
Central Norway
Student Education for Environmental Development (SEED)
Canada
Sustainable Learning
Central Norway
Sustainable Neighborhoods
Central Norway
The Taste of Sustainability
Central Norway
Think Wilder
United Kingdom
Tomorrows Heroes
Central Norway
WaterSaver
Chile
About the Partner
SpareBank 1 SMN is a regional Norwegian financial services group, part of the SpareBank 1-Alliance. The bank’s commitment to making a positive impact on society and the environment is evident, and the bank supports various community development initiatives in Mid-Norway.
This year the bank is celebrating its 200 years anniversary. Moving towards the future, the bank wanted to team up with young people from all over the world and create young drivers for sustainability. This was the vision, and the result is the Youth Action Program “Under the starry sky”, formed and managed in a close partnership with WFUNA
Under the Starry Sky Workshop
Under the Starry Sky kicked off with a 4-day online training. To accommodate different time zones, participants had a choice between two sessions, which were held from 19 to 22 January (8am-4pm CET) and from 26 to 29 January (4pm-12am CET) respectively.
After the training, participants worked on their consolidated project proposals and submitted them to WFUNA and SpareBank for review. Based on their project pitches, half of the participants were selected to implement their project from 6 March to late July 2023, with support and guidance from WFUNA.
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Program Updates
The participants presented their project and outcomes during the ship expedition in Norway. Presentation sessions were held every day under the supervision of WFUNA, UNA Norway and SpareBank 1 SMN where participants shared their projects, their initial objectives and goals and what they achieved during their project implementation. Moreover, they also met representatives from local businesses and high schoolers and they were able to share their experience and being a source of motivation for the future leaders of tomorrow.
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Ship Expedition
As a final highlight of the program, participants embarked on a ship expedition along the Norwegian coast from 5-14 September 2023.
Participants boarded the Statsraad Lehmkuhl for a wonderful, unique and impressive experience. The ship departed from Ålesund and sailed to Molde, Rørvik and Verdal before stopping in Trondheim. Participants followed a well-defined program on board and in each port, and they had the opportunity to meet local youth and businesses along the way.
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