SDG Certificate: Discover this year's cohort and student projects

>The SDG Certificate allows students to develop entrepreneurial skills and to work with public policy students from a range of fields. Students benefit from the experience of building and implementing their own interdisciplinary SDG projects while collaborating with multiple actors at different levels. This year's SDG cohort consisted of four teams of students working on projects responding to local challenges across the globe, from France to Senegal to French Guyana. 

As part of the certificate program, students completed two intensive SDG modules to learn more about the SDG ecosystem, while utilizing design thinking methodology to build their projects. These modules were taught by Laetitia Atlani-Duault, Professor at Université Paris Cité / IRD / CEPED, Director of the World Health Organization Collaborative Center for Research on Health and Humanitarian Policies and Practices, and President of the Institut COVID19 Ad Memoriam, and by Jennie Cottle, Academic Advisor for the SDG Certificate, the Gender Equality Certificate, the GPPN, and the Social Policy and Social Innovation stream, and Adjunct Faculty at the Sciences Po School of Public Affairs.

On May 12, 2022, students presented their projects. Discover the themes they dealt with and their presentations.

Group 1: A buddy program for refugee youth by youth

86% of young refugees in France have no social ties with French people in the year following their arrival. In response to this lack of social cohesion, and aware of the strong desire for commitment among French students, we decided to create a buddy program specifically for refugees between the ages of 18 and 25. The idea is also to put young people in touch with each other according to their interests, particularly academic, to promote integration through social life and studies.

Group 2: Digital Health for Equitable Access to Health Information in Senegal 

The project aims to provide trusted peer-reviewed health information to people in Senegal through a feed accessible to users of an integrated health-tech application. The project is executed in partnership with a Senegalese health tech enterprise. The team is currently interviewing various stakeholders and finalising the structure of the feed and modalities of content creation and delivery. The solution is first expected to be trialed in Senegal and later expanded across Africa.

Group 3: Tackling IUU fishing and Ghost Gear in French Guyana with a cooperative database

Illegal Unreported and Unregulated fishing as well as ghost gear are worldwide challenges harming life below water (SDG 14). Previous initiatives have been successful at a local scale and using a bottom-up approach. Learning from these key-aspects, we chose to focus on French Guyana where biodiversity and fish stocks are significantly impacted by IUU fishing and ghost gear.

After numerous interviews with various local actors, we proposed a cooperative database that allows any user to spot and report illegal activities as well as lost fishing equipment in French Guyana. Results appear on a dashboard with a map and allow actors on the ground to measure the impacts of these issues and it could foster public and cooperative actions to make the sector more attractive and protect marine ecosystems.

With the adaptability of this technology, we hope to be able to spread this initiative in other locations in the future.

Group 4: Talibé Children Project 

In Senegal, some children study in traditional Koranic schools called Koranic Daaras. Children are sent to a marabout who hosts and feeds his pupils, teaching them the religious text for several years. In recent years, informal Daaras, nurtured by child traffic in West Africa, have multiplied. The lack of control from the Senegalese state has led to an increasing number of children begging in the country as their marabouts not only perceive it as a Muslim tradition but also as an important source of revenue. In many informal Daaras, children are victims of physical, moral and sexual abuse. This situation is intrinsically linked to poverty (SDG 1), as parents cannot afford the education of their children. The Talibé phenomena also touches other SDGs such as food security and hunger (SDG 2), health (SDG 3) and education (SDG 4).

 For our project, we chose to work with an Italian association working in Tambacounda where one of our group members had already worked. Our partnership allowed us to rely on a very good knowledge of the field and existing interactions with the marabouts of the city. During the semester, we were able to elaborate a "roadmap" with several possible interventions for the association. These aim to propose alternative sources of income for the marabouts, thus reducing or even eliminating the time spent by the children in the street begging. Also, our suggestions focus on children's education so as to include math classes and professional training in their daily timetable. These proposals are bound to evolve according to the association's feedback as well as the political context surrounding the issue of child begging practices in Senegal.

Composition of the working groups

Group 1

• Émilie Ramond, Master in Public Policy, Social Policy and Social Innovation stream
• Adele Maurus, Master in European Affairs, Social Policy and Social Innovation stream
• Alice Hefling, Master in Public Policy, Administration Publique stream
• Camille Desrayaud, Master in Public Policy, Social Policy and Social Innovation stream

Group 2

• Clara Derocles, Master in Public Policy, Global Health stream
• Abhinav Devaria, Master in Public Policy, Global Health stream
• Sarah Ghag, Master in Public Policy, Social Policy and Social Innovation
• Faith Napwora, Master in Public Policy, Global Health stream

Group 3

• Emma Clair, Master of International Governance and Diplomacy (Paris School of International Affairs), Asian studies Concentration
• Raphaëlle Davy, Master in Public Policy, Energy, Environment and Sustainability stream
• Niagara Poulain, Master SPE Sciences et Politiques de l’Environnement (Paris School of International Affairs), Environment and Sustainability Concentration
• Antoine Richet, Master in Environmental Policy (Paris School of International Affairs)

Group 4

• Pierre Flecheux, Master in Public Policy, Social Policy and Social Innovation stream
• Naomie Rouch, Master SPE Science et politique de l'environnement (Paris School of International Affairs)
• Inès Khoun, Master in Public Policy, Global Health stream
• Evelyn Kramer, Master in Public Policy, Social Policy and Social Innovation stream
• Mateo De Lataillade, Master in Public Policy, Economics and Public Policy stream

learn more

• The SDG certificate
• The Master in Public Policy at the School of Public Affairs
• The Master in European Affairs at the School of Public Affairs
• The 11 policy streams of the School of Public Affairs
• The Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA)

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