UNFPA and UNDP discussed the role of art and technology in tackling climate change in a panel discussion organized with the Ministry of Youth and Sports at the UN Egypt Pavilion at COP27 on November 10.
Under the title, “How Can We Harness the Power of Art and Technology to Inspire Climate Action?” panelists discussed employing technology and art to serve the climate movement.
“Now we have the power to leverage the power of art and technology to create lasting change,” said Dawlat Shaarawy, UNFPA Population and Data Analyst.
The panel also brought together Sylvain Merlen, UNDP Deputy Representative, Tamer Taha, Innovation, Digitalization and Entrepreneurship Advisor to the Minister of International Cooperation, Miroslav Polzer Founder and CEO of IAAI, Gokhan Dikmener, Technical Specialist at UNDP Istanbul, and Ahmed Ali Gaafar from Samsung.
“The escalating threats require out of the box thinking and demand bold approaches,” Shaarawy said, “That in turn requires all of us to act differently where we must leverage all the technology and resources available.”
UNFPA partnered with Egypt's Ministry of International Cooperation, the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology among other partners from the private sector, international development organizations and the entrepreneurial community to launch ‘ClimaTech Run’.
ClimaTech Run is a multi-stage program for tech entrepreneurs and digital artists who share a collective passion for sustainability and technology to present creative solutions to challenges posed by climate change.
“I see this platform as an opening for forward and creative artists who tried to encapsulate a cry, the intense pain that is and will be incurred by all species, to pose questions, urgency to act now, and to give messages on beauty, togetherness and hope,” Shaarawy said.
Fifteen finalists were shortlisted and pitched their work during COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh. Prizes included a grand prize of USD 100,000, and a top African Startup of USD 50,000 for African entrepreneurs.
