Anuj Khandelwal, a 25 year old Chartered Accountant was one of the delegates representing India at the United Nations. The event invited 360 delegates from 84 countries to deliberate over the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (“SDG”). The event was organised by World Merit, a Liverpool-based international charity organisation, working with the youth to tackle global issues that have been identified by the United Nations. It was founded by Chris Arnold.
The first phase of the programme was a two-week training and brainstorming session. The participants, also known as Action Plan Executors, were placed in one of 17 different UN SDG Groups, based on previously chosen areas of interest.
At the end of the first phase, each SDG Group proposed ideas for global scaling of existing projects that have helped achieved significant improvements in the lives of people in local communities. These projects were presented before the United Nations in New York on September 9, 2016 during the second phase of the conference.
Anuj was invited to share his ideas on SDG-2, 'Zero Hunger' with his counterparts from various countries. In preparation for the event, Anuj and his friend Yug decided to validate their ideas and obtain some quick feedback before proposing them at the International level. They took their first step with ‘Go-Getters’- their pilot project. Ensuring access to food is the top priority for SDG - 2, Zero Hunger, as emphasised by Anuj. Go-Getters collects surplus food from restaurants, households etc. and distributes it to people in need. The project was first tested in Andheri, Mumbai. Anuj derived his inspiration, and attributes his motivation to work towards the cause to Robin Hood Army, an organisation which follows a similar concept.
It's heartening to see young professionals committing time to proactively address some of the most pressing and complex problems in the world. Anuj, an alumni of Mayo College is currently working as a Senior Investment Analyst with a reputed Private Equity firm based out of Chennai.
SDG -2 - Zero Hunger Team at the United Nations premises in New York. 13 representatives from 8 countries.
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