Fighting Hunger and Supporting the UN Global Goals at SXSW
By Oonagh Puglisi, Director, Corporate Responsibility at Pfizer Inc. and Executive Director of the Pfizer Foundation
Originally posted on the Rise Against Hunger blog
When most people think of South by Southwest (SXSW), they might picture the latest high-tech gadgets, or a popular band playing at a sold-out concert.
For Pfizer Inc. and Rise Against Hunger, however, the annual music, film and technology festival in Austin, Texas, also served as something else: an opportunity to fight global hunger and support progress toward our shared goal of a more prosperous future.
For four days last week, Pfizer and Rise Against Hunger engaged hundreds of volunteers at the SXSW Trade Show to package meals for vulnerable individuals and families around the world. By the time the last box had been stacked, more than 11,016 donated meals had been prepared.
At Pfizer, we recognize the importance of achieving each of the 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development created by the United Nations to achieve a better world for all by 2030. That includes Goal 2: Zero Hunger, and we’re proud to continue our long-standing support of Rise Against Hunger’s work to help eliminate food insecurity. Last year Pfizer colleagues from around the world, including Peru, Italy, Philippines, South Africa and the U.S., helped to reach Pfizer’s first milestone of completing our first 1 million meals packaged. Pfizer has committed to packaging an additional 1 million meals in 2018.
That same spirit of community and collaboration was on display at SXSW. In addition to making an immediate difference by packaging meals, attendees were also able to learn more about the Global Goals in Pfizer’s interactive exhibit booth – located right next to Rise Against Hunger’s.
Fulfilling the promise of the Global Goals will take all of us – from corporations, to non-profits, to individuals like those who helped package meals on the Trade Show floor. These efforts at SXSW only reinforce my belief that, by working together, we can indeed achieve a healthier world by 2030.
Visit Pfizer.com/IndividualVoices to learn more about Pfizer’s global health programs and how we support the Global Goals.
The Pfizer Foundation is a charitable organization established by Pfizer Inc. It is a separate legal entity from Pfizer Inc. with distinct legal restrictions.
