A new video released as part of the King Shakir and UNDP partnership aims to inspire young people to work together to achieve the 17 Global Goals 

Popular Turkish cartoon character King Shakir and his friends are inviting young people to learn about the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (Global Goals) and take action to end poverty, reduce inequalities and tackle climate change by 2030, through a new video released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The video was produced as part of the King Shakir and UNDP partnership that started in 2022 to raise awareness of children and the youth on the Global Goals and encourage them to join the collective struggle to make the world a greener, healthier, and more equitable place.

In the new video that features footage from the 2022 movie King Shakir “Recycle”, which focuses on the importance of protecting the environment through responsible consumption, King Shakir character scientist Meerkat explains the Global Goals, our roadmap to build a better future together. Emphasizing that as long as we work together towards these 17 Goals, we can find solutions to our biggest challenges, the video aims to encourage children and young people to become advocates on issues that matter to them and empower them to help achieve a better world. 

The release of the video coincided with the latest King Shakir film “Giants Awakened”, which is now in cinemas across Türkiye and Europe. The new film, featuring the famous statues on Mount Nemrut in Adıyaman and demonstrating the rich cultural heritage of the region, touches upon the much-discussed issue of artificial intelligence and the importance of using technology in the right way.

King Shakir is a Turkish TV cartoon created by Varol Yaşaroğlu, along with the creative works of Berk Tokay and Haluk Can Dizdaroğlu and produced by Grafi2000 for Cartoon Network Turkey. The series follows the adventures of the lion Shakir and his friends and family. It was launched in 2016 as Cartoon Network Turkey's one and only local series. Since then, the TV cartoon series has aired in more than 20 countries in many languages, reaching millions of children across Europe, Middle East and North Africa. 

The TV series and films of King Shakir have so far tackled a range of sustainable development issues, including climate action, recycling, responsible consumption, gender equality, biodiversity, life below water, pandemic and healthy lifestyles.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

As part of the #SustainableKingShakir collaboration, King Shakir and friends were also featured before on a “sustainable calendar for 2022 and beyond” designed by UNDP that can be downloaded from the website for free as a gift.

Also, users can view King Shakir’s exclusive visuals for all 17 Global Goals and watch four short videos that have been selected from his past adventures by cartoon maker Grafi2000. The videos, available at child.kureselamaclar.org, highlight four SDGs: #3 – Good Health and Wellbeing, #7 – Affordable and Clean Energy, #11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities and #14 – Life Below Water.

To view the calendar please go to: child.kureselamaclar.org

For hi-res print and video assets, please visit: https://trello.com/b/fpB3V1in/kral-şakir-ve-undp-türkiye

You can engage on social media using the hashtag #SustainableKingShakir