What is the SEDD?

A European initiative to accelerate the ecological and social transition

The European Sustainable Development Week (EDSD) was initially a French initiative, launched in 2003. In 2015, it became a European movement present in 14 countries with a clear objective: to facilitate the organization of activities and events that promote sustainable development.

“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
- Gro Harlem Brundtland, Prime Minister of Norway (1987)

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A “week” extended from September 18 to October 8, 2025

In a world facing major environmental challenges such as climate change, the loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystems, the European Sustainable Development Week (ESDD) is of paramount importance.

The SEDD is an annual event that lasts 3 weeks between September and October (dates 2025: from September 18 to October 8) in all European countries and which aims to promote ecological and social transition. It was created to put sustainable development issues at the heart of concerns and contribute to the achievement of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

During this week, events, conferences, workshops and citizen actions are organized to encourage participation and concrete action in favor of sustainability. In addition, it makes it possible to highlight positive initiatives and good practices already in place.

This is an opportunity to be inspired by these ideas to set up new projects and establish collaborations in favor of a more sustainable future!

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The objectives of the European Sustainable Development Week

The European Sustainable Development Week was designed to meet several objectives. Among them:

Awareness and Education: Inform and educate the public about the challenges our planet faces, as well as the possible solutions to address them.

Citizen Commitment: Encourage the active participation of individuals, communities, businesses and institutions in ecological initiatives.

Behaviour change: Promote more sustainable lifestyles and practices, both individually and collectively.

Innovation and Collaboration: Promote innovation and collaboration between the various actors in society to find innovative and sustainable solutions.

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The 17 Sustainable Development Goals: a common compass

On September 25, 2015, at a meeting at the UN, 193 countries unanimously adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to set a course for a more sustainable and inclusive future for all. Initiated as part of the 2030 Agenda, these goals are an essential roadmap to meet the challenges we face today.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals are as follows:

1. No poverty
2. Zero hunger
3. Good health and well-being
4. Quality education
5. Gender Equality
6. Clean water and sanitation
7. Affordable and clean energy
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
10. Reduced inequalities
11. Sustainable cities and communities
12. Responsible production and consumption
13. Measures related to the fight against global warming
14. Aquatic life
15. Terrestrial life
16. Peace, Justice, and Effective Institutions
17. Partnerships for the achievement of the goals

To succeed in building a sustainable future that leaves no one behind, we must succeed in joining forces to move in the right direction. A mobilization of all actors is expected to achieve these objectives: governments, communities, citizens... and businesses! The latter have an important role to play in the face of this challenge.

The SDGs have become a real strategic tool that companies have used to frame and monitor their CSR policies. These are indicators to follow, allowing you to measure the impact of your engagement program and skills sponsorship.

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Why mobilize your employees during the European Sustainable Development Week?

Raise awareness among employees about environmental and social issues

The European Sustainable Development Week is an opportunity to highlight the environmental and social challenges we face. It allows employees to understand the challenges and to realize how their choices and those of the company fit into a larger context.

This awareness prepares your teams to engage more fully in the company's various CSR initiatives: everyone can position themselves and understand the importance of taking action, both individually and collectively!

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Giving meaning to employees

The SEDD is not limited to raising awareness: it offers a time for meetings and exchanges around sustainable development issues. Employees can share their ideas, ask questions, and leave with keys to take action in their professional and personal daily lives.

By organizing collective moments around these issues, you also make it possible to strengthen team cohesion, to value everyone's commitment and to create a real positive momentum within the company. The SEDD then becomes a strategic lever for making sustainable development a shared project that mobilizes and federates your teams.

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Valuing your CSR policy

The SEDD is an ideal opportunity to highlight your CSR commitments, both with your teams and outside the company. By communicating about your initiatives through newsletters, posters, social networks or internal events, you are concretely showing your actions and their impact.

This visibility allows your employees to better understand and identify with the values carried by the company, while strengthening the image of your organization as a committed player!

Also to read:
CSR approach in business: practical guide
CSR: what are the advantages for businesses?

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How to organize the SEDD in your company?

Step 1: Make your teams aware of major social and environmental issues

Discover examples of actions to raise awareness among your teams during the European Sustainable Development Week!

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Organize a mural

Frescoes are excellent awareness-raising tools. These are fun, creative and collaborative workshops that allow you to better understand social and environmental issues while offering solutions for action. In total, there are 225 frescoes and awareness-raising workshops. Sessions that generally last a maximum of 3 hours.

The frescoes each deal with a theme, for example:

• Climate fresco : This is certainly the best known fresco, it allows us to better understand the mechanisms of climate change and the levers to deal with it effectively.
• Digital fresco : A workshop to raise awareness of the environmental challenges of using digital technology.
• Diversity fresco : This fresco, designed by ESSEC Business School, makes it possible to ****become aware of the cognitive biases at work in terms of discrimination.
• Ocean fresco : To understand marine ecosystems and leave with the keys to act and preserve the Ocean

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Measuring your carbon footprint as a team

Knowing your carbon footprint is the first step in reducing your emissions. You can invite your teams to measure their carbon footprint together: several tools exist to calculate it, such as the ADEME calculator to find out how much CO2e your trips emit or Our Climate Actions which calculates the carbon emissions of your daily life.

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Start a movie-debate or an engaging screening

The film debate is a fun and participative way to raise awareness and promote a theme among your employees. On the occasion of the European Sustainable Development Week, you can broadcast a film, a series, or a documentary on one or more topics related to the 17 SDGs. The debate can then take the form of a simple discussion between colleagues or you can bring in a speaker.

Ideas for movies and series to stream: Our planet (2019), The other comfort (2020), Persepolis (2007), In their eyes (2019)...

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Set up quizzes or interactive content

Offer your teams to test their knowledge of social and environmental issues through quizzes or challenges: they allow you to mobilize widely, including employees who would not have otherwise committed themselves, by relying on the game and the challenge.

The quiz”You don't have 5 minutes” proposed by the association La Cloche, for example, deals with the great exclusion to fight against the loss of social ties!

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Offer training against street harassment

L'Oréal Paris, the NGO Right To Be And the Women's Foundation are working together to teach men and women how to fight street harassment. The Stand Up program suggests actions that allow you to intervene safely when you are a victim or witness of street harassment.

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Organize a collaborative challenge

My Little Planet (MPP) is a 3-week competition around ecological challenges to be carried out between colleagues or friends. Organizing an MPP competition in your company makes it possible to raise awareness and get your employees to take action through daily challenges.

You can also suggest awareness-raising courses that can be completed in a few minutes. Find 3 exclusive Komeet challenges in our guide Everything you need to successfully raise awareness among your employees !

Also to read: How to engage your employees in favor of the environment?

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Communicate about the SDGs with posters, emails or videos

To support your actions during the SEDD, create content to make your employees aware of issues related to the SDGs: explanatory posters, thematic newsletters or educational videos. These supports allow your teams to better understand social and environmental issues.

For example, you can:

• Broadcast The Unesco video to promote access to education for everyone around the world;
• Or even display on your premises The calendar of seasonal fruits and vegetables from GreenPeace to encourage your teams to consume local and seasonal products!

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Step 2: Organize societal actions in line with the Sustainable Development Goals

Set up donation collections

Fundraising can be easily organized with your employees and mobilize them around a cause. Some examples of collections to be carried out in a company:

• Set up a clothing collection in your premises and distribute them to Emmaus to give them a second life and support the fight against major exclusion (Objective 1: No poverty);
• Organize a blood collection operation on your premises with theFrench Blood Establishment (Goal 3: Good health and well-being);
• Organize a book collection with the association Bibliothèque Sans Frontières and contribute to facilitating access to education, culture and information around the world (Goal 4: Quality Education).

Also to read: Corporate donations to associations: decryption

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Participate in a food distribution

Goal 2: Zero Hunger

Your teams can participate in the distribution of meals or foodstuffs in order to contribute to the resolution of this objective.

It is possible to organize your own or join an existing one with associations such as Les Restos du Coeur or La Chorba.

Also to read: The role of businesses in the fight against precariousness

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Encourage your teams to be trained in first aid

Goal 3: Good health and well-being

The French Red Cross offers various training courses to enable your teams to be trained in first aid procedures. You can also let your employees discover”The app that saves” from the Red Cross to learn or refresh your knowledge of first aid procedures, while testing yourself in a fun way!

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Welcoming a 3rd year intern without a network

Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

The association Come and see Montaff is looking for collaborators who are ready to offer a one-week internship to young people without networks. Talk to your teams and organize a potential reception together!

Also to read: Combating discrimination in business: good practices

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Do a DIY workshop

Goal 12: Responsible consumption and production

The association Zero Waste France organizes Do It Yourself workshops to make cleaning products or cosmetics without waste!

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Organize a Clean Up

Goal 13: Combating climate change

The Clean Up is a waste collection that you can carry out to participate in the preservation of nature and unite your teams!

Also to read: Social commitment of employees in companies: everything you need to know

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Collaborating with associations during the SEDD

The European Sustainable Development Week is an opportunity to establish partnerships with associations that work on a daily basis to meet social and environmental challenges. These collaborations make it possible to have a direct and measurable impact while giving meaning to the commitment of your teams.

Here are some examples of associations you can work with:

• Première Urgence Internationale is a non-profit, apolitical and secular organization that helps civilian victims who are marginalized or excluded by the effects of natural disasters, wars and situations of economic collapse.
• Solidarity feelings supports the protection of biodiversity and the preservation of wildlife by developing international volunteer missions.
• SINGA promotes the creation of links between newly arrived people (refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants) and local people (who know the cultural codes of the host society) in order to promote the development of each person's social and professional network.
• Menstru'Elles seeks to sustainably improve the living conditions of women by fighting against menstrual poverty in France and around the world.
• Handicap International works alongside people with disabilities and vulnerable populations and intervenes in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflicts and disasters.

Also to read:
How to mobilize your employees with associations?
The CSR highlights guide

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ManoMano, a case study: 3 weeks of social actions

With the support of Komeet, the online DIY brand ManoMano, created an engagement event around the European Sustainable Development Week in September 2021. For 3 weeks, several solidarity actions were offered to employees during their lunch break and in the evening, such as a Climate Fresque, distributions with Les Restos du Coeur...

This annual event brought our employees together by encouraging collective mobilization, with Komeet responding here to the need for variety in the missions proposed but also to the geographical location of these missions, in France and Spain, because we have offices in these two countries - Lucie Pourquier, Sustainability Lead at ManoMano

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Komeet supports you to make SEDD a lever for sustainable commitment

Easily mobilize all your employees around CSR highlights with Komeet. Thanks to our engagement platform, our animation kits and the support of our experts, create rituals and gradually integrate engagement into your corporate culture!

In particular, our platform allows you to:

• Access dozens of turnkey actions, adapted to the SDGs and your business challenges;
• Mobilize your teams easily thanks to short and engaging formats;
• Measure and value your impact, internally and externally, to strengthen your CSR approach and inspire your stakeholders.

Explore the platform

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