Iceland. Youth, health-promoting communities and partnerships (2019)

Iceland is taking active steps towards achieving the SDGs  through a whole-of-government approach. These include creating health-promoting communities and involving youth. All of the strategic directions of the WHO Roadmap to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, building on Health 2020, the European policy for health and well-being are being taken into account, specifically with respect to:

• advancing government and leadership and assisting local communities in the creation of supportive environments and conditions that promote healthy behaviour and the health and well-being of all inhabitants, with sustainability as one the guiding principles;
• establishing healthy places, settings and resilient communities within the Icelandic HPC programme (within the context of the Icelandic Youth Council, young people are the main stakeholders of SDG-related activities).

These two approaches show how the Government of Iceland, in encouraging participation in the implementation of activities aimed at achieving SDGs 3 and 17 and the overall goal of leaving no one behind. With respect to the HPC programme, the Directorate of Health approached the Interministerial working group on SDGs set up by the Government, suggesting that the HPCs work towards connecting the SDG-related activities taking place at the local level with those at the government level.