SDG 15 Life on Land

by Tale Weavers &
The Red Elephant Foundation

On 1 January 2016, the 17 Sustainable TALE
Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development, weavers
adopted by world leaders in September
2015 at an historic UN Summit, weaving tales, breaking stereotypes
officially came into force.

Over the next fifteen years, with these
new Goals that universally apply to all,
countries will mobilize efforts to end all
forms of poverty, fight inequalities and
tackle climate change, while ensuring
that no one is left behind.

Stories for Awareness is a collaboration
between The Red Elephant Foundation
and Tale Weavers to engage with
children and build awareness around the
17 Sustainable Development Goals.

This story throws light on SDG 9:
Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.

Story: Viswanathan
Sridhar

Illustrations: Kirthi
Jayakumar

Yaku is an eight year kid who has moved to a house

near the forest along with her parents, as her dad has
got a job in a factory near the forest.
Mommy, Is this our new home?”
“Yes but there are too many trees here. Don’t worry, we
will clear a part of the forest so we can have a house.”
But mommy, trees are also living beings how can we
kill them? They are also a part of life on land.
“Everything is normal. The animals have food and
shelter. The climate is the same and the soil is being
held together by the trees. A happy forest,” said Yaku.



“Yes, but when our family starts growing we will

need a bigger place to live,” replied her mother.

So when daddy starts his new job and we will have a
new and a bigger house.”

Three weeks after Yaku’s dad started clearing the forest,
animals soon started to get hungry and leave.

Now the soil is starting to be weathered away by the
wind.

When the soil has nothing to hold on to, landslides
happen.



“A lot of people cut down trees to make money to

live. Let’s think about it, if you need to buy food and
shelter for your family you are going to do whatever
you can to help them, right?”

Well many people do this and it begins to add up and
hurt the poor forest!” thought Yaku.

“After a while the forest starts to disappear, the animals
start leaving or going hungry because the food sources
are low, and they don’t have a place to live,” said Yaku.



“I remember my teacher telling us how the soil starts

to erode because there are no trees to keep the soil in
place. And when it rains we have flash floods because
the soil is not absorbing any of the water. The landscape
drastically changes due to the soil not being in a stable
place.

Many of the animals live in
forests and deforestation is
one of the main causes for
animal extinction, besides
illegal animal trade,” said
Yaku.

Thus, when we cut down
trees we don’t just hurt the
animals but also humans

who rely on forests for food, fresh water, shelter and so
on.”



“You are right Yaku. Trees make oxygen, and with

all the developing technology and new cars there is
an increase in the emission of CO2 and other harmful
gases.

We do need to plant more trees so that they absorb the
harmful CO2, explained her mother.”

“Without trees the balance is not equal. Instead of
cutting trees down then we should be planting more
trees!” said Yaku.

“We will talk to dad and ensure that his company does
not harm the forests and use sustainable industrial
practices,” said Yaku’s mother.

The End



Tale Weavers is an initiative that

aims to engage with children and the
youth through stories that challenge
stereotypes and break the barriers in
creating a just society.
​
We welcome you to our world of stories
where simple conversations, colorful
illustrations, and powerful characters
help break the stereotypes and create
an inclusive learning space which is
free of bias - be it gender, religion, race,
nationality or ethnicity.

The Red Elephant Foundation is an

initiative that is built on the foundations
of story-telling, civilian peacebuilding
and activism for sensitisation on
all drivers of peace - gender, race,
nationality, colour and orientation.

The initiative is titled “Red Elephant”
to stand out as a vehicle that projects
stories that must never be forgotten:
stories that show you such courage that
you should never forget, and stories that
show the world such profound lessons
that the world should never forget. In
doing so, the initiative aims at creating
awareness and opening up channels
of communication towards creating
societies of tolerance, peacebuilding
and equality.