For the sake of clarity, this brochure simply refers to
Lions. This always includes Leos.
Internet sources from which content was used
Tu Du‘s on 17ziele.de
https://www.17ziele.de
https://sdgs.un.org/goals
German Federal Government | SDGs made simple
https://bit.ly/3JwKlmt
German website of
Lions International
https://lionsclubs.org/de
Lions Germany
https://www.lions.de/starter-kit
German Lions Foundation
https://stiftung.lions.de/umwelt-bewahren
Bertelsmann Foundation
https://sdg-portal.de/de/
Convention on Biological Diversity
https://www.cbd.int/
Publisher
Lions Club International, Multi-Distrikt 111 Deutschland Bleichstraße 3, 65183 Wiesbaden, https://www.lions.de
Legally responsible for content:
PDG Dr Johann Schreiner
Idea
© PDG Hans-Joachim Grassmann
Author
PDG Dr Johann Schreiner
Editorial team
PDG Annette Brand
PDG Hans-Joachim Grassmann
PDG Dr Johann Schreiner
KNU Michael Piesbergen
Editorial deadline
6th edition EF, 30 January 2025
Typesetting, Layout
pi-punkt.design Michael Piesbergen
Eco Design & Green Print
Translation
Euro-Sprachendienst Silke Jellen
Printing and processing
Printed with climate contribution

Develop partnerships sustainably
and innovatively
both locally and worldwide

Promote good governance
for peace, freedom
and justice

“We are living in dangerous times. Men control nature before they are even able to control themselves.”
Albert Schweitzer,
Physician, philosopher, theologian, musicologist
Forests, bogs, soils, rivers, lakes and mountains are a habitat for humans, animals and plants. They provide clean air and drinking water and deliver food and renewable raw materials.
Intact ecosystems have a temperature-balancing effect and can contribute to climate protection as CO2 sinks. Ecosystems with a location-specific diversity of species protect against environmental disasters, such as flooding and landslides, and are more adaptable to climate change.
Nature’s goods and services are the capital and basis of many economic sectors and the source of livelihood of us humans.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions Clubs International, in cooperation with the United Nations, supports the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the most comprehensive binding international agreement in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support biodiversity projects at home and abroad.
Lions Clubs conduct planting campaigns for trees, orchards, hedges, hedgerows, avenues, woody plants in fields and on shores. They create or restore small water bodies.
They preserve heath and moorland areas, mow rough grasslands and wet meadows. They build bat caves and put out nesting boxes for birds, shelters for bats, insect hotels.
They create urban flowering meadows as a food source for insects and cooperate with bee-keepers to preserve natural pollination resources.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions create gardens that are close to nature, do not use peat and avoid biocides. The offer nesting opportunities and shelter for birds, bats and insects. At home, they prefer organic products. They do not salt roads.
“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
Elie Wiesel,
Writer and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
Sustainable development is impossible without a secure environment and institutions operating under the rule of law. Good governance without corruption is essential for peace, justice and the rule of law.
We must:
•	Create peaceful and inclusive societies;
•	Combat all forms of organised crime;
•	Build efficient, transparent, and accountable institutions;
•	Ensure the rule of law and access to justice for everyone;
•	Combat corruption.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions work for the common good and for society as a whole. They are aware of their obligations as citizens. They view friendship as an end, not a means to an end (Code of Ethics).
Lions hold a Peace Poster Contest worldwide, which teaches school children the importance of peace for all of humankind.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs promote inclusion and integration projects in their communities. They pay attention to diversity when selecting their members. Clubs provide an inclusive environment where members feel mutually respected and connected. Club board members ensure that club goals are set and decisions are made transparently. Lions Clubs promote international understanding through club trips and twinning programmes. They establish contacts with schools and encourage participation in the Peace Poster Contest.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions approach people from other cultures, other age groups, and other educational backgrounds with an open mind and seek to interact with them. They are tolerant of other lifestyles and mindsets. They actively exercise their right to vote.
“We can be the first generation to succeed in eradicating poverty, just as we could be the last to have the chance to save our planet.”
Ban-Ki moon,
UN Secretary-General from 2007 to 2016
The 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are addressed to all governments, civil societies and companies. They need to work together to implement them.
That is why SDG 17 calls for a global partnership of all players, because only by implementing the 17 SDGs as partners can they create conditions that promote sustainability – locally, regionally, nationally and globally.
The guiding principle of the 2030 Agenda is:
“Leave no one behind”
It is our collective responsibility to provide everybody with access to education, research and fair production conditions, to strengthen cohesion and to leave no one behind on the path to sustainable development.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions partner with non-profit and other organisations worldwide to host a wide variety of events, projects, campaigns and initiatives that produce high-impact results for the benefit of people in need.
They nurture and promote a spirit of mutual understanding among the peoples of the world.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs set up action groups with local institutions to jointly promote culture, social causes or environmental projects locally.
They work with local nursery schools and schools to implement life skills programmes.
They offer scholarships to selected foreign students and support young people in their sphere of influence during an internship or studies abroad. They promote international youth exchange, e.g. through youth camps.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Every Lions/Leo member is a sustainability ambassador and informs their family, friends and acquaintances about the contents of the
“17 Sustainable Development Goals”.

Protect and promote
sustainable use
of biodiversity

Conserve and
sustainably use
the oceans, seas
and marine
resources

Take urgent action
to combat
climate change
and its impacts

Ensure sustainable
consumption
and production
patterns

Make cities
and human
settlements
sustainable

Reduce inequality
within and
among countries

Promote
infrastructure, sustainable
industrialization
and innovation

“The problem is not that we want more wealth. The problem is that we define prosperity in terms of material possessions.”
Dennis Meadows,
Economist
The goal is a world where everybody can share and make their own contribution to economic prosperity. Economic growth and population growth are interdependent. The aim is to promote full employment and decent working conditions for all worldwide through sustainable economic growth. This requires, among other things, good governance as well as a strong private sector and sustainable finance.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions are committed to fighting child labour and raising wage levels to ensure living wages for men and women worldwide. They work with organisations committed to decent working conditions.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support projects in emerging and developing nations where women in particular are also given opportunities to earn a living.
For example, the fuel-efficient stoves in the MD-111 climate protection project in West Bengal are manufactured locally, primarily by women.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions buy more regional products, prefer companies and their products that are committed to a common good economy and circular economy. Lions prefer products whose manufacturers avoid harmful chemicals.
For textiles, the manufacturers’ commitment includes sustainable water use in cotton cultivation. They prefer clothing that has been produced under fair conditions and in an ecologically sustainable manner.
Lions support sustainable tourism, which in particular promotes income opportunities for the local population.
“The purest form of madness is to leave everything as it is and at the same time hope that something will change.”
Albert Einstein,
Theoretical physicist and Nobel Physics Prize Laureate
Sustainable economic growth, sustainable production, sustainable cities and sustainable education and health care systems are inconceivable without intelligent innovations, modern infrastructures and an efficient industry.
In addition to the road, rail and waterway network, infrastructure also includes networks for energy and water supply as well as data exchange. These networks must be reliable, based on demand and intelligent. They must promote climate protection, be designed in an environment-friendly manner, and be resilient to extreme weather events.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions help build infrastructure and economic development in the countries of the Global South through specially adapted projects. In their communities, they are involved in projects that connect generations.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs can use their own strategies and concepts to advance the sustainable spatial and structural development of their community.
They can initiate or support urban or community development competitions that contribute to a sustainable positive development through their ideas and goals.
Lions Clubs create or support public facilities that provide Internet access to the socially disadvantaged.
They conduct projects that enable seniors to access the Internet and acquire digital skills, thereby promoting their social participation.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions participate in microlending and crowdfunding projects. For example, they help start-ups bring sustainable technical developments to the market.
“If the assets of the poorer half of the global population were increased to 1.5 or 2 per cent, you would have achieved as much for the poor as you would with 30 years of continuous growth, but without the downside of going further beyond the limits of our planet.”
Thomas Pogge,
Professor of Philosophy
Great social inequality endangers the cohesion of societies, is a cause of social tensions and migration, and jeopardises economic development.
Reducing excessive inequality strengthens cohesion within a society, fosters a willingness to perform, promotes innovation skills, contributes to sustainable economic growth and can reduce the potential for migration.
Everybody should be empowered to exercise self-determination and their social, economic and political inclusion should be promoted.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
The aim of Lions worldwide to assist the poor through economic means is enshrined in the Code of Ethics of
Lions Clubs International. Lions stand for diversity and inclusion worldwide.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support refugees and people in need in their communities in many different ways. They enable them to integrate and participate in society. In their clubs, they strive for a diverse membership and create an inclusive environment.
In their communities, they support local or private inclusion initiatives.
Across borders, Lions Clubs can help reduce inequalities with twinning programmes and accompanying projects.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions support companies that focus on inclusion and strive for fair pay, also in the countries where they source their goods.
Within their sphere of influence, Lions advocate accessibility both through construction measures and through a corresponding design of information sources. They sponsor refugees to make it easier for them to find their bearings and integrate. If they have the skills, they serve as language teachers or tutors.
“Sustainability means: can we continue in the long run to do what we do today? If we can’t, then it’s not sustainable.”
Anselm Görres,
Forum of Ecological-Social Market Economy
The goal is to make cities and communities safe, resilient, and sustainable. In detail, this includes:
•	Sustainable use of land, reduction of land consumption, sustainable construction;
•	Creation and preservation of green and recreational areas;
•	Safe, affordable and sustainable urban and rural mobility, such as the creation and expansion of bus lines, suburban and underground networks, pedestrian and cycle paths;
•	Reduction of environmental pollution in and through cities, promotion of electromobility;
•	Secure basic services and digital connectivity in rural communities;
•	Affordable housing for all.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions support their country and society with their personal commitment and financial means in the fulfilment of their tasks (Code of Ethics). This includes, in particular, the design of their immediate living environment.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs participate in initiatives for the preservation and sustainable development of neighbourhoods. They support urban gardening projects. They enable the poor to use public transport, e.g. by distributing season tickets and supporting citizens’ bus initiatives. After disasters, Lions Clubs help rebuild neighbourhoods practically or financially. They support organisations that are already committed to solving environmental problems in cities or communities, build on them or complement them with specific activities.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions use more public transport instead of individual mobility, especially in cities. They travel by bicycle wherever possible and reasonable and set up carpools.
They build and renovate their houses sustainably both from the energy aspect and in the choice of building materials. They plant their gardens as a natural habitat. They buy locally.
“Again and again, people spend money they don’t have on things they don’t need in order to impress people they don’t like.”
Danny Kaye,
Actor, comedian and singer
The supply of most of our natural resources is limited. The goal of sustainable production requires modernising our economy to one that only uses resources instead of consuming them – from a linear economy to a circular economy.
This includes further advancing the transition from an economy based on fossil and finite resources to a sustainable economy based on renewable resources. Careful attention must be paid to the carrying capacity of our planet.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions conduct projects worldwide that are to ensure a sustainable and healthy future for the next generations. From recycling programmes to ensuring access to clean water, Lions are working to maintain or restore the earth to its best condition.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs promote awareness of sustainable consumption. They develop and disseminate brochures with advice on sustainable consumption. They hold flea markets, organise pop-up repair shops to reduce wastes from devices and equipment.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions prefer products with recognised green credentials or eco-labels. They work with companies and organisations that hold a sustainability certificate. Lions opt for reusable containers; they avoid disposable tableware. Lions use water, electricity and thermal energy sparingly. They heat with solar power, renewable resources, geothermal energy or heat pumps. Lions look for products that have been produced with a minimum use of resources and favour organic products, game and fish, regional, seasonal and natural products. They strive to avoid meat from animal fattening plants that use human food.
“Future generations are not going to ask us what political party were you in. They are going to ask what did you do about it, when you knew the glaciers were melting.
Martin Sheen,
US actor
The consequences of climate change have a noticeable impact worldwide. Extreme weather events are on the rise: summers that are too dry, torrential rains, winters that are too short. Extreme weather endangers the health of the old and frail, in particular.
The economy suffers: agriculture and forestry experience harvest losses, and ships are unable to transport sufficient raw materials due to drought. Forest fires are on the rise. Elsewhere, people are losing their means of livelihood and are forced to flee. Insufficient crop yields endanger our food supply. Dangerous infectious diseases can spread.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Climate protection is part of environmental protection. The environment is one of the five Global Causes of Lions Clubs International. Around the world, Lions are primarily involved in relief projects to mitigate the worst effects of climate change.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs raise awareness of the causes of climate change and recommend measures. Their host climate-neutral events and mailings. They offset CO2 emissions where they cannot be avoided. Lions Clubs organise tree planting campaigns and support reforestation projects and peatland restoration. Together with regional partners, they organise electricity-saving campaigns and information events on climate protection.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions avoid fossil fuels and products made from fossil fuels. They use low-carbon means of transport, avoid unnecessary journeys and offset unavoidable CO2 emissions, especially for flights.
They use electrical power from wind, solar and hydro energy (green electricity). Lions privately plant trees that cool and filter the air locally. They buy regional or seasonal fruits and vegetables.
“We are being choked to death by the amount of plastic that we throw away. It’s killing our oceans. It’s entering into our bodies in the fish we eat.”
Kevin Bacon,
US actor
Oceans are the basis of life. They are a source of food, raw materials and energy and serve as a transport route. Oceans harbour a huge biological diversity (biodiversity) and make an important contribution to food security:
worldwide, 3.2 billion people meet more than 20 per cent of their animal protein needs with fish. Over 3 billion people worldwide live from the oceans.
Rising water temperatures, nutrient and marine pollution, overfishing, and global climate change place a burden on our seas and oceans.
These burdens now threaten the livelihoods of many people both today and in the future, especially in the countries of the Global South.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Lions host activities around the world, cleaning up riverbanks and ocean shores. They participate in “Cleanup Days”.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs organise or participate in litter collection campaigns in their communities. In particular, they take care of riverbanks and lake shores.
They organise tours of municipal wastewater treatment plants to raise awareness of how to avoid nutrient pollution of our still and flowing waters and ultimately of the oceans. Lions Clubs support restoration efforts for springs, streams and rivers and their banks and shores.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions avoid plastic products. They do their shopping with reusable bags and containers. They do not use products that contain microplastics.
When shopping, they make sure that no endangered fish species end up on their plates. They prefer products that carry seals such as those of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) or the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC).

Sustainable
economic
growth and decent work for all

Ensure access
to reliable,
sustainable
energy for all

Ensure availability
and sustainable management
of water and
sanitation for all

Achieve gender equality and
empower all
women and girls

Ensure inclusive,
equitable quality
education and
lifelong learning

“So let us wage a global struggle against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism and let us pick up our books and pens. They are our most powerful weapons. One child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world. Education is the only solution. Education first.”
Malala Yousafzai,
Children’s rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
Everybody should have access to inclusive and equitable quality education. It is the key to individual opportunities. It makes people more open to changing their behaviour, is simultaneously the basis for innovation and crucial for the sustainable development of our planet. Education is a human right – it empowers people to improve their political, social, cultural and economic situation. Every child has the right to schooling; everybody is entitled to satisfy their basic learning needs.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
In nearly 200,000 projects worldwide, Lions support literacy and learning skills for children, young people and adults. For young people, Lions Quest is one of the most widely used social and emotional learning programmes worldwide. Lions Quest is available in 36 languages in 85 countries, and used by over 13 million school-age children.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs help schools and nursery schools implement life skills programmes.
They support reading competitions, book fairs, reading programmes for the deaf, donate computers and other learning technologies, take out subscriptions to children’s magazines for schools or libraries, help children or adults with visual and/or hearing aids, organise public bookcases.
Lions Clubs fund first-day school supplies and homework help for children in need. They enable children in countries of the Global South to go to school.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions donate books, act as education sponsors or read to children in (school) libraries.
“A society where girls and young women can realise their full intellectual, social and political potential is also a safe, healthy and prosperous society.”
Julia Gillard,
former Prime Minister of Australia
Gender equality is a universal human right. Yet millions of women around the world face discrimination in access to education, career choices, health care, and in their everyday lives. Many women in a number of countries still die during or after childbirth due to poor health care.
Women are affected by poverty more often than men. According to UN Women, only one per cent of women own land. The share of women in low-wage sectors is much higher than that of men.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
On 4 March 2017, LCI and the United Nations (UN Women) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment: empowering and investing in young women’s leadership skills, ending all forms of violence against women and girls. Lions oppose all forms of discrimination. Their New Voices initiative promotes gender parity and diversity and seeks to increase the number of women, young adults and under-represented sections of the population in Lions.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs admit men and women to serve as mixed clubs. They are committed to welcoming people of different ethnicities, genders and ages into their clubs. They generally promote gender equality and diversity.
They support women’s shelters and counselling centres for women and young mothers. In countries of the Global South, they help women with microloans.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions are committed to the equality of all people, regardless of social norms. They are role models in dealing with human diversity within their sphere of influence.
“We will only achieve all development goals if we understand how water as a globally limited resource is linked to the other goals.”
BORDA e. V.
Water is needed everywhere: for drinking, for farming, for food preparation, for personal hygiene, for energy production and for industry. Worldwide, 2.1 billion people still have to drink contaminated water. 4.5 billion people lack sustainable sanitation. 80 per cent of the world’s wastewater is discharged untreated.
Population growth, urbanisation, environmental pollution, and climate change put global water resources and aquatic ecosystems under ever more pressure. In certain regions of the world, this leads to a risk of social and political conflicts over water.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Worldwide, Lions WaSH projects provide water, food security, better hygiene and prevent diseases, especially of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as malnutrition and high child mortality. In doing so they counteract the causes of flight and migration and improve the ecological balance by preserving resources. “WaSH” stands for water, sanitation and hygiene. WaSH projects raise awareness of water use and hygiene. To address water shortages caused by natural disasters, German Lions send PAUL water purification equipment to crisis regions.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support WaSH projects in various countries around the world. They finance water pumps, the drilling of new wells, the construction of solar pumps and water tanks in areas suffering from water scarcity. The purification of polluted water is supported by the SODIS project.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions support club activities with organisations whose goal is “Clean Water for All”. At home, they save water, fix dripping taps or leaky cisterns. They allow rainwater to infiltrate their land and/or use it for purposes that would mean a waste of drinking water.
“Building nuclear power plants without knowing where to dispose of nuclear waste is like pulling the pin on a hand grenade without knowing where to throw it.”
Dieter Hildebrandt,
Cabaret artist, actor and book author
Energy is fundamental for economic and social development. Clean energy sources are key for protecting the climate and environment.
Today, nearly one billion people worldwide live without access to modern energy services. Demand-based access to energy for all requires energy in the right amount, of the right quality, at the right time, in the right place, and at an affordable price.
Global energy demand will continue to grow dramatically, especially in Africa. Providing people with sustainable clean energy services is key to fighting poverty.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Promoting clean, environmentally friendly sources of energy is a Global Cause of ours. Lions support projects worldwide that generate energy from renewable sources as well as projects to achieve climate neutrality by avoiding, reducing or offsetting CO2 emissions.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support projects that save energy. They use green electricity and promote it in their community. They build zero-energy homes. They carpool or use public transport to club nights or larger meetings.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions optimise energy consumption in buildings, optimise energy losses through insulation, and save energy in their homes wherever possible.
They use e-mobility and green electricity, heat with solar energy, renewable raw materials, geothermal energy and heat pumps, and reduce or avoid fossil fuels.
Roofs are equipped with photovoltaic and solar thermal systems. They prefer travelling by public transport or by bike. They do their shopping locally and value products delivered across short distances or with short cold chains.

Ensure healthy lives and promote
well-being for all
at all ages

“It is time to constitute health care as part of a ‘social infrastructure’ that understands health as a public good that must be available to all.”
medico international
Adequate health care and life-saving medicines for all, a healthy diet, clean water and pure air are essential for our health and well-being.
The challenges are huge: ending pandemics, fighting lifestyle diseases, preventing and treating addictions, reducing maternal and child mortality, combating tropical diseases, and reducing the number of diseases caused by environmental pollution.
In order to ensure sustainable and healthy food for everyone on this planet, we need a diet that protects the health both of humans and the planet, the so-called Planetary Health Diet.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Three of LCI’s Global Causes are in the field of “health and well-being”: diabetes, vision and childhood cancer. Diabetes is a global epidemic. LCIF Diabetes Grants enable Lions to host initiatives for diabetes education, prevention and management. Since 1925, Lions have helped the blind and visually impaired through worldwide programmes such as Sight First.
Cancer is a common cause of death in children and young people. Lions improve the quality of life for children receiving treatment and their families.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs organise educational events on diabetes and the Planetary Health Diet. They support exercise programmes for seniors who have not previously participated in organised sports. Lions Clubs organise campaigns to collect and recycle eyeglasses and hearing aids.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions maintain a balanced diet and prefer regional, seasonal and natural products. They strive to eat sufficient fruit and vegetables, while consuming animal proteins in moderation. They prefer climbing stairs to taking a lift and bicycles to cars. They donate blood and participate in tissue typing for bone marrow donation.

End hunger,
achieve food security
and improved
nutrition

“The world can already easily produce enough food for 12 billion people. A child who dies from hunger is a murdered child.”
Jean Ziegler,
former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food
Achieving food security, better nutrition and a world without hunger will require sustainable agriculture and rural development.
According to the 2030 Agenda, the goal of “food security” is to be achieved by 2030 – worldwide!
Innovative and efficient technologies and an expansion of organic farming can contribute to sustainable food security. Globally, around one in three people cannot live a dignified life because they do not have access to sufficient food or a balanced diet. No one should have to live without knowing when their next meal will be.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Hunger relief is one of Lions Clubs International’s five Global Causes. LCI improves access to food through investments in infrastructure, better transport systems, and capacities of food banks, soup kitchens and food distribution centres. Lions support school-based feeding programmes financially worldwide.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support the construction or expansion of food banks, feeding centres and food storage centres, as well as the construction or expansion of kitchen facilities or dining halls of charitable organisations. They support the procurement of transport vehicles for the collection and delivery of food, refrigerators and freezers for perishables.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Lions offer advice for the proper handling of expired food or proper storage. They support food waste prevention campaigns. Lions prefer food that has been produced in a resource-friendly manner. They donate food that is no longer used in the economic cycle and would otherwise be destroyed to organisations who distribute it to those in need. There, they also get involved and distribute food to the impoverished.

“Poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.
And overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity.
It is an act of justice.”
Nelson Mandela,
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
Poverty comes in many forms. Absolute poverty, which can threaten our very survival, cannot be compared to the situation of people on a low income in Germany.
However, we need to combat both types of poverty. We need to focus more on those parts of the population that frequently suffer poverty and must promote equal opportunities.
What Lions are already doing on an international level
Sudden poverty occurs when people are hit by disasters; when natural disasters strike Lions are among the first to offer help. Our disaster grant helps communities devastated by hurricanes, floods, fires and other major disasters. Lions assist with emergency grants, recovery grants and are on hand to help with long-term rebuilding projects after major disasters.
What we can do as a Lions/Leo Club
Lions Clubs support families in need, especially children, seniors and immigrants in their community. They sponsor food banks and soup kitchens and support them with food, help shelters for the homeless, pay tuition costs for impoverished children. They support health care for the homeless. They sponsor development aid projects.
What I can do as a Lion/Leo
Purchase or provide food for those in need, offer gifts to the poor. Donate clothes, toys, books, blankets and sleeping bags. Lions talk to the homeless and do not ignore them. They help serve meals to those in need and organise fundraising campaigns. Lions donate used bicycles to charities.

End  poverty
in all its forms
everywhere

*17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs

Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals* together
Lions and Leos who know and understand the goals can better inform and jointly help promote a sustainable way of thinking, living and acting.
Our brochure is intended to brief all Leos and Lions and inform about the current Lions’ campaigns. It is to stimulate a conversation about the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and help jointly develop and implement new ideas.
Agenda 2030: 17 Sustainable Development Goals
On 25 September 2015 the die was already cast at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit by 11:46 a.m. New York time: the United Nations General Assembly decided to adopt the 2030 Agenda. It comprises 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with a total of 169 sub-goals.
Lions Policy Statement on the Human Environment (excerpt)
“Lions Clubs International, recognizing the profound impact of man’s activity on the interrelations of all components of the natural environment, particularly high-density urbanization, industrial expansion, resources exploitation and new and expanding technological advances, and recognizing further the critical importance of restoring and maintaining environmental quality to the overall welfare and development of man, declares that it is the continuing policy of Lions Clubs International to foster and promote the general welfare; to help create and maintain conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive harmony and fulfill the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations of mankind.
To achieve this environmental goal will demand the acceptance of responsibility by citizens and communities and by enterprises and institutions at every level, all sharing equitably in common efforts.
…
Lionism is one of those international organizations that should join efforts for the preservation and improvement of the human environment, for the benefit of all the people for their posterity.”
Lions Clubs International,
Board of Directors, October 1972