With the globalgoals.hamburg initiative, we aim to make the 17 United Nations Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) visible through mural projects in Hamburg and to invite a wide variety of people, groups, and organizations to engage in discussion and active participation.

We began in the summer of 2017 with a mural addressing SDG 1: “End poverty in all its forms everywhere.” It was created in the lead-up to and in the context of the G20 Summit in Hamburg. A wide range of people and institutions were consulted on this topic and involved in the development of the artwork. The mural was then designed and artistically realized by the project team together with Hamburg mural artist Eckart Keller.

Through the installation of the mural on the KAROSTAR building, we entered into conversation with Viva con Agua e.V., whose offices are located there. This led to the idea for another joint mural. In autumn 2017, the Millerntor Gallery—an initiative of Viva con Agua—put us in contact with Nepalese street artist Shraddha Shrestha. Through dialogue with her, a mural addressing SDG 6: “Clean Water and Sanitation” was created and installed at the KAROSTAR building in February 2018.

In the summer of 2019, another mural was added at the same location, this time focusing on SDG 5: “Gender Equality.” It was designed by Bernhard Krebs from Atelier Die Schlumper. Almost 40 years ago, this studio collective of artists with different disabilities was founded during the creation of a mural in Hamburg-Alsterdorf. Their workshop is just a few steps away from the wall where the SDG murals are displayed, making collaboration an obvious choice. Many thanks for this cooperation and for the warm encounters at the studio!

Much farther away, in February 2020, six young artists from Tanzania and Uganda came together during an international conference in Dar es Salaam to make the Global Goals visible there as well. Together, they designed the 20-meter-long walls of a school in the Kigamboni district with their ideas and visions for the SDGs. In the context of the tenth anniversary of the city partnership between Hamburg and Dar es Salaam, the idea emerged to display part of this mural in Hamburg as well. We selected a motif addressing SDG 13: “Climate Action” by Ugandan artist Ronald Ssemaganda. It was installed as the fourth mural banner in July 2020.

In response to the pandemic situation of 2020/21, the idea for the next mural theme developed. The pandemic made the systemically embedded inequalities between countries, regions, and population groups more visible at international, national, and local levels. At the same time, heightened awareness of global and local inequalities also underscored the importance of the immediate neighborhood. Together with a team of students and graduates from the fields of architecture, urban design, and sociology at HafenCity University Hamburg (Sophia Leipert, Nina Manz, Charlotte Niewerth, Anna Seum), the fifth mural was created entirely through an online process, focusing on SDG 11: “Sustainable Cities and Communities.”

For the sixth mural, we addressed SDG 12: “Responsible Consumption and Production.” The theme was chosen by the art class of Grade 10e at Marion Dönhoff Gymnasium in Hamburg-Blankenese, who explored SDG 12 in a multi-month project and developed various design concepts. From these, the class and the project team jointly selected the design by student Fine Engelbert. The mural was installed at the end of June 2022.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and its extensive local and global health, social, and economic impacts, the following mural focused on SDG 3: “Good Health and Well-Being.” The motif was designed by Bettina Wistuba based on materials developed during workshops with students from the Vocational School for Medical Professions (BS15) in Wilhelmsburg and children from the open children’s center at HausDrei in Altona. This seventh mural was installed in April 2023.

In January 2024, the next mural addressing SDG 2: “Zero Hunger” was installed. The motif was developed in cooperation with the project FoodUnfolded, an initiative of the EU project EIT Food, and was finalized by our team colleague and graphic designer Ulrike Sommer.

The ninth mural addressed SDG 7: “Affordable and Clean Energy,” highlighting a global challenge that moved to the top of the political agenda following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Various aspects of SDG 7 were discussed and artistically realized in collaboration with a design course (1st–3rd semester) at FSG – Freie Schule für Gestaltung in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg, led by illustration designer and artist Gaby Bergmann. From the course designs, the motif by Jonna Tuchtfeld and Erik Przkopanski was selected and installed at Neuer Kamp in mid-December 2024.

Since the end of July 2025, the mural addressing SDG 8: “Decent Work and Sustainable Economic Growth” has been on display. It was created by the artists Lapiz (Hamburg) and Elmar Karla (Bremen) and offers a critical perspective on the connections (among others) between GDP, climate change, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (more information here).

In February 2026, a new mural on SDG 14: “Life Below Water” will be unveiled at Neuer Kamp.