Pop Culture Lead the Way in May

Dear Friends,

As the world confronts rising inequality, global unrest, planetary crisis, and deepening disconnection, one thing is clear: at the heart of these challenges lies not only an economic or environmental crisis, but a crisis of imagination and connection. At UN Live, we believe real change begins by sparking imagination, building bridges, and transforming shared culture into shared purpose.

In a time marked by record-breaking heatwaves and growing calls for climate justice, UN Live continues to explore how culture, community, and collective well-being can serve as powerful levers for change. Through global music collaborations, cultural festivals, and research on human flourishing, popular culture help us imagine a world where everyone can thrive. In this critical moment, culture becomes more than entertainment — it’s a tool for empathy, identity, and possibility, capable of shaping narratives that honour both human and planetary well-being.

Our vision at UN Live is to move the many people around the work and values of the United Nations. We've found that one of the best ways of doing that at scale is through popular culture; in moving hearts and minds. In a moment when trust in traditional institutions is being tested, this cultural connection is more vital than ever.

In May, we brought this belief to life through cultural moments that bridged emotion and action. A key highlight was a collaboration with internationally acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter Hozier, best known for “Take Me to Church.” For the 10-year anniversary re-release of his debut album, Hozier unveiled a new version of “Like Real People Do,” featuring natural soundscapes from his hometown — rainfall, birdsong, thunder, and crickets — credited to NATURE as a co-artist. Listen to the song and read more about how the track reached over one million streams in its first week further down.

At the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in Mumbai — a landmark event positioning India as a cultural hub — we spotlighted Defenders of Planet Earth (DoPE), our upcoming light entertainment series celebrating everyday environmental heroes. Developed with Fingerprint Content, the project was praised by UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy as a powerful example of how cross-cultural media can engage mass audiences on climate action.

Meanwhile, Global We, our platform for youth dialogue and cultural exchange, continued to foster spaces for young people worldwide to connect across differences, share their stories, and explore what it means to belong.

Together, these moments showed what’s possible when culture is used intentionally: to shift perspectives and build a sense of a Global We, where everyone feels agency to contribute to a positive future.

Culture, Happiness & Human Flourishing

What is happiness? What does it truly mean to flourish? At UN Live we continuously explore these questions, and how culture helps shape our collective well-being. A recent Global Flourishing Study, featured in The New York Times, offered some more good insights to this. The study put more evidence forward that happiness is not just tied to income or economic growth, but to the quality of our relationships, our sense of purpose, and how deeply connected we feel to our communities. In fact, one of the more sobering findings showed that younger generations are reporting the lowest levels of flourishing since 2022, which is a signal that while the world grows materially wealthier, many are still searching for meaning, belonging, and emotional connection.

This broader understanding of happiness is exemplified by Finland, recently named the world’s happiest country for the eighth year running. As the BBC reports, Finland’s approach to well-being is deeply embedded in access to nature, culture, and everyday rituals of balance; from forest walks to public saunas to the simple joy of shared space. Rather than pursuing excess, the Finnish model offers a glimpse into how thoughtful public services, community-centered design, and closeness to nature can foster contentment and trust. It raises the question: How can we design more accessible, connected environments where well-being is woven into daily life?

At UN Live, we see culture as the connective tissue between these elements—a lens through which we can feel, reflect, and imagine differently. As our Global Programme Director for the Sounds Right initiative, Gabriel Smales, powerfully argues in his essay “Who Writes the Songs?”, the greatest challenge of our time may be one of imagination. Popular culture, he writes, works not through argument, but through presence, quietly shaping our attention, our empathy, and the futures we believe are possible. When the stories we hear and the songs we sing lack hope, connection, or sustainability, our sense of what can be imagined , and therefore acted upon, begins to shrink. But when culture is used with intention, it can help us dream bigger, feel deeper, and act together.

In a world searching for new models of well-being, perhaps the path forward lies not only in policy or infrastructure, but also in stories, sounds, and shared spaces that remind us how to belong.

Hozier Recalls the Nature Sounds of His Hometown in Sounds Right Success Track

Sounds Right hit another milestone in May with a new collaboration that brings NATURE into the global spotlight, and this time, with none other than Irish singer-songwriter Hozier.  Known for his soulful voice and evocative storytelling in hits like “Take Me to Church” and “Cherry Wine,” Hozier has captivated audiences worldwide and topped international charts.  

As part of his 10-year anniversary re-release of his debut album, Hozier has reimagined one of his most beloved songs, "Like Real People Do (Feat. NATURE)," blending his haunting vocals with the living soundscape of his hometown, County Wicklow. The track features birdsong, cricket song, rainfall, and distant thunder, captured directly from the wild Irish landscape where Hozier’s musical roots run deep.

🎧 Tune into the track and experience nature’s feature debut with Hozier here: https://open.spotify.com/track/06qMEP66rkjgsCoie3WeQl?si=d9900abf0adb44a7

This is a call to remember where we come from, and how deeply connected we are to the places and sounds that shaped us. By weaving natural elements into the track, Hozier invites listeners to experience music not just as entertainment, but as an encounter with the living world.

🌧️🌿 In just one week, the track surpassed 1 million streams across platforms, sparking conversations about music’s role in amplifying the voices of nature.

This Sounds Right  collaboration marks a powerful moment for the initiative, demonstrating - again - how mainstream artists can use their platform to elevate environmental storytelling, and how nature, when credited as an artist, can move millions.  

You can help amplify this movement too by following us on Spotify and stream the tracks that bring nature’s voice to life.

Ideas Rooted in Nature

Imagine getting 30,000 nature lovers, environmental groups, experts and scientists together taking over an entire town for three days with panel debates, informal conversations, nature excursion, and cultural events in and around nature. This is Naturmødet, Denmark’s leading public gathering for nature, biodiversity, and sustainability enthusiasts

UN Live is proud to be part of this movement and took part in Naturmødet where we hosted panels, networked, put a good dose of culture into the mix, and in general helped spark new ways of thinking about how we relate to nature and to one another.

UN Live’s Anna Ebbesen joined The Hempel Foundation on stage alongside musician JJ Paulo, in a dynamic session that explored how music and culture can deepen our connection to the natural world. JJ Paulo, who released a Sounds Right feat. NATURE track back in April.

UN Live also had a session on one of Naturmødet's main stages - the Learning Stage- together with Michael Macgee from the Danish Museum of Natural History. There we unpacked how popular culture can be a gateway to caring and acting for nature, and we together featured how increased nature connectedness can spark more sustainable lifestyles.

🎶🌱 The Naturmødet was a powerful reminder of what happens when science, storytelling, and culture come together, and why public festivals like these are critical in shaping a more nature-conscious world.

Discover how UN Live is weaving these threads together and join us in amplifying nature’s voice by visiting our website and learn more about the event here. 

Defenders of Planet Earth Spotlighted at WAVES 2025 Summit

Photo: Behind The Scenes of Defenders of Planet Earth Production

We’re thrilled to share that Defenders of Planet Earth (DOPE) was spotlighted at the inaugural World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, held in Mumbai. The summit was launched as part of a broader effort to position India as a global hub for the media and entertainment industry.This landmark global event brought together over 10,000 delegates from 90+ countries, including leading voices from international media, OTT platforms, and the wider entertainment ecosystem.

UN Live’s innovative Defenders of Planet Earth (DoPE) was spotlighted at the inaugural World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025, held in Mumbai in May. The summit was launched as part of a broader effort to position India as a global hub for the media and entertainment industry.This landmark global event brought together over 10,000 delegates from 90+ countries, including leading voices from international media, Over-The-Top platforms such as YouTube, Netflix, and Spotify, and the wider entertainment ecosystem.

In a keynote address, UK’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport,  Lisa Nandy highlighted Defenders of Planet Earth, DoPE, as “a shining example of cross-cultural partnership tackling one of the most urgent shared challenges of our time — the climate crisis.” She also emphasized the enormous potential for greater collaboration between the UK and India particularly in the creative sectors which can help tackle global challenges such as climate change. Her recognition underscores the growing anticipation around DoPE’s potential—not just as globally relevant, but as a powerful new model that harnesses the power of pop culture to facilitate impact.  

The light entertainment climate series, *Defenders of Planet Earth (DOPE) is getting ready to launch this fall. It is developed in partnership with Fingerprint Content. You can learn more about it here.

We’re actively seeking new partners to help us launch DOPE into the world and power its next phase: digital campaigns and grassroots activations. If you’re interested in supporting this movement and amplifying the voices of climate champions everywhere, reach us at info@museumfortheun.org.

Stay connected and join us  on Instagram and LinkedIn.

What we are reading

Parallel Realities – UN SDG Action Campaign
Parallel Realities is an immersive art exhibition that explores the divergent paths our world could take; a wake-up call to act for the future we want through climate justice, youth empowerment, and global cooperation.

Braiding Sweetgrass – Robin Wall Kimmerer
A poetic and powerful blend of science, Indigenous wisdom, and storytelling, this book explores our relationship with the natural world, reminding us that reciprocity, gratitude, and empathy are key to ecological healing.

Happiness and Human Flourishing Among Young Adults – The New York Times
This article unpacks new findings from the Global Flourishing Study, highlighting the stark emotional and mental health challenges facing young people, and the need for belonging, meaning, and connection in an age of uncertainty.

What we are watching and listening to

Learning Beyond the Walls – Agniv Vinoth, TEDxAnuragU
This TEDx talk challenges traditional education models and advocates for empathy-driven, experience-based learning — where curiosity, community, and culture take center stage in shaping young minds.

Your Inner Fire Is Your Greatest Strength – Xiye Bastida, TED Talk

In this powerful TED Talk, climate activist Xiye Bastida shares how tapping into our personal passion — our “inner fire” — can become the fuel for collective climate action rooted in hope, culture, and community.