The first 1000 days, or the thousand day window of opportunity, is recognised as the time between a woman’s pregnancy and her child’s second birthday. It is the most critical period of growth and development in a child’s life.

Proper nutrition during this period provides the essential building blocks for brain development, healthy growth and a strong immune system. No amount of food can cure a stunted child: good nutrition must start early to prevent stunting before it starts.

It is not a fund, an institution or an agency, rather the Movement is strengthening political commitments and accountability for those commitments through voluntary membership of SUN Countries and to SUN Networks.  While the SUN Movement Secretariat is hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services, the Movement belongs to all those who support it: United Nations agencies, scientists, parliamentarians, journalists, entrepreneurs, professional associations, community organisers, medical practioners, civil servants and business leaders who understand that improving nutrition is key to unlocking a better future for children across the globe.

The SUN Movement is driven by its member countries.  All stakeholders supporting the SUN Movement are committed to the idea that by transforming individuals behaviour to align behind national nutrition priorities, we can amplify the reach and impact of every stakeholder’s work and scale up nutrition in a faster, more equitable and sustainable way.  This requires action across sectors, with people from different stakeholder groups and at all levels – from national, district to the community level to reach the farthest and most vulnerable people. The approach is organised around the four strategic objectives identified in the SUN Movement Strategy and Roadmap (2016-2020). A monitoring framework measures progress against these objectives and can be identified on each country homepage as the following

• Bringing people together
• Coherent policy and legal framework
• Aligning programs around a Common Results Framework
• Financial tracking and resource mobilisation

By acting in line with the SUN Movement’s Principles of Engagement and working in a multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder way, you are already contributing to the SUN Movement. As an individual, there are many ways to support the SUN Movement. Like the SUN Movement Facebook page, follow the Movement on twitter and participate in nutrition related events.

Learn more about how you can get involved as a country, as a civil society organisation, as a business, as a UN agency or as a donor agency.

Violators of the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes undermine efforts to improve nutrition and as such continue to be excluded from the Movement.

Jobs with SUN Networks and with members of SUN in country are regularly available and shared in the SUN Movement LinkedIn Group and on ENN online.

Job opportunities with the SUN Movement Secretariat are made available on the UNOPs website and shared on the SUN Movement LinkedIn group.

Within each SUN Country, the government nominates a SUN Government Focal Point who convenes  multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) that bring together actors from all sectors that are relevant to nutrition.

SUN Countries raise their own domestic and external resources for scaling up nutrition.

The SUN Movement Secretariat and Coordinator is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Full financial and implementation reports are available here.

Each SUN Network independently raises their own resources for scaling up nutrition.

Members of the SUN Movement Lead Group and the Executive Committee do not receive monetary remuneration for the roles that they play in the SUN Movement.

The SUN Movement Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF) was established in March 2012 and was intended to provide catalytic grants for the development and implementation of actions for scaling up nutrition. It was a fund open to governments, United Nations (UN) agencies, civil society groups, other SUN partners and support organizations, however the vast majority of funds have been allocated to support civil society participation and catalytic actions for scaling up nutrition.