We connect the UN Global Goals

with art

What If?

Inspiring action on the interconnected issues of climate, nature, health, and hope

Future Danish Landscapes

Reimagining what future danish landscapes could look like through art

Circular Museum by MoMA and ART 2030

A virtual panel discussion series

Future Ours

An art project about the future of our planet

The Hope Forum 2024

Accelerating concrete, system-wide action for sustainability

Art for a Healthy Planet 2025

Inspiring action on climate, environment, and biodiversity through the power of art

Art for Action

Inspiring action for the Sustainable Development Goals

Art Charter for Climate Action

Uniting the visual arts sector in climate action

Art for a Healthy Planet 2024

Sharing great art to inspire action for climate, our environment, and biodiversity

Super Reef

Restoring 55 km² of lost reefs in the Danish ocean

Art for a Healthy Planet 2023

Sharing great art to inspire action for climate, our environment, and biodiversity

Getting Climate Control Under Control

Committing to real climate action

The Hope Forum

ART 2030 for the UNITED NATIONS Agenda for Sustainable Development & UNESCO ResiliArt

Art for Hope

Art responds to the climate catastrophe

Partnerships as a Catalyst for Change

Hignline New York City

Art for a Healthy Planet 2022

Sharing great art to inspire action for climate, our environment, and biodiversity

Interspecies Assembly

SUPERFLEX

ART 2030 Presents

Conversations on Art and Sustainability

Danh Vo Presents: A Haven for Diverse Ecologies

Danh Vo

Art for a Healthy Planet 2021

Sharing great art to inspire action for climate, our environment, and biodiversity

UN high-level event on Culture & Sustainable Development

Art Sector Luminaries Address the United Nations

Art for a Healthy Planet 2020

Sharing great art to inspire action for climate, our environment, and biodiversity

GOALS

Christian Falsnaes

Breathe with Me

Jeppe Hein

Vertical Migration

Part of Interspecies Assembly by SUPERFLEX: About the Artwork

Interspecies Assembly

Part of Interspecies Assembly by SUPERFLEX: About the Artwork

ART 2030 New York

For Art and the Global Goals

Tow with The Flow

Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen

Planet Art

Amapá

YES

Yoko Ono

Soleil Levant

Ai Weiwei

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What If?

2025

Maya Lin | What Is Missing? Foundation | ART 2030

Related Global Goals

3: Good Health and Well-Being

3

Good Health and Well-Being

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

Learn more ↘
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11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

11

Sustainable Cities and Communities

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Learn more ↘
×

13: Climate Action

13

Climate Action

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

Learn more ↘
×

15: Life on Land

15

Life on Land

Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Learn more ↘
×

17: Partnerships for the Goals

17

Partnerships for the Goals

Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.

Learn more ↘
×
Image above: What If?, Courtesy of Maya Lin and What Is Missing? Foundation for ART 2030.

What If? is a public art project by renowned artist and environmental advocate Maya Lin and the What Is Missing? Foundation, presented by ART 2030 on the streets of New York City and at the United Nations Headquarters.


Blending art, science, policy, and storytelling, What If? raises awareness and inspires action on the interconnected issues of climate, nature, health, and hope. Through bold questions and actionable solutions, it invites people everywhere to imagine a healthier, more sustainable future — and recognize their power in shaping it.


Launched during the 80th UN General Assembly and Climate Week NYC, What If? engages both the public and world leaders in urgent conversations about our shared future.


What If? builds on Maya Lin’s longstanding project, What Is Missing?, a multi-sited platform for reimagining our relationship with the planet. What Is Missing? addresses the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, urging us to envision sustainable futures that balance human needs with those of the planet.


Exhibition Dates:
08 – 28 September 2025: Featured across JCDecaux-owned bus shelters throughout all five boroughs of New York City. See locations here
14 – 28 September 2025: On view at the United Nations Headquarters, New York City

Highlights from the debut of What If? by Maya Lin and the What Is Missing? Foundation, presented by ART 2030 at the UN Headquarters, ahead of the High-Level General Debate of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly, New York City, September 2025.

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What If? at the United Nations Headquarters and across New York City, September 2025. Courtesy of Maya Lin and What Is Missing? Foundation for ART 2030.

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What If?, Courtesy of Maya Lin and What Is Missing? Foundation for ART 2030.

Maya Lin

Portrait of Maya Lin. Photo by Jesse Frohman.

“

I believe that art can help us imagine and map sustainable future scenarios, and, in doing so, give people a way to see – and hope for – a diferent future. What If? shows how each person’s actions can make a di]erence, and how art can shift our perspective, making these issues feel more manageable. It helps us realize how impactful our actions can be.

Maya Lin (b. 1959) interprets the natural world through science, history, and culture, to create works that have had a profound impact on how we view our history and how we relate to the natural world. From her very first work, the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial, she has since gone on to a remarkable and highly acclaimed career in both art and architecture, whilst still being committed to memory works that focus on some of the critical historical issues of our time. Lin is a member of the Bloomberg Foundation, the What is Missing? Foundation, and she is a National Geographic Explorer-at-Large, in 2016 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, by President Barack Obama, the nation's highest civilian honor.

Media Resources

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