59th Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference (6-8 September 2006)

 

 

Minutes of the Planning Committee Meeting: 9 March 2006

 

1.0  Pre-Meeting Comments:

 

Sol started the meeting by introducing the DPI interns: Victor Ukorebi from Nigeria, Nita Himaduna from Kosovo, Johanna Oberg from Sweden, Sarah Schernbeck from Germany and Sandra Vystavel from Denmark.

Michaela chaired the meeting but announced that she will not be present at the Conference Planning Committee Meeting next week. She requested that the Planning Committee members become more involved with the Conference blog, www.unfinishedbusinessconference.blogspot.com. She also reminded the group to fill out speaker forms and turn them in as soon as possible.

 

Sol requested that the weekly minutes be printed by the members themselves as only a few copies will be available during meetings. Michaela noted the problem of the group not receiving minutes earlier and requested that they be sent out by Monday.

 

Michaela sent a personal note to Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, President of Liberia, inviting her to be a keynote speaker at the Conference. Upon her acceptance, the Secretary-General will send her a formal invitation. Other members of the Planning Committee offered to assist in making initial contact with potential speakers.

Michaela is looking into the possibility of having Oprah Winfrey as a speaker or honoree. She also asked the group if they have other connections to celebrity speakers.

 

2.0 Adoption of the Agenda and Adoption of the Minutes:

 

2.1 The agenda was adopted and it was requested that speaker contact information, especially of celebrities not be shared outside the Planning Committee members. However, Michaela noted that communications should be shared with all the subcommittees and Sol added that speaker contact information needs to be completed for the file so that DPI will not have to research contact information again.

 

2.2 Corrections and clarification to the last minutes:

Midday Workshop: The Co-Chair was asked to clarify what was meant by “a listserv via invitation”. She said that it meant that an invitation by members of that committee be on a listserv.

A misspelling was revealed on page two: funding not finding

 

 

 

 

3.0 Report on the Subcommittees

 

1)   Media Committee: The Committee reported that they had their first real meeting last week although it was poorly attended due to bad weather. It will liaise with other committees and serve as a central gathering point.  In order to promote the Conference, Joan Levy, the co-chair of the Media Committee plans to submit weekly updates on the Journalists' website. The idea is to work together with the press officers of various NGOs so that information on the Conference would be included in a variety of NGO newsletters. The overall goal is to keep the Conference in the public eye. The next meeting would be held on Thursday, 16 March at 2 p.m. in the Resource Centre. The media chair requested that all blurbs on the Conference be forwarded to her for approval before posting them on the website.

 

2)   Networking Committee: The Networking Committee held their first meeting Thursday, 9 March. The Committee had two tracks, a formal one and an informal one. The formal networking session was concerned with the effective use of networking tools and would offer an overview of different types of networking systems. The informal networking sessions provided an avenue for small groups to come together to brainstorm and share ideas and information. Experts would be invited to come in to help establish networking tools. Due to the lack of funds, the Committee was not sure whether there would be tent for the Conference. However, it has been looking into some fundraising activities as it was agreed that the tent was an integral part of the Conference and should be well used and publicized. It was suggested that food sales, video/film shows and music presentations could be part of the activities held in the tent. It was requested that a member of the Committee be assigned to find out details related to the tent and to report back to the Planning Committee at the next meeting scheduled for Thursday, 16 March. The Networking Committee would meet every Thursday at 12:30 to 2:00 p.m. in the Resource Centre.

 

3)      Resource Centre Support: The Committee announced that Ben Chappel, the new staff member in the Resource Centre, would help with the online registration. A meeting had been scheduled for Wednesday, 15 March at 11:00 a.m. in the Resource Centre and the Internet Committee had been invited to attend. Michaela noted that the letter of invitation to go out to NGOs was ready to be signed and would be sent out by 15 March. It was stressed that cost of items had gone up considerably; therefore, no donation would be considered too small. Members of the Planning Committee recommended a minimum $25 for individuals and $100 for NGOs.  The invitations for the President of the General Assembly and the Secretary-General had been sent out. 

 

 

4)      Internet: The Internet Committee members were not represented at the meeting;              however, it was reported that Michaela made contact with Jerry Layborn, head of Oxygen and Dick Parsons of Time Warner. Vanessa and Sarah were going to update the website so that people could follow the proceeding of the Conference preparations online. The Committee suggested a meeting with officials from Story Corbs, a media box at Grand Central Station where individuals could conduct interviews or be interviewed. The Media Box encouraged people to record stories about their own families, especially in households, where people do not write.

 

5)      Multigenerational Committee: The Committee was working on developing efficient strategies for effective communication. Helen mentioned that they would try to meet with as many youth groups as possible from the UN next week. 

     Goal 1: 30% of the representatives of the NGOs should be under 30 years old.

     Goal 2: Encourage as many NGO representatives as possible to apply for the three

  days of multigenerational workshops. The Multigenerational committees were  

  currently preparing guides for the programme. The Multigenerational Committee

  would meet in the cafeteria from 2 to 3p.m. every Thursday.

 

6)      Midday Workshop: The Committee had a virtual meeting using email. The next      meeting would take place some time next week. The members of the Committee would attend the meeting on online registration on Wednesday at 11 a.m. in the Resource Centre. The Committee would be sending out two separate letters: the invitation letter and another requesting donations. It was decided that funds would only be made available to speakers from developing countries and not participants. Some of the participants received funds from NGOs.

 

7)      Events/Fundraising: The Committee held a meeting on Thursday, 9 March. The possibility of inviting Nelson Mandela to participate via webcast and, in the most economical way, was discussed. It was recommended that members explore various means to raise funds for the events as there were many expenses to cover during the Conference. It was estimated that the expenses would exceed last year’s spending. The Committee was still working on the idea of having an auction in the Delegates’ Dinning Room.

 

(i) Fundraising Ideas:

 

·        A separate committee concentrating on the 60th Anniversary Journal for 2007

·        Honouring distinguished individuals during the reception

·        Contacting private sector for donations

·        Producing Tote-bags instead of tee-shirts unlike last year

 

(ii) Travel Package: It was decided that the travel package could not go out with the invitation on 15 March. Patrick was currently working on contracts for the travel package.

 

(iii) Film Festival: Suzanne Engo explained that the Film Festival would serve several purposes: to honour people and to educate the NGO Community. The possibility of having a “big” film premiering at the Festival would not only heighten publicity for the Conference but would also provide an opportunity to sell ticket to non-attendees.

 

Michaela introduced Luis Delgadillo and commended him for his hard work at the Resources Centre.

  

4.0 Discussion of plenary and roundtable topics:

 

4.1 The following issues were discussed:

 

·        Michaela suggested that topics for the plenary/round table sessions be brought to the Planning Committee as soon as possible

·        It was stressed that the speaker form be complete, highlighting some of the important achievements and background of the person recommended.

·        Moderators are to be advised not to give long speeches but to leave room for open discussions and questions. Moderators for roundtable discussions and workshops have to be good and carefully selected.

·        It was suggested that the Planning Committee define “Effective Partnership”

·        Desired outcomes of the Conference need to be clearly defined

·        Sol invited everyone of the last year’s Conference survey in order to find out the feedback from the NGOs. Analyzing the surveys can help to improve the upcoming Conference. It was suggested that one of the planning meetings should be devoted to evaluating the survey.

·        Find ways to report on student involvement in the Conference workshops

·        Put purpose/outcome in invitation—participants should be prepared and be interested in forming partnerships etc.

·        Recommendation was made to turn workshops into problem-solving classes.  Experts would be invited to increase interaction and create networking opportunities for participants.  

 

4.2  Suggestions on the required reading materials:

·        Cardoso Report

·        Secretary-General Report

·        The Outcome document from the 2005 World Submit-September 2005

 

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5.0 Follow-up Actions and Events:

 

5.1 It was agreed that the following actions would be undertaken.

 

·        Possibility of setting up a tent by region, according to MDG, should be considered

·        Millennium Campaign should be invited to display information materials in the neck area during the Conference

·        Networking Committee should appoint someone to oversee the acquisition of the tent  and identify the events that can take place there

·        Planning Committee members should continue dialogue via blog.

·        Michaela suggested that speakers be lined up early.

·        Michaela would send an e-mail to all Committee members regarding the deadline for workshop proposals.

·        It was noted that NGO’s associated with DPI, ECOSOC are invited. Five representatives of each NGO can participate in the Conference; at least one of them has to be under 30 years old.

·        It was requested that invitations be sent out as soon as possible giving the participants enough time to procure visas.

·        Sol mentioned that the tent might not be just for NGOs but might be shared with UN staff

 

 

5.2 Paul’s replacement, Mr. Juan Carlos Brandt former Director of the Information in Australia would arrive on 3 April and will serve as Conference co-chair with Michaela.

 

6.0  Next Meeting

 

The next planning meeting will be held on Thursday, 16 March from 3:00 to 5:00 pm in ECOSOC Chamber.