Unlearning Intolerance: National and International Perspectives in Global Citizenship Education
The panel discussion entitled Unlearning intolerance: national and international perspectives in global citizenship education, organized by the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) and the Boston Global Forum on Global Citizenship Education, was held at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Tuesday, 27 June 2017.
The program was moderated by Orrin Finn Summerell of the UNAI Office. The lead speaker was H. E. Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations. Additional speakers were Eunhee Jung, Executive Director, IVECA International Virtual Schooling; Bruce Knotts, Director of International Resources, Unitarian Universalist Association; Le Phuoc Vu, Chairman, Hoa Sen Group; Roya Mahboob, Chief Executive Officer, Afghan Citadel Software; and Nguyen Anh Tuan, Chief Executive Officer, Boston Global Forum, and Chair of International Advisory Committee of UNESCO Chair on Global Citizenship Education, UCLA.
UNAI Global Hub on Sustainability contributed to the work of the Astana Economic Forum
Global Hub UNAI on Sustainability at Al Farabi KazNU has contributed to the work of the session Smart and Sustainable Cities of the Future at the 10th Astana Economic Forum (AEF) which took place on June 15 and 16, 2017 in Astana city, Kazakhstan. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP, Kazakhstan) organized the session and it focused on the challenges of rapid urbanization especially in developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Yoga is Always There with You: Conversation on Yoga for Health
Yoga is about our ability to feel yoga in our souls, to connect it to our minds and to integrate […] with nature and the planet—so Dr. Nata Menabde, Executive Director of the New York office of the World Health Organization (WHO) in her opening remarks to the Conversation on Yoga for Health held on 21 June 2017 at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
The conversation, organized by the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in association with WHO and the Department of Public Information, provided participants a more complete picture of the concept of yoga and how this 5,000-year old practice from India can benefit health and well-being.
In Uganda, UN chief meets with South Sudanese refugees, urges world to show solidarity
With Uganda hosting almost one million South Sudanese refugees “as sisters and brothers and sharing with them their land and everything they have,” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today urged the international community to show solidarity with those that had fled their home
Do Yoga, Be Yoga and Enjoy Your Life!
It has been a long time since the North Lawn garden of the United Nations in New York has been used, due to the eight-year renovation of the Secretariat building and grounds, but something of its intended natural life finally returned to the green space yesterday, 20 June 2017: the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations had invited yogis from all walks of life to a yoga session in celebration of the third International Day of Yoga.
Not wanting to miss this unique opportunity, we—a group of interns in the Department of Public Information—headed to the North Lawn after work. We met a diverse mix of people—some wearing black suits, others in yoga clothes—in the hallways of the UN as we went to join more than 2,000 yogis eager to take part in the yoga practice with renowned yoga masters.
UN chief appoints new envoys on youth; accessibility; and for Haiti
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today announced the appointment of senior officials as his envoys, respectively, for promoting universal accessibility, on the rights of young people, and to guide the implementation of the Organization's new approach to tackle cholera in Haiti.
UNICEF appoints 19-year-old education activist and Syrian refugee as Goodwill Ambassador
In a historic first, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has appointed 19-year-old Muzoon Almellehan, who has been advocating for girls' education since fleeing war-torn Syria in 2013, as its newest – and youngest – Goodwill Ambassador.
As a refugee, I saw what happens when children are forced into early marriage or manual labour – they lose out on education and they lose out on possibilities for the future, said Ms. Almellehan, recalling that when she fled, the only belongings she was able to take with her were her school books.
Ahead of Father's Day, UNICEF cites critical role fathers play in early childhood learning
A majority of children aged between three- and four-years-old in 74 countries, or about 40 million, have fathers who do not play or engage in early learning activities with them, according to a new study released today by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
What these numbers show us is that
Universities: Getting ready for the SDGs
The traditional separation between academia and the professional world is becoming more porous and dynamic. How, in that regard, will the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) affect universities and vice versa?
Higher education was never explicitly involved in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as either a development goal in its own right or as a potential agent to address other development goals. The focus was on primary education and particularly access (not educational outcomes). Progressively, the MDGs and international development became a discipline of study by interested students and researchers. Universities produced research, data and analysis of the MDGs experience. It could be said that universities followed the MDGs from the outside, from an observer vantage point, in most cases.
New Edition of Basic Facts about the United Nations Available!
Published since 1947, Basic Facts about the United Nations serves as the definitive introduction to the UN and its family of related institutions and agencies. The volume represents an invaluable tool for diplomats, students, researchers and the general public. Popular with candidates preparing for the Young Professionals Programme (YPP) exam as well as UN tour guides wanting to bolster their repertoire of knowledge, the book gives a comprehensive overview of the UN and its activities. While the flagship reference publication Yearbook of the United Nations provides such information on an annual basis from an historical perspective, Basic Facts describes recent significant developments within the Organization and its funds, programmes and specialized agencies.
Protect children in conflicts and disasters from forced labour, underscores UN on World Day
Children in areas affected by conflict and disasters are among the most vulnerable, the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) in warning on the World Day Against Child Labour, making a strong call for an end to the scourge, especially as children trapped in crisis risk falling prey to trafficking or being forced into hazardous work.
International community must ensure 'endemic' impunity in DR Congo brought to an end – UN rights chief
Voicing concern over lack of progress on the part of Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to undertake credible investigations into widespread allegations of rights violations and abuses in the Kasai Central and Kasai Oriental provinces, the top United Nations human rights official today called for setting up of an international investigation mechanism to look into the situation.
The crimes committed in the Kasais appear to be of such gravity that they must be of concern to the international community as a whole, and in particular the Human Rights Council, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, urged the Council today.
Winners of Multilingual Essay Contest to Present at United Nations General Assembly in July 2017
ELS Educational Services is pleased to announce that 60 students have been selected as winners of the 2017 Many Languages, One World® international essay contest. 2017 is the fourth year ELS Educational Services and the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) have sponsored Many Languages, One World. This year ELS and the UNAI also welcome Northeastern University as the host of the Many Languages, One World Global Youth Forum and the sponsor and organizer of the Northeastern University Global Youth Symposium.
The event includes an all-expense-paid trip to Boston and New York City and the opportunity to speak in the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations. Students will present action plans related to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Get outside, connect with the planet that sustains us, urges UN on World Environment Day
With the theme of this year's World Environment Day – 'Connecting People to Nature' – aimed at highlighting the well-documented physical and mental health benefits of being in nature, the United Nations is today flagging the vast benefits of such engagement, from food security and improved health to reliable water supply and climatic stability.
Over 40 migrants die of thirst in the Sahara, signalling 'broadening death trap,' warns UN agency
Warning that smugglers may now be broadening a death trap for migrants and refugees that could stretch from the Mediterranean to the vast Sahara Desert, the United Nations refugee agency has reiterated its call for safe pathways so that those in desperate need of international protection do not lose their lives.