Funding shortfall threatens education for children in conflict, disaster zones – UNICEF
Some 9.2 million children living in emergency countries will miss out on schooling unless the international community contributes an additional $820 million, the United Nations Children's Fund () warned at the start of today's G20 summit.
Without education, children grow up without the knowledge and skills they need to contribute to the peace and the development of their countries and economies,
Progress Study on Youth, ٱƵapp and Security
The latest population data from the United Nations (UN) reveal that the world currently has the largest youth population ever. There are about 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 and 24, which equals 24% of the world population. This means that one out of every four people worldwide falls into this age group. Despite this significant number of people, youth involvement in solving global issues is still relatively low and youth often underrepresented. In view of concerns that young people have not been sufficiently included in political, economic and social activities, platforms and processes, social inclusion and recognition of youth were the primary issues of a discussion that took place at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 20 June 2017.
Deputy UN chief highlights stronger AU-UN partnership to benefit Africa's youth
Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed today called for strengthening the relationship between the African Union (AU) and the United Nations to deliver on promised development for Africa's youth.
Addressing her first African Union Summit since taking office, Ms. Mohammed said that the AU's thematic focus this year on youth is a powerful reminder of the core principle at the heart of thefor Sustainable Development, the AU's strategic framework known as Agenda 2063 and other global agreements, namely, creating a better world for the next generation.
Global citizenship is a responsibility of everyone
Global citizenship education has become a major topic at the United Nations (UN) and among member states as well as in civil society and the private sector. To further raise awareness of and promote the topic, the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), in collaboration with the Boston Global Forum (BGF), hosted a panel discussion entitled Unlearning Intolerance: National and International Perspectives on Global Citizenship Education. Representatives from all sectors were invited to join the discussion on Tuesday, 27 June 2017, at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
UN rights chief decries 'unacceptable attack' on Al Jazeera and other media
The United Nations human rights chief today expressed strong concern about international demands that Qatar close down the Al Jazeera network and other affiliated media outlets as extraordinary, unprecedented and clearly unreasonable.
A spokesperson for High Commissioner Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein told press in Geneva that whether or not you watch it, like it, or agree with its editorial standpoints, Al Jazeera's Arabic and English channels are legitimate, and have many millions of viewers.
Rupert Colville added that the demand that they be summarily closed down is, in our view,on the right to freedom of expression and opinion.
Human Security at the United Nations
There are many ways to approach the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). One approach is in terms of human security, which is concerned with the root causes of various threats ranging from international conflicts to internal strife, climate-related disasters, health pandemics, food shortages and economic downturns.
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 FinnSummerell of the UNAI Office. The leadspeaker was H. E. Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations. Additional speakers were Eunhee Jung, Executive Director, IVECAInternational Virtual Schooling; Bruce Knotts, Director of International Resources, UnitarianUniversalist Association; Le Phuoc Vu, Chairman, Hoa Sen Group; Roya Mahboob, ChiefExecutive Officer, Afghan Citadel Software; and Nguyen Anh Tuan, Chief Executive Officer,Boston Global Forum, and Chair of International Advisory Committee of UNESCO Chair onGlobal 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 NationsSecretary-GeneralAntónio 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 NationsSecretary-GeneralAntónio 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 () 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 ().
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.