MAJOR EVENTS AT THE UN:

UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY: The 79th Session of the UN General Assembly ( (UNGA79) opened in early September. High Level Week - with Heads of State giving their annual addresses to the World Body - began on Tuesday, September 24. Other significant events during this period include Global Goals Week and Climate Week

UN SUMMIT OF THE FUTURE - September 22-23, 2024
World Leaders gathered at UN HQ for the Summit of the Future, "a once in a generation opportunity for the international community to grapple with important questions, and forge a new path, for the benefit of all." The Summit was preceded by two "Action Days" on September 20 and 21 where Civil Society, Private Sector, Academia, local and regional authorities, youth and many other stakeholders had an opportunity for broad engagement and exchange of ideas toward the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, and to prepare for challenges that come with a rapidly changing environment, including the advance of technology.

Of Interest: Recent Report from the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO): "THE UNJUST CLIMATE "

UN CIVIL SOCIETY CONFERENCE May 9-10, 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya
In preparation for the Summit of the Future, scheduled to take place at UN HQ September Civil Society organizations and UN officials gathered at the UN compound in Nairobi, Kenya, to discuss ways to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, and to prepare for challenges that come with a rapidly changing environment, including the advance of technology. Organizations that were not able travel to Nairobi for the conference had an opportunity to organize events offsite. More than 3,600 civil society representatives from 2,750 organizations, alongside approximately 400 delegates from 64 governments, seven intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), 37 UN entities, and over 100 media reporters participated. Notably, 70% of registered attendees were from Africa, with 40% representing youth aged 18 to 34, showcasing diverse community representation. Read the Co-Chairs' reflection on this important gathering. CTAUN will continue to share updates about preparations for the Summit of the Future.

DID YOU KNOW....? The UN has a beautiful collection of gifts received from Member States and organizations. They are located throughout the building and on the UN grounds, and include paintings, fabrics and sculptures - the most famous may be the "twisted gun" greeting visitors at the entrance. We invite you to visit them on this VIRTUAL TOUR

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF EDUCATION - JANUARY 24
The sixth International Day of Education will be celebrated on 24 January 2024 under the theme “learning for lasting peace” -- The world is seeing a surge of violent conflicts paralleled by an alarming rise of discrimination, racism, xenophobia, and hate speech. The impact of this violence transcends any boundary based on geography, gender, race, religion, politics, offline and online. An active commitment to peace is more urgent today than ever. Education is central to this endeavor. Read the UNESCO Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development.

WORLD CHILDRENS DAY - NOVEMBER 20
On this day we celebrate children around the world, putting special emphasis on their health and well-being. Today more than ever children around the world are exposed to multiple challenges, such as conflict, climate change and the educational setbacks from Covid-19. This year's theme is "For Every Child Every Right" - as outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child - and multiple focal points at the UN are dedicated to supporting children and their rights, especially UNICEF - the special UN agency dedicated to children.

CTAUN Webinar: Friday March 3, 2023
"HUNGER: MANY CAUSES, MANY SOLUTIONS"
Go to our CONFERENCE PAGE for details or watch the RECORDING

The fifth INTERNATIONAL DAY OF EDUCATION was celebrated on 24 January 2023 under the theme “to invest in people, prioritize education”. Watch the event HERE

The World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 2022. For more information read the Tashkent Declaration

Watch this space for announcements of upcoming CTAUN Events, including our next Conference at UN Headquarters

TRANSFORMING EDUCATION SUMMIT

On September 16, 17 and 19 2022 the UN Secretary General convened this summit which mobilized political ambition, action, solutions and solidarity to transform education and initiated efforts to recover pandemic-related learning losses; to reimagine education systems for the world of today and tomorrow; and to revitalize national and global efforts to achieve SDG-4. Read the Secretary General's Vision Statement . The summit brought together education and political leaders from around the globe, including a large number of young people who contributed their goals in the Youth Declaration

RECENT WEBINARS:

April 22, 2022 - Earth Day:
"CLIMATE CHANGE AND GLOBAL HEATING:
WHAT WE CAN DO TOGETHER TO RESTORE OUR BROKEN PLANET"

February 21, 2022
"MULTILINGUALISM - THE NEW GLOBAL COMPETENCE STANDARD: MOTHER LANGUAGE + 2"

For program summaries and links to videos of these events check the CONFERENCE page

The UN has a dedicated page on their website with educational resources for teachers.  The website, un.org/teach  includes curated content with links to UN resources, as well as teaching guides, focusing  on the Three Pillars of the UN:  Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Human Rights, and Peace and Security.  You can also find information on the history of the UN. The information on the website was developed by the United Nations Visitor Center for K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade) educators to assist and encourage them to incorporate UN content in their curriculum. 

Resources to learn about the SDGs include materials for very young children. Among those are Frieda - The Universal Message of the Sustainable Development Goals  , All Aboard for Global Goals, Climate Action Superheroes, and many more. For elementary grades and up, an excellent resource is The World's Largest Lesson. Most of these are free and can be downloaded at UN.org/teach