Our Words of Wisdom
“Let us close our eyes and visualise the world as one community without the conflicts and wars, bound together by the youth.
Now let us open our eyes and start working towards the vision and stop the use of youth as an instrument of hate.”– Kennedy Mhone, Malawi
Global Youth Connect
UNAOC shared results of Doha Forum during youth gathering at the United Nations
On January 19, 2012, in the context of a large gathering of youth at the United Nations Headquarters, the UNAOC Youth Program presented the results of the 4th UNAOC Forum in Doha, Qatar, which took place from December 10 to 13, 2011.
The UNAOC Forum in Doha gathered over 2,500 participants, including political and corporate leaders, civil society activists, youth organizations, faith communities, research centers, foundations and journalists, as well as over 470 youth from 100 countries. The main objective of the Forum was to provide a platform for world leaders, such as heads of states, representatives of media and civil society, as well as multilateral and youth organizations, etc to meet and have constructive discussions on the priorities of the UNAOC, i.e. intercultural dialogue and understanding and promotion of peaceful coexistence.
A number of concrete projects, partnerships and policy recommendations have been developed at the Forum, including several under the Youth Program of the UNAOC. Specifically, during the Youth Preparatory Event, young leaders met to debate on key aspects of cross-cultural and interreligious understanding. Several concrete projects were developed as an outcome, including an on-line youth-lead campaign against the use of xenophobic rhetoric in political discourse, an on-line global dialogue with Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, etc. Also, Youth Recommendations were drafted and then shared with world leaders during the Forum Opening Ceremony on December 11. More information on these initiatives will soon be posted on the UNAOC Youth Website.
The Youth Preparatory Event is an integral part of the UNAOC Forum and a vital opportunity for youth to meet and interact with decision-makers from various fields, including politics, civil society, media and religious institutions. The Doha Youth Preparatory Event counted on the support of the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation and its International Youth Council, which were also the organizers of this large gathering of youth at the United Nations.
For more information about the UNAOC Youth Program, please contact Ms. Isabelle Legare, Youth Program Manager at isabellel@unops.org.
(Photograph by Amrita Jayakumar)