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Youth Share Millennium Development Goals Progress at the United Nations Headquarters
 During three days at the United Nations Headquarters in August, hundreds of young people from around the world convened to participate in the 5th Annual Youth Assembly at the United Nations, a conference founded by Patrick Sciarratta and Dr. Elaine Valdov. The Assembly is designed with the goal of empowering young people to become leaders in the quest to promote change on both the local and global scale. With a mix of keynote speakers, workshops, roundtables, cultural events, and networking opportunities, the Youth Assembly offered a myriad of opportunities for its youth attendees to become active agents in achieving the Millennium Development Goals, a group of eight global initiatives that the United Nations hopes to accomplish by 2015.
Representatives from many influential NGOs, both those affiliated with the UN and not, spoke and presented breakaway workshops tailored to attendees with specific interests, encouraging involvement with their organizations. Meanwhile, roundtable discussions were held addressing such topics as environmental sustainability and women's empowerment. Special cultural events by performing groups such as the Iowa Kids Show Choir and Movement Laboratory Dance celebrated the wide spectrum of cultural traditions present at the conference.
 The many keynote speakers at the Assembly included such diverse guests as Arun Gandhi, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, speaking about nonviolence; Mark R. Dybul, the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator; and Pete Griffin, the Manager of Think MTV. All presenters discussed their unique life paths with the aim of inspiring young people to become active global citizens and to address the ambitious Millennium Development Goals armed with knowledge culled from these leaders.
A workshop by Dr. John Chittick, the Executive Director of TeenAIDS-PeerCorps and Harvard researcher, discussed his work in developing methods to educate uninformed teenagers about HIV/AIDS. Dr. John has trained thousands of youth teachers around the globe in peer outreach through role-playing and motivation with the goal of spreading information about HIV/AIDS prevention. In another workshop, Iana Aranda and Yuri Estra, both directors of professional chapters of Engineers Without Borders, discussed their organization's pursuit of sustainable solutions to infrastructure needs in developing countries. They used the example of the ongoing Matunda Health Centre Water Project in Lugari, Kenya, where they are working towards the goal of bringing running water access to a rural community.
 Culture Night and Dinner, a special event held on the second night of the Assembly, was hosted by the Friendship Ambassadors Foundation, an organization that is affiliated with UNESCO and organizes and funds exchange programs focusing on academia, culture and the arts. In a church a few blocks away from the United Nations Headquarters, an audience was presented with a full program of performing groups from around the world. Along with the Iowa Kids Show Choir and Movement Laboratory Dance that had performed previously, other groups such as one comprised of members of the Blue Angels, a non-profit organization in China, performed using sign language. Members of the audience at the event were encouraged to contribute to the event with their own spontaneous performances, as did two women who sang Australian folk songs for the crowd. Guests dined on Spanish tapas and appreciated the opportunity to appreciate culture from a global perspective. |
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