No more overfishing! Stop killing biodiversity

http://ocean2012.eu/

Stop violence against women!

Man Up is a global campaign to activate youth to stop violence against women and girls.

FACTS:

1 in 5 women will become a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime.

1 in 3 teenage girls has suffered sexual abuse by a boyfriend, and one in four has experienced violence in a relationship.

Ages 15 – 44 violence against women is a major cause of death and disability.



"Violence against women stands in direct contradiction to the promise of the United Nations Charter to “promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom." The consequences go beyond the visible and immediate. Death, injury, medical costs and lost employment are but the tip of an iceberg. The impact on women and girls, their families, their communities and their societies in terms of shattered lives and livelihoods is beyond calculation. Far too often, crimes go unpunished, and perpetrators walk free. No country, no culture, no woman, young or old, is immune." (UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on International Women's Day 2009.)

More than a goal. End Polio

Bill Gates

Contrary to popular belief, I don’t spend a whole lot of time following soccer. But as I have travelled around the world to better understand global development and health, I’ve learned that soccer is truly universal. No matter where I go, that’s what kids are playing. That’s what people are talking about.

That’s why I’m so excited to announce a partnership our foundation is creating with FC Barcelona, one of the greatest clubs in the world. We hope that together we can bring more global attention to the promise of life-saving vaccines and the fight to end polio. FC Barcelona has a long history of being involved in social causes and an enormous global network of fans. We hope that once they learn more about the fight against polio, they’ll be just as fanatical about finishing it as they are about Leo Messi.

The facts are simple:

Thanks to a 13 cent vaccine and a phenomenal effort led by Rotary International to reach all children with that vaccine, cases of this devastating disease have fallen by 99 percent in the past 20 years.
Stopping the fight now is simply not an option. If we don’t do the really hard work to eradicate polio now, the disease will come back with a vengeance. Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere.

I can’t wait to learn a little more about soccer – or fútbol – by spending time with the team at Barça. And I can’t wait for them (and there are millions of them) to celebrate with us when the world reaches this global health milestone.

It's more than a goal. End polio.

100 Questions About Islam

UN Alliance of Civilizations, British Council and top US universities release timely video series: 100 Questions About Islam Debates on the role xenophobic anti-Muslim rhetoric played in influencing Anders Breivik have abounded in the aftermath of the Norway attacks. Separately, the role of Islam in democracy is being widely discussed as uprisings in the Arab world continue apace. In this context—and ahead of the ten-year anniversary of 9/11—a new and timely video series, launched by the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the British Council, seeks to provide insight on these and other current issues around perceptions of Islam and Muslim communities. 100 Questions About Islam aims, above all, at being a digital resource for the general public. It is a joint endeavour by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations’ Media Program; the British Council’s Our Shared Future project, and was produced by students from the University of Missouri School of Journalism during a symposium hosted by Georgetown University’s Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Videos What is the Muslim youth community like? What do polling data tell us about the Arab Spring? The entire collection of videos can be found at the following sites: http://vimeo.com/groups/100questionsaboutislam http://www.youtube.com/100qsaboutislam

YEN recognises the value of youth engagement in tackling youth employment challenges at all levels and is committed to promoting youth participation. The Secretariat actively supports this commitment in a number of ways, including developing and implementing youth participation mechanisms; mobilizing youth groups in Lead countries; and conducting workshops to build the capacity of youth groups to participate effectively in the National Action Plan on youth employment process. This page acts as a gateway for youth participation in YEN and other youth employment activities. ENJOY!

About YEN

The Youth Employment Network (YEN) is a partnership of United Nations, International Labour Organization, and World Bank. YEN was created in 2001 to mobilize action on the commitment of the Millennium Summit for decent and productive work for young people. YEN is a global platform to prioritise youth employment on the development agendas and to exchange on policies and programs to improve employment opportunities for youth. The Network includes development agencies, governments, the private sector, youth groups and other NGOs.

YEN is managed by a permanent secretariat hosted by ILO in Geneva. The secretariat is primarily a provider of innovative and value-added services for the Network. A specific focus is given to Africa, where the secretariat has a regional offices in Dakar, Senegal and Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

The major achievements of YEN to date include:

• Revision of the Lead Country Network: 17 countries have recommited to the network since major revisions were made in 2009.

• Mobilisation of 10 Million USD in 2009 from various donors to support activities of the Network.

• Development and dissemination of various publications and advocacy products on youth employment.

• Training of over 1500 youth representatives as advocates on youth employment.

For more information, click on this link

World Breastfeeding Week - 1-7 august 2011

• Talk to me! Breastfeeding - a 3D Experience

  WABA is pleased to announce the World Breastfeeding Week theme for 2011 focusing on engaging and mobilising youth intergenerational work with the catchy slogan of: "Talk to me! Breastfeeding - a 3D Experience". The theme deals with communication at various levels and between various sectors.
  
  

• Why 3D?

  When we look at breastfeeding support, we tend to see it in two-dimensions: time (from pre-pregnancy to weaning) and place (the home, community, health care system, etc). But neither has much impact without a THIRD dimension - communication!
  
  Communication is an essential part of protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding. We live in a world where individuals and global communities connect across small and great distances at an instant's notice. New lines of communication are being created every day, and we have the ability to use these information channels to broaden our horizons and spread breastfeeding information beyond our immediate time and place to activate important dialogue.
  
  This third dimension includes cross-generation, cross-sector, cross-gender, and cross-culture communication and encourages the sharing of knowledge and experience, thus enabling wider outreach.

For more informations:
http://worldbreastfeedingweek.org/index.shtml

Worried about youth employment

Fact Sheet: Youth employment


• In 2009, about 81million young people were unemployed, the most ever.

Across the globe, the economic crisis has had a dramatic impact on the challenges
facing young people seeking jobs. Between 2008 and 2009, the youth unemployment
rate has seen the largest annual increase on record, reversing the pre-crisis trend of
declining youth unemployment rates since 2002 and rising to 13 per cent in 2009.

• In 2008, an estimated 152 million young workers –or nearly 25 percent of the
world’s working poor– were living with their families on less than US$1.25 per
person per day.

Unemployment rates, however, reflect only the tip of the iceberg. Young people are
prone to work longer hours under informal, intermittent and insecure work arrangements
characterized by low productivity and earnings and reduced social protection. Young
workers are more exposed to poverty than other age groups.

• Youth unemployment rate rose from 11.9 percent to 13.0 percent between
2007 and 2009, an increase of 7.8 million.

Creating jobs for the millions of young women and men entering the labour market
every year is a critical component in the path towards wealthier economies, fairer
societies and stronger democracies. It is not only the quantity but also the quality of jobs
that matters. Decent Work is the best way young people can realize their aspirations,
improve their living conditions and actively participate in society.

• Young women have more difficulty than young men in finding work. The
female youth unemployment rate in 2009 stood at 13.2 per cent compared to
the male rate of 12.9 per cent

The best labour market entry path for young people remains a good basic education,
vocational training or higher education and initial work experience.The development of national action plans on youth employment that are
focused on these elements can guide countries to translate national commitment into
action.


For further reading:

• ILO Youth Employment Programme (YEP)

• Resource Guide on youth employment

• ILO Global Job Crisis Observatory. Online information resource, regular
updates. Section on youth employment.

• Youth Employment Network (YEN)