The Wellspring

The Sauve Scholars Foundation (which I misread momentarily as ‘Suave Scholars’ - oops!) is inviting applications for their residential leadership and professional development programme at McGill University. Successful applicants will have receive a scholarship of $30 000 for travel, tuition, housing, meals and supplies for eight months in Montreal ‘to research, reflect, question and enlarge upon their understanding of the state of the world and their roles in effecting positive change.’ They will also attend weekly seminars featuring senior professionals from the media, politics, business, academia and the arts, and travel on group excursions to ‘ academically and culturally stimulating sites in the northeastern United States, as well as adventure trips in Canada’s dramatic north.’

Participants will have the opportunity for research produced as a result of their residence to be published on the Foundation’s website, or in hard copy.

Eligibility for the programme is limited to young people worldwide under 30 who have completed at least one undergraduate degree. Successful applicants will be highly motivated, have a strong academic record and have demonstrated leadership potential through involvement in university affairs or the broader community.

For further information, visit the Foundation’s website at http://www.sauvescholars.org/.

Applications close 31 December, 2006.

Vietnam will be the first country to test the previously-mentioned ‘One UN’ initiative to streamline the efforts of multiple agencies and help end the waste of resources. The plans will see 11 agencies (including UNICEF, the UN Development Programme and UNAIDS) currently housed in 10 separate buildings relocated to one Hanoi building as part of a large joint program, to be up and running by the end of January, 2007.

For more information, visit the Reuters news article at http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/HAN2829.htm.

Oxfam is inviting anyone in the world under 30 to submit a campaign idea to mobilise young people across the world to act for fair trade and sign Oxfam’s petition to Make Trade Fair (a campaign which calls on ‘government, institutions and multinational companies to to change the rules so that trade can become part of the solution to poverty, not part of the problem’). Oxfam is looking for an idea that embrace new forms of communication and gives a global audience the opportunity to participate, interact, create and act to spread the message.

The winner will have their idea ‘brought to life on a global scale across non-traditional media and work alongside some of the world’s greatest creative talent while doing it.’

Entries close 9 February, 2007.

For further information and to download the full creative brief, visit http://www.makeabignoise.org/.

The International Youth Volunteerism Summit which will take place from 22 to 25 February, 2007 at Northwestern University in Chicago, USA. This Summit will be a place for young people who care deeply about global progress to come together to understand the challenges and opportunities for their engagement; to hone the skills and mindsets that will enable them to better plan, execute, and participate in change-focused projects, and connect with like-minded peer communities from around the world.

The event includes two days of skills workshops and small group discussions that will revolve around participant projects, and a social calendar which must rank as one of the most highly-trumpeted I’ve ever seen at a conference like this. Somewhat confusingly, a full programme does not appear to be available on the website.

Applications must be submitted online no later than 1 December, 2006, and need to include a project proposal. Delegates are eligible for financial aid up to a full travel and housing scholarship, based on demonstrated financial need.

For further information, see http://www.iyvs.org/.

The United Nations High-level Panel on System-wide Coherence has today in its final report called for a ‘radical streamlining of UN efforts to fight poverty, provide humanitarian aid and protect the environment, saying competition among up to 20 or more different UN programs often duplicates efforts and fails in the end’, reports the Associated Press.

The panel, convened by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, is composed of 15 high-level politicians from around the world, including the Prime Ministers of Pakistan, Mozambique and Norway, former Presidents of Chile and Tanzania, and UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown.

They report, six months in the making, includes recommendations to:

• put all UN operations in countries under a single coordinating body (’One UN’) with overall responsibility for delivery and engagement with government and civil society
• enhance environmental protection under a strengthened and expanded UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
• provide better funding and coordination of humanitarian aid
• fully fund the Central Emergency Response Fund
• for donors to commit more aid through UN programmes and less to their own ‘pet projects’
• reform business practices under the Secretary-General’s direction
• secure long-term funding for agencies which meet reform goals.

The most obvious cost-cutting measure - to simply disolve entire agencies or programmes - was considered politically untenable. (The closest this report comes to making that suggestion is in recommending that the three bodies on gender merge. In this area, they also recommend that a new Under-Secretary General position be established to pursue gender equity and women’s empowerment across the UN system).

For further information, see the BBC’s news article at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6129624.stm, editorial from the International Herald Tribune at http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/08/opinion/edaziz.php, and the High-level Panel’s own website at http://www.un.org/events/panel/index.html.

The aforementioned UN Global Youth Leadership Summit - that I had labelled ‘mysterious’ as there was little information on its website about the Summit agenda or participant selection - has apparently concluded. UPI is reporting that the Summit, attended by hundreds of young people from across the globe, and focused on realising the Millennium Development Goals, finished with the (majority, not unanimous) adoption of a statement acknowledging the importance of youth involvement in the achievement of the Goals.

Well, that certainly doesn’t sound very innovative or useful. And unfortunately, at this stage, the final outcome document isn’t available online at the Summit’s website. Additionally, despite several emails requesting information on how Australian participation was organised, it seems that, in the end, we simply didn’t have anyone there at all. Quite a conspicuous absence I would imagine, given that UPI reports that ‘youth delegates comprised a young woman and young man from nearly every one of the 192 U.N. member states.’

Oops.

Update (3 Nov): I received an email from Joe Rafalowicz this afternoon letting me know that apparently, Elise Klein, this year’s young Australian delegate to the United Nations General Assembly, attended the Summit. I don’t know what the deal is with that, as she’s not on the official delegate listing. Perhaps she was moonlighting in addition to her representative role to the GA.

Oxfam International Youth Partnerships (formerly Oxfam International Youth Parliament, before they realised that the word ‘Parliament’ - with its connotations of formal political participation - was causing problems for some participants) is looking for 300 more young people who are currently working to achieve positive change in their communities to join the OIYP Network.

Between 2007 and 2010, Oxfam will work with participants to develop their skills, knowledge and understanding and to talk and share with other young people, with a view to using these opportunities to support their work with their community. Training will include an eight-day event in October 2007 in Sydney, Australia.

Applicants are selected on:

• Demonstrated resilience
• Commitment to positive and sustainable change
• Analytical ability
• Community or organizational support

Applications close 31 January, 2007.

For more information, and to download an application form, see the official website at http://www.iyp.oxfam.org/.

As a participant in the last cycle, I have to highly recommend this program, which provides numerous opportunities to learn more about global issues and to meet others from across the world working on similar issues. It’s incredibly well structured and administered (all by young people) and has built a reputation as a respected and valuable personal and professional development program. Despite prior talk of it being held in Canada, it looks like the training event will again by held in Sydney (where the last two Parliaments have been held, and where the Secretariat is based), so young Australians will find it especially accessible.

If you’re thinking of applying, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any queries about my experiences.

The previously-mentioned STAND UP Against Poverty campaign, run by the UN Millennium Campaign, has set a new Guiness World Record to be the “the largest single coordinated movement of people”.

More than 23 million people around the world stood up during a 24-hour period this week to show their support for the United Nations’ fight against poverty. Participants, ranging from churchgoers in Africa to soccer fans in Mexico, lent support to the Millennium Development Goals.

For more information, see the UN Press Conference article.