social development

UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 79th Session (Bangkok)

The 79th Session of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific will be held at the United Nations Conference Centre ESCAP Hall in Bangkok, from 15 to 19 May 2023.

This is an in-person event and all participants who appear in the letter of credentials are requested to register online at indico as soon as possible but no later than 21 April 2023. Only the names of duly accredited and registered participants will be included in the list of participants.

The theme of the session is “Accelerating climate action in Asia and the Pacific for sustainable development”, and this annual session will be an opportunity to strengthen regional cooperation on climate change.

For more information about the 79th Session of UNESCAP for Asia and the Pacific, please visit their website.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org.

Addressing Apostasy and Blasphemy Laws in Muslim Societies

Dear UN NGO Committee on FoRB and interested colleagues,

This month, our friends at Muslims for Progressives Values will be hosting an in-person event on Apostasy and Blasphemy in Washington, DC. Here’s the event summary:

The practice of criminalizing the religious beliefs of others through apostasy and blasphemy legislation violates the fundamental teachings of Islam as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which enshrines the right to freedom of religion, belief, and thought to all individuals.

Clearly, this issue is transnational as we’ve witnessed in the stabbing of Salman Rushdie. While he is one of the more prominent victims, there are many more unnamed victims. The two-hour forum will begin with an introduction to social, historical and religious contexts of apostasy and blasphemy laws in Muslim Societies. It will be followed by an interactive workshop with tools to delink these harsh laws from Islam, inculcating a culture of human rights, and overcoming hateful social media campaigns directed at human rights advocates.

Here’s the event page with the concept note, outline of the program and speakers. To register, please click here.

Event Location: Rayburn 2060, Capitol Hill, Washington DC

Please visit our Freedom of Religion and Belief page for a comprehensive overview of our work in this field.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief, please visit unforb.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@yahoo.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values, and Global Concerns/NY, please visit csvgc-ny.org.

Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)

Theme: Indigenous peoples, business, autonomy and the human rights principles of due diligence including free, prior and informed consent

Date: 25 April – 6 May 2022

Location: United Nations Headquarters, New York + online

The 2022 session of the Permanent Forum will be open to in-person and online participation. Each organization may register a maximum of three individuals. Pre-registration is required for all in-person and online participants. See information below about registration.

Note that all open meetings of the Forum will be streamed at webtv.un.org. Viewing the live stream will not require any registration.

Side event listings: un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2022/04/Side-event-list-to-be-published-26-April.pdf

More info: un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples

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CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations.

UN Commission on Population and Development

2022 theme: Population and sustainable development, in particular sustained, inclusive economic growth

For full program, background information, and related links, please visit https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/events/CPD55.

Bureau members (fifty-fifth session/2022):

H.E. Ambassador Enrique A. Manalo (Republic of the Philippines) – Asia-Pacific Group (Chair)
Mr. Andrei Nicolenco (Republic of Moldova) – Eastern European Group (Vice-Chair)
Ms. Sara Offermans (Netherlands) – Western European and Others Group (WEOG) (Vice-Chair-designate)
Ms. Mayra Lisseth Sorto (El Salvador) – Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) (Vice-Chair-designate)
Mr. Antonin Bieke (Côte d’Ivoire) – African Group (AG) (Vice-Chair-designate)

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-New York, please visit ngocsd-ny.org.

Criminalising Ecocide: A New Deterrent to Crimes that Affect the Environment

You’re invited to this important side event of the 31st Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention & Criminal Justice (CCPCJ)!

Register here: unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CCPCJ/session/31_Session_2022/registration.html

The regular thirty-first session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice is scheduled for 16-20 May 2022. The provisional annotated agenda will be published on the website of the Commission following the present arrangements. The present proposed organizational arrangements were drafted in response to the recent
developments of the COVID-19 pandemic, taking into consideration the regulations by the host country, Austria, and the guidelines of the Vienna International Centre. Based on the developments of the global health situation and to possible changes to the regulations by the host Country Austria, arrangements may be revised closer to the regular session.

Organization Format
The sessions will be conducted in a hybrid format, in the M-building of the Vienna International Centre. The meetings of the plenary and COW will be held in parallel. The plenary meetings will be held in the plenary hall of the M-building. The meetings of the COW will be held in Boardroom A.

In-person participation will be possible for a limited number of delegates from United Nations Member States, UN Entities, IGOs and NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC. Due to COVID-requirements the number of seats in the room is limited and as such only a limited number of in-person participants can join. In-person participants are required to confirm adherence to relevant provisions contained in the COVID guidelines for participants and are expected to provide supporting documents as necessary.

Participation In line with the Rules of Procedure of the Functional Commissions of ECOSOC, Member States, as well as representatives of UN Entities, IGOs and NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC can participate in the session.

More information about this specific side event, and the full schedule of events, will be provided here at a later stage: unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CCPCJ/session/31_Session_2022/session-31-of-the-ccpcj.html

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CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna is a Substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. Likewise, for more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-New York, please visit . For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com.

Past, Present and Future: Conflict and Cooperation in U.S. – China Relations

The U.S. and China

Past, Present and Future: Conflict and Cooperation in U.S.-China Relations

The prophetic historian Howard Zinn taught that if we don’t know our history, we can’t be free. Without that knowledge, he warned, whenever a president comes on TV and says that we are in danger from here or there, we lack the framework needed to critically judge its truth. Today the near unanimous Washington, media, and even scholarly and expert consensus is that China poses a dire threat to democracy and freedom around the world, and that our freedom requires defend them by challenging and containing China militarily, economically, technologically, diplomatically, and politically. Provocative military operations near Taiwan or in the South China Sea carry the danger of an accident or miscalculation escalating to war, even a nuclear war. Demonization of China also drives anti-Asian racism and violence across the United States, which must immediately be ended.

Understanding Chinese history and the history of U.S.-China relations provides us what we need to advocate for mutually beneficial policies and diplomacy, bringing the world back from the brink and opening the way for collaborations to address the existential threat of nuclear weapons, the climate emergency, and pandemics. Professors Mark Seldon and Zhiqun Zhu are uniquely qualified to share the essential histories of China and of U.S.–Chinese cooperation and competition.

Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZModOmorz4rHtwRKZ9w0MwVaDenIP6Hy8GI

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org.

Launch of Repository of Women in Tech

WSIS Forum 2022 ICTs and Gender Mainstreaming — Launch of Repository of Women in Tech

At the request of and in collaboration with WSIS Stakeholders a repository of Women in Tech will be launched. The goal is to identify and connect women leaders and practitioners in all sectors of the ICT industry from all regions and engage them in events, forums (e.g. WSIS Forum) and activities such as various workshops, training courses, networking events, aimed at fostering a dialogue on the use of ICTs as a means for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Register here!

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN.

76th Session of the UN General Assembly

The 76th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 76) will open on Tuesday, 14 September 2021. The first day of the high-level General Debate will be Tuesday, 21 September 2021.

As more information becomes available, it will be posted here: sdg.iisd.org/events/76th-session-of-the-un-general-assembly-unga-76

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CoNGO Notes: For information about the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the UN (CoNGO), and its commitment to the ideals and objectives of the United Nations, see www.ngocongo.org.

NGO Committee on Social Development [monthly meeting]

Please consider yourself invited to the NGO Committee on Social Development’s monthly meeting.

Let’s put people at the centre of development and pledge to make the eradication of poverty, full employment, and social integration the overriding objectives of development.

Register here: zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwrcOqqpj8uHtHqW8yFsbkrjk4wp3k-jSYv

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CoNGO Notes: The NGO Committee on Social Development is one of the substantive committees of CoNGO--the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org.

Role of Culture and Community in Recognizing Diversity and Fostering Inclusion Among Older Immigrants and Other Underrepresented Populations

International Federation on Ageing presents: “The Role of Culture and Community in Recognizing Diversity and Fostering Inclusion Among Older Immigrants and Other Underrepresented Populations,” a Conversation with Mr. Kahir Lalji Provincial Director, Government Relations and Population Health, United Way of British Columbia

Immigration is a crucial factor in fostering growth and maintaining the economic and social health of countries around the world. Immigrants provide essential contributions to society and yet they often face disproportionate barriers to accessing social services and supports. For older’ immigrants, multiple factors (e.g., cultural differences, working conditions and health factors etc.) can affect their ability to actively engage in family and community activities.

The IFA is honored to invite Mr. Kahir Lalji, Provincial Director, Government Relations and Population Health, United Way of British Columbia with extensive background in non-profit leadership and community development, Mr. Lalji’s passion in working with underserved populations has driven his success in supporting community-based programs and services across the province.

Register here!

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-NY, please visit ngocoa-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Vienna, please visit ngoageingvie.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Geneva, please visit ageingcommitteegeneva.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com.

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