07 April, 2018 – In honor of World Health Day, the World Health Organisation is focusing on Universal Health Coverage. Daphne Teo, WCPUN Global Health Correspondent, explains:

The World Health Organization (WHO) is a key agency of the United Nations driving global health, and the constitution of the organization came into force on 7 April 1948. 70 years after its founding, the overarching WHO message for this year is: extending Universal Health Coverage to all is the best way to achieving Sustainable Development Goals #3: Ensure the health lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is about ensuring that people have access to the health care they need without suffering financial hardship. It also helps drive better health and development outcomes. A report released in 2017 jointly by the WHO and the World Bank entitled, “Tracking Universal Health Coverage: 2017 Global Monitoring Report,” showed that 50% of the world’s population cannot obtain essential health services. Moreover, 100 million people are being pushed into extreme poverty because they have to pay for health services out of their own pockets. In 2018, the WHO is planning to galvanize the health sector, countries, development partners, civil society and the private sector toward the common goal of Universal Health Coverage, and continue to highlight country success and breakthrough experiences to accelerate the progress of Universal Health Coverage. Universal health coverage does not mean free coverage for all possible health interventions, regardless of the cost, as no country can provide all services free of charge on a sustainable basis. With that in mind, the WHO emphasizes that countries will be empowered to develop their own tailored roadmaps towards Universal Health Coverage via country-led models of development finance that can bring together multiple sources of financing to support countries’ priorities. On December 12, 2018, the International Universal Health Coverage Day will be the culmination point to assess how far countries are progressing towards achieving Universal Health Coverage, followed by a high-level meeting on Universal Health Coverage in 2019 by the United Nations General Assembly.

27 March, 2018 –     As part of a collaboration between WCPUN and NYU Professor Nicholas Mirzoeff, Senior Media Seminar students of the visual activism course “Liberation Lab” studied social justice issues through the lens of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Upon their visit to the UN, they had the opportunity to learn from, and exchange ideas with Vinicius Pinheiro, Director of the International Labour Organisation UN Office, Melanie Randisi of the United Nations Correspondents Association, and Pragati Pascale, Spokesperson for the Rio +20 Conference and longtime UN official. The students’ manifesto to be created at the end of their semester will be disseminated by WCPUN.

24 March, 2018 – Artist and WCPUN Cultural Adviser, Gema Alava,  will attend the II WORLD SUMMIT OF THE ARTS FOR PEACE AND LIFE: A pact of tenderness for Mother Earth, in Ecuador, where she will be awarded an Honorary Recognition for her trajectory. The award highlights the positive outcome of Alava’s multidisciplinary projects, especially the art project HEXAGONOS, which marks with 24-carat gold hexagons strategic points where artistic talent and culture are concentrated. This award highlights the importance of projects that create synergies between artists and organizations for the construction of artistic-educational platforms that promote the expansion of culture while creating an awareness about the respect for nature. 1. ENGLISH_INMEDIATE_RELEASE_ALAVA_GEMA_NOTA DE PRENSA_PREMIO_CUMBRE_2018

15 February, 2018 – DPI NGO Relations hosted a town hall to discuss past conferences and to give NGOs an opportunity to provide feedback and thoughts regarding the next conference. Moderated by Chief of NGO Relations, Jeff Brez and the Chair of the NGO DPI Executive Committee, Bruce Knotts, the panel featured input from Saphira Rameshfar, Co-chair of the Conference Planning Youth Sub-committee at the 66^th Conference, and Shamina de Gonzaga, Executive Director of WCPUN, in her capacity as Chairperson of the 61st Annual DPI/NGO Conference,  commemorating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. webcast

02 February, 2018 – HLA Gernsbach, WCPUN and the NY Metropolitan Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolence present a youth leadership forum in Baden-Wurtemberg Germany. Hosted at Daimler facilities, the Forum brought together students in high school and vocational training, with facilitators for leadership and sustainability training. Local and regional political figures attended, and a virtual discussion was held with Florida International University, College of Communication, Architecture and the Arts, facilitated by Associate Dean, John Stuart with local students and staff to compare and discuss the meaning of green leadership across cultures. BT_Feb6_Jugendforum18