Press Conference on ‘UN4U’ Outreach Initiative, ‘Citizen Ambassadors’ Campaign

United Nations officials -– from support staff to senior decision-makers -- will visit public high schools throughout New York City next week as part of the Department of Public Information’s “UN4U” programme to raise awareness about the Organization’s work and commemorate UN Day, celebrated annually on 24 October, the head of the world body’s public information department said today.

This year, some 45 schools -- more than double last years’ number -- would participate in the programme during the week of 19 to 23 October, said Kiyo Akasaka, Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information at a Headquarters press conference.  Of the total, 20 schools were in Brooklyn, 10 were in the Bronx, 7 each were in Manhattan and Queens and one was in Staten Island. 

He said that six Assistant-Secretaries-General, as well as four Under-Secretaries-General would talk with students, including:  Inga-Britt Ahlenius, Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Services; Sergio Duarte, Special Representative for Disarmament Affairs; Ibrahim Gambari, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs; and Patricia O’Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs.

Globally, the “UN4U” programme would be carried out, in varying formats, through United Nations Information Centres and country offices, Mr. Akasaka continued.  An outreach event at a city hall in Brazzaville, Congo, for example, would involve 500 high school students, while, in Bogota, Colombia, students from more than 100 schools would be able to browse a photo exhibit.

In addition, he said that in Dhaka, Bangladesh, more than 800 students from various institutions would take part in lectures organized by the Dhaka-based Information Centre and a student association.  An event in the Czech Republic would highlight the issue of climate change with a film screening and exhibit.

The “UN4U” programme is the latest in a number of innovative projects launched by the Department to get the United Nations’ message out, he said.

Next up at the press conference was Eric Falt, Director of the Outreach Division of the Department of Public of Information, who told reporters about the Information Department’s “Citizen Ambassadors” campaign.  He announced that five winners had been chosen from among the participants in a video contest, launched 23 September, during the General Assembly’s general debate, to involve young people in the United Nations’ discussion of global issues.

In videos posted on YouTube, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, actor and United Nations Messenger of Peace George Clooney, Nobel Peace Prize winner and environmental activist Wangari Maathai, and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Good will Ambassador, Brazilian soccer star, Ronaldo, issued a joint challenge to young people:  send video ideas to world leaders by 10 October on how to create a better, safer world.

The five winners, chosen from more than 400 entries were:  Emily Troutman of the United States, Maricarmen Ortega of Mexico, Kirsty Matthews of Canada, Breno Coehlo of Brazil and Jeremy Walker, also of Canada and living in Tokyo, Japan.  As winners, they would come to United Nations Headquarters to take part in the United Nations Day Concert, on Friday, 23 October, among other activities.

“Seeing this level of enthusiasm all over the world was a surprise”, said Mr. Falt, who was among the other officials from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) to select the winners.

Taking a question on the “UN4U” programme, Mr. Akasaka said speakers would address various issues on their school visits, notably on the priority issues that included climate change, disarmament, peace and security, and the Millennium Development Goals.  He estimated there would be specific questions about what the United Nations was doing in Afghanistan and Iraq.  United Nations officials would bring with them video and other materials to use in their discussions with students.  Events held in countries that were hosting United Nations peacekeepers would perhaps also focus on their activities.

Asked about online criticism that all the winners in the “Citizen Ambassadors” contest had been chosen from North or South America, Mr. Falt responded that, indeed, not all the comments were positive.  At the same time, “we’ve not censored anything”, he explained.  Of the top 20 videos, there were a number from Europe and Africa.  The panel had applied criteria that tried to look beyond the technical quality of the videos, and focused on whether the submission had a compelling message, was original and creative.

It would have been nice to have had more geographic diversity, acknowledged, while adding that was a gender balance.  One video from Africa had made it into the top 20 finalists, but not the top five.  If the contest were repeated, he hoped it would allow more of a lead time to allow for even more submissions from Africa, Asia and Europe.

Asked how the Department would have handled a video submission that was critical of a regime, Mr. Falt said, “We would have to look at it”, but added that there had been no such submissions this year.

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For information media • not an official record