Welcome
During International Days and major international conferences there is a special opportunity to serve in
the creation of a more unified and compassionate world.
As meditators we can symbolically stand together with all actively working in the spirit of the Charter of Compassion, and hold these events in the light of a Higher Wisdom.
Millennium Goals & Climate Change
These International Days and events reflect important themes in the mobilization of energies to:
- fulfill the historic promise made by world leaders in 1999 to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, halving extreme poverty
- to respond appropriately to the urgent needs of climate change
- and to engage people of goodwill all over the world in the process of defining new Sustainable Development Goals to replace the Millennium Development Goals that expire in 2015.
2014 United Nations International Years
Breaking News:
2015 will be observed as International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies & International Year of Soils. more information
Silence at the United Nations
The Spiritual Caucus at the United Nations gathers in the vicinity of UN Headquarters in New York (September - June) on the third Thursday every month for 30 minutes of silence followed by 30 minutes of dialogue, sharing insights and exploring ways to use an inner focus in service of the work of the UN. On the 1st Thursday of the month the Caucus invites friends to sit in silence for 30 minutes. Traditionally a gathering has been held in the Meditation Room in the public lobby of UN Headquarters in New York, but during the major redevelopment of the UN building in NY the Meditation Room is closed so on this first Thursday all are invited to hold the Meditation Room in the light and ponder its significance.
Please link in from wherever you are. More information at: http://www.spiritualcaucusun.org/
In January the Spiritual Caucus invites all to link subjectively on Thursday, 6th, 12:45 - 1:15 USA Eastern Daylight Time, holding the Meditation Room at the United Nations in the light during this period when the Room is closed due to rennovation work. Please also link with the full meeting on Thursday, February 20 at 1.15 PM EDT.
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February Please Hold These Events in the Light
January 15 - February 23
Winter Feast for the Soul
During the Winter Feast people around the world from different spiritual paths join their intention for personal and planetary peace by committing to forty minutes of spiritual practice each day for forty days. Although the Feast marks the Northern Winter participants are from northern and southern hemispheres.
We hold a vision of a world at peace that surpasses the imagined boundaries of creed, culture, and philosophical beliefs.We embrace all spiritual traditions and organizations in a synchronized period of practice where we become part of a shared dream for a consciousness of oneness and peace on our planet.
winterfeastforthesoul.com
February 1 - 7
World Interfaith Harmony Week
In November 2010, following a proposal by HM King Abdullah II and HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan, the United Nations General Assembly decided to observe the first week of February every year as World Interfaith Harmony Week. The resolution recognized that the moral imperatives of all religions, convictions and beliefs call for peace, tolerance and mutual understanding, and it reaffirmed that mutual understanding and inter religious dialogue constitute important dimensions of a culture of peace. … Read the full resolution here.
worldinterfaithharmonyweek.com
www.un.org/en/events/
February 2
World Wetlands Day
2014 Theme: Wetlands and Agriculture
On February 2,1971 an intergovernmental treaty was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. The Treaty, known as the Ramsar Convention, commits member countries to maintain the ecological character of their Wetlands of International Importance and to plan for the "wise use", or sustainable use, of all of the wetlands in their territories. It is the only environmental treaty governing a particular ecosystem. World Wetlands Day has been observed on February 2, every year since 1977. Government agencies, NGO's, and people of concern mark the day with activities to raise awareness of the value of wetlands and their need for protection.
In recognition of International Year of Family Farming World Wetlands Day 2014 focuses on the need for the wetland and agricultural sectors (and the water sector too of course) to work together for the best shared outcomes.
www.ramsar.org
February 3 - 7
Eighth Session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals, United Nations, New York
One of the main outcomes of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), held in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012, was the agreement by Member States to launch a process to develop a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Rio+20 did not elaborate specific goals but stated that the SDGs should be limited in number, aspirational and easy to communicate. The goals should address in a balanced way all three dimensions of sustainable development and be coherent with and integrated into the UN development agenda beyond 2015. A 30-member Open Working Group (OWG) of the General Assembly is tasked with preparing a proposal on the SDGs. The session will include representatives from civil society. Proposals from a wide range of social organizations will be considered during the session - see these proposals here.
This eighth session of the Working Group will focus on three major themes:
- Oceans and seas, forests, biodiversity
- Promoting equality, including social equity, gender equality and women’s empowerment
- Conflict prevention, post-conflict peacebuilding and the promotion of durable peace, rule of law and governance
sustainabledevelopment.un.org
February 4
World Cancer Day
2014 focus: Debunk the Myths.
On this Day groups around the world shine a light on the global impact of cancer and efforts to raise the quality of care for cancer patients. Cancer is the generic term for a large group of diseases in which cells grow out of control and can spread to other parts of the body. Cancer involves a series of mutations or changes in the genetic make up of a cell, causing it to look and function differently from normal cells. Thus, cancer is actually a disease of the cell.
Every year the equivalent of the entire population of Switzerland dies from cancer - two thirds of these deaths occur in low and middle-income countries. Cancer kills more people every year than AIDS, malaria and TB combined. It is estimated by the UN's World Health Organisation that between 2005 and 2015, 84 million people will die of cancer without intervention. Research suggests that one-third of all cancer deaths can be avoided by prevention and another third by earthly detection and treatment.
For many cancer patients and their families the disease provides an opportunity to access deep spiritual resources and there are now a wide range of programs in meditation, spiritual development and alternative therapies offered as part of cancer treatment. See, for example, the US government's National Cancer Institute:
www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/. Similar sites are available from major cancer centers in many countries.
www.worldcancerday.org
February 4 - 6
C40 Mayors Summit, Johannesburg, South Africa
2014 theme: Towards resilient and liveable Megacities – demonstrating action, impact and opportunity
Chaired by the Mayors of Rio de Janeiro and Johannesburg and the former Mayor of New York, mayors from the worlds largest cities will gather with climate change leaders to advance urban solutions to the climate crisis.
c40summitjohannesburg.org/
February 5 - 6
Youth Assembly at the United Nations
2014 focus: Youth employment for development and social entrepreneurship.
Youth leaders from around the world (ages 16-25) gather every year in the General Assembly Hall at UN Headquarters in New York.
http://www.faf.org/main/
February 11 - 12
From Ego- Eco-System Economies : Creating Well Being for All. Presencing Global Forum, Cambridge, MA, USA
The 2014 Global Forum will showcase living examples and initiatives that generate profound change by shifting awareness from "Ego to Eco". The intention of our platform is to connect change makers across systems, sectors, and cultures in order to co-create a society that generates sustainability and well-being for all.
We see ourselves as part of a global movement that aims at shifting the economic discourse, from a focus merely on GDP to a focus on well-being (e.g., GNH or GPI), from scarcity to abundance, from exclusion to inclusion, from competition to co-creation, from reducing negative to generating positive impact, from transactional to transformative relationships, from exploitation to shared ecosystem prosperity.
www.presencing.com/programs/
February 11 - 21
United Nations Commission for Social Development
2014 theme: Promoting empowerment of people in achieving poverty eradication, social integration and full employment and decent work for al
The 46-member UN Commission on Social Development (CSD) is charged to advise the Economic and Social Council of the UN and Governments on social issues and the social perspective on development.
Following the 1995 World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen the CSD is the major UN body responsible for implementation and follow-up on the Programme of Action agreed to at the Summit. This means that the annual meetings of the Commission in New York provide an important arena for governments and civil society to review progress and develop dialogue around key themes, including poverty eradication, disability, youth, ageing, families.
During the 10 days of the Commission conference rooms at UN Headquarters in New York will be full of events organized by civil society as well as governments.
undesadspd.org
www.ngosocdev.net
February 14
Full Moon - Aquarius
Since ancient times human beings have honored the full moon as a time when the sacred is most accesible. It is a time of light - the moon reflects the light of the sun onto the face of the earth. In astrology this is a time when the qualities and potentials of the zodiacal sign of the sun are especially available to humanity for use on service.
During the full moon religious and esoteric groups around the world use the opportunities of this time to vizualize light and love and spiritual power flowing into humanity and strengthening all that is being done to help prepare the way for a world of unity, justice and peace; a world in which the Millenium Development Goals and the Sustainable Development Goals will be achieved.
www.lucistrust.org
www.worldservicegroup.com/
February 14
1 Billion Rising for Justice
On February 14, 2013 one billion people in 207 countries rose and danced to demand an end to violence against women and children.
ONE BILLION RISING FOR JUSTICE is a global call to women survivors of violence and those who love them to gather safely in community outside places where they are entitled to justice – courthouses, police stations, government offices, school administration buildings, work places, sites of environmental injustice, military courts, embassies, places of worship, homes, or simply public gathering places where women deserve to feel safe but too often do not. It is a call to survivors to break the silence and release their stories – politically, spiritually, outrageously – through art, dance, marches, ritual, song, spoken word, testimonies and whatever way feels right.
www.onebillionrising.org/
www.vday.org
February 20
World Day of Social Justice
The United Nations World Day of Social Justice celebrates the international agreements reached at the World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen, 1995.
On this Day governments are called upon to undertake concrete activities towards the goals of poverty eradication, full employment and social integration.
The World Summit in 1995 recognised that social development aims at social justice, solidarity, harmony and equality within and among countries and social justice, equality and equity constitute the fundamental values of all societies. To achieve "a society for all" governments made a commitment to the creation of a framework for action to promote social justice at national, regional and international levels. They also pledged to promote the equitable distribution of income and greater access to resources through equity and equality and opportunity for all. The governments recognized as well that economic growth should promote equity and social justice and that "a society for all" must be based on social justice and respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.
http://www.un.org/en/events/
February 21
International Mother Language Day
We live in One World, and are all part of One Life. Yet within this unified whole each individual unit is precious and significant. It is essential that cultural diversity be fostered to maintain richness and variety in the human community. At the heart of culture is language.
Each individual's mother language plays a vital role in their health and development: "It is the language of childhood, of intimate family experience and of our social relations". Yet in a world of increasing globalization small language groups find it increasingly difficult to survive.
UNESCO estimates that about half of the approximately 6,000 languages spoken in the world are under threat.
International Mother Language Day promotes linguistic and cultural diversity and multi-lingualism The date represents the day in 1952 when students demonstrating for recognition of their language, Bangla, as one of the two national languages of the then Pakistan, were shot and killed by police in Dhaka, the capital of what is now Bangladesh.
http://www.un.org/en/events/
www.facebook.com/motherlanguageday
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