Read this online at www.intuition-in-service.org/newsletter/February18.html


Please Hold in the Light
February 2018

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 invoke the aid of the Forces of Light in support of these events.

Daily Reminder
Check out a daily reminder of these events to hold in the light. Share this daily reminder with others by including the app on your website.

Sustainable Development Goals & Climate Change 
These International Days and events reflect important themes in the mobilization of energies to:
 
United Nations International Year
  • Contrary to common practice, the United Nations has not declared 2018 as International Year for any specific topic.
 
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 in the newly renovated Meditation Room at UN Headquarters in New York.
Please link in from wherever you are. More information at: http://www.spiritualcaucusun.org/

In February the Spiritual Caucus will gather for silence in the UN Meditation Room at UN Headquarters, New York on February 1 from 12.45 - 1.15 PM and for silence and discussion, initially meeting outside the the UN Meditation Room at UN Headquarters, New York on February 15 from 2.00 - 3.30 PM.
 
 
 

February Please Hold These Events in the Light


January 15 - February 23
Winter Feast for the Soul

The Winter Feast for the Soul event takes place every January 15-February 23, and unites people in their commitment to a 40-day practice of stillness. The commitment to 40 minutes of practice each day of the Feast allows people to have a life changing experience of the importance and impact of stillness. We embrace all forms of practice that bring an individual to a period of stillness in their daily life. Whether it is winter or summer where you are in January, we hope you will join the more than 20,000 people worldwide who participate each year.
What nine months does for the embryo
Forty early mornings
Will do for your growing awareness
Jelaluddin Rumi
winterfeastforthesoul.com

January 29 - February 7
UN Commission for Social Development

2018 theme: Strategies for eradicating poverty to achieve sustainable development for all
Following the 1995 World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen the Commission for Social Development 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.
www.un.org/development/
www.ngosocdev.net

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.
Countless events are held around the world during the week, including an annual gathering in the General Assembly Hall of the United Nations.
worldinterfaithharmonyweek.com
www.un.org/en/events/
www.charterforcompassion.org

February 2
World Wetlands Day

2018 Theme: Wetlands For a Sustainable Urban Future
The Future of Humanity depends on Wetlands. They purify and replenish our water, and provide the fish and rice that feed billions. Wetlands act as a natural sponge against flooding and drought, and protect our coastlines. They burst with biodiversity, and are a vital means of storing carbon.
Over a billion people make a living from wetlands including work in fishing, rice farming, travel, tourism and the provision of water.
On February 2,1971 an intergovernmental treaty, The Ramsar Convention, was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar. It 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.
www.worldwetlandsday.org

February 4
World Cancer Day

2018 Theme: We can. I can.
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 early 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
www.who.int

February 6
International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women. Over 140 million girls and women alive today have undergone some form of FGM.The United Nations Population Fund and UNICEF jointly lead the largest global program to accelerate the abandonment of FGM.
www.un.org/en/events/ www.unfpa.org/

February 14
One Billion Rising

2018 Theme: "Solidarity". Rise! Resist! Unite!
1 in 3 women across the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. That’s ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. Every February, we rise – in hundreds of countries across the world – to show our local communities and the world what one billion looks like and shine a light on the rampant impunity and injustice that survivors most often face. We rise through dance to express joy and community and celebrate the fact that we have not been defeated by this violence. We rise to show we are determined to create a new kind of consciousness – one where violence will be resisted until it is unthinkable. ... Let’s continue to radically shift consciousness and be braver, bolder, more creative and determined with our actions.
www.onebillionrising.org

February 14 - 15
2030 Agenda for Children : End Violence Solutions Summit, Stockholm, Sweden

This important summit to combat violence against children will be attended by invited representatives of governments, the UN, civil society, the private sector, academics and children themselves. The goal is to design and share bold solutions for preventing and responding to violence against boys and girls.
www.end-violence.org/summit

February 14 - 16
Youth Assembly at the United Nations

2018 Theme: Innovation + Collabortion for a Sustainable World
Youth leaders from around the world (ages 16-25) gather every year in the General Assembly Hall at UN Headquarters in New York.
www.youthassembly.nyc

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.
http://www.un.org/en/events/

February 21
International Mother Language Day

2018 Theme: Linguistic diversity and multilingualism count for sustainable development
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. The Day supports Target 6 of Goal 4 of the SDGs: "Ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy."
http://www.un.org/en/events/
www.unesco.org/

February 21 - 23
Energy in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development : Global SDG 7 Conference, Bangkok, Thailand

Key stakeholders from Governments, the UN system and other international organizations, the private sector, and civil society will consider important ways in which SDG Goal 7, the sustainable energy goal, impacts all other Sustainable Development Goals. Progress on Goal 7 will be reviewed. The event is being held in preparation for the UN's High Level Political Forum in July when progress towards meeting 5 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals will be reviewed and assessed.
sustainabledevelopment.un.org