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.
Daily Reminder
Now you can get a daily reminder of these events to hold in the light. Share this daily reminder with others by including the app on your website.
Millennium Goals & Climate Change
These International Days 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.
2013 United Nations International Years
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 November the Spiritual Caucus invites all to link subjectively on Thursday, 7th, 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, November 21 at 1.15 PM EDT.
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November Please Hold These Events in the Light
November 1 - 19
19 Days of Activism for Prevention of Abuse and Violence against Children & Youth
2013 themes: Sale of Children; Child Prostitution; Child Pornography
This global campaign leading up to World Day for Prevention of Child Abuse, is sponsored by a coalition of international organizations and networks.
We have a Dream … the creation of a world without violence against children and youth.
By focusing during 19 days on the prevention of diverse types of abuse and violence against children and youth, the campaign aims to continue to bring to light the alarming problem, its multifaceted aspects, and the need to generate sufficient grass-roots interest and government and public support for better prevention measures.
19days.woman.ch
November 6
International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict
In earlier times it was not uncommon for the environment to be damaged in warfare - crops were destroyed, water supplies poisoned and forests set alight. Modern technologies mean that environmental damage from wars can be far more serious and the consequences more long-term. The damage often extends beyond the limits of national territories and the present generation.
This Day reminds us that it is not only people who suffer in times of war. As universal ethics condition the conscience of humanity, there is a growing sense of responsibility for the well-being of all life on Earth: minerals, plants & animals.
www.un.org/en/events/
November 10
World Science Day for Peace & Development
This Annual UNESCO Day seeks to renew the national as well as the international commitment to science for peace and development and to stress the responsible use of science for the benefit of society. The Day is part of an International Week of Science and Peace
www.un.org/en/events/scienceday/
www.unesco.org/
November 11-12
Building a Global Citizens Movement Conference, Johannesburg, South Africa
Organised by leading networks, DEEEP/CONCORD, CIVICUS and GCAP, this global conference will bring together over 200 of the world’s most influential civil society members alongside individuals from grass-roots civil society protest movements.
The aim of this Global Conference is to link emancipatory struggles and the related activists, educators and campaigners, with the broader global citizen’s movement. This is an opportunity which is particularly important and timely given the on-going discussions in the role that citizens’ participation, democracy, human rights and accountability has to play in the post-2015 global development framework.
During the Conference the Johannesburg Declaration for the Establishment of a Global Citizens Movement will be developed. The intention is that this declaration will become the heart of a 2-year process to build a Global Citizens Movement. All are invited to share in developing the Declaration.
movement.deeep.org/
November 11 - 22
United Nations Climate Change Conference, Warsaw, Poland
This is the 19th annual gathering of parties to the UN Climate Change Framework Convention. It is one of the prime spaces where, in spite of significant differences, national governments are negotiating a common approach to climate change.
The new economics is emerging out of a vast, multi-faceted process involving peoples movements the world over, business, science, local government as well as national governments. Governments are pressured by popular opinion.
Official United Nations Site: unfccc.int/meetings/
Poland official site www.cop19.gov.pl/
November 12
World Pneumonia Day
Pneumonia is one of the most solvable problems in global health and yet a child dies from the infection every 20 seconds. It is the leading killer of children under the age of 5. Over 140 NGO's, academic institutions, government bodies and foundations form the Global Coalition Against Child Pneumonia which organizes this World Day.
worldpneumoniaday.org
November 14
World Diabetes Day
2013 theme: Diabetes: Protect Our Future
Over 240 million people are today living with diabetes - and it is one of the most common diseases of childhood.
World Diabetes Day, an official UN Day, aims to raise awareness of the rising prevalence of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. Millions of people in over 160 countries are involved in activities on the Day.
www.idf.org/worlddiabetesday
November 16
International Day of Tolerance
Tolerance and the celebration of diversity are two of the essential characteristics of the emerging mind and heart. Yet while the sense of wholeness and universal responsibility grows, the absence of tolerance and the emotional power of intolerance continues to fuel violent and separative movements in all parts of the world.
This is an important United Nations Day when we can give energy, love and support to the countless initiatives around the world designed to nourish and nurture the growing spirit of tolerance and universal responsibility. It is observed as a day to promote Tolerance Education and to reflect on how tolerance can best be fostered in our communities, particularly in divided communities.
See the UNESCO Declaration on the Principles of Tolerance
http://www.un.org/en/events/toleranceday/
November 17
World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims and their Families
Road traffic crashes kill nearly 1.3 million people every year and injure or disable as many as 50 million more. They are the leading cause of death among young people aged 10-24 years.
The Day of Remembrance responds to the great need of road crash victims for public recognition, which is so readily given to victims of other types of disaster. It also acknowledges the work of all those involved in the aftermath of a crash - fire, police and ambulance personnel, doctors, nurses and counsellors. And the Day draws attention to actions needed to reduce the number of accidents.
www.worlddayofremembrance.org/
November 19
World Day for Prevention of Child Abuse
Held each year the day before Universal Children's Day, this is a day to focus on the creation of a culture of prevention of child abuse — particularly sexual abuse of children. A coalition of organizations from around the world organizes a range of activities on the Day to raise awareness of the problem and to promote various prevention programmes.
www.woman.ch/
November 20
Universal Children's Day
One of the outstanding keynotes of our present time is the focus that is being put on children: the rights of children; the needs of children; the importance of considering children in every area of life. At a global level this is reflected in The Convention on the Rights of the Child, an international human rights treaty that is transforming the lives of children and their families around the world. Under the Convention, ratified by all but two of the world's countries (USA and Somalia) governments have agreed to meet universal standards, guaranteeing children the rights to survival, health, education, a caring family environment, play and culture ….
Universal Children's Day is observed on different days in different countries. It is a Day to celebrate children and to empower the vision of an interdependent world of families, communities and nations in which the rights and needs of children are accorded the highest priority. 20 November marks the day in which the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, in 1959, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in 1989.
There is no clearer way of measuring the progress we are making as a global community in acting on the ethics of universal responsibility than by measuring the progress we make in implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Please hold this process in the light on Universal Children's Day.
www.un.org/en/events/childrenday/index.shtml
November 20
World Day of Prayer and Action for Children
2013 theme: Stop Violence Against Children
Observed annually since 2008 on Universal Children's Day, the World Day for Prayer and Action for Children was initiated by the Arigatou Foundation, a Japanese based interfaith organisation. The Day brings people of all faiths together to pray and take action for the well-being of children.
www.dayofprayerandaction.org/
November 21
World Philosophy Day
This UNESCO Day is celebrated on the third Thursday of November. The Day aims to encourage the peoples of the world to share their philosophical heritage and to open their minds to new ideas, as well as to inspire a public debate between intellectuals and civil society on the challenges confronting our society.
www.un.org/en/events/philosophyday/
www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/
November 25
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
At least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime - with the abuser usually someone known to her.
Women's activists have marked 25 November as a day against violence since 1981. The date commemorates the brutal assassination of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic, in 1960 on orders of Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo .
Each year, for 16 days, bookended by the International Day to End Violence Against Women (25 November) and Human Rights Day (10 December), groups from around the world join together to speak out against gender violence which all too often, is covered up or tacitly condoned. More
www.saynotoviolence.org/
www.un.org/en/events/endviolenceday/
November 29 - 30
International Buy Nothing Day
Traditionally the weekend following Thanksgiving Day sees some of the biggest shopping sprees of the year in the USA - and this is when hundreds of thousands of people around the world will be encouraging consumers to move towards a simpler lifestyle, and to Buy Nothing. In Canada and USA the Day takes place on the Friday following Thanksgiving Day - elsewhere on the following Saturday.
It's a day where you challenge yourself to switch off from shopping and tune into life.
www.adbusters.org/campaigns/bnd
www.ecoplan.org/ibnd/
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