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.
Sustainable Development Goals & Climate Change
These International Days and events reflect important themes in the mobilization of energies to:
- End poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030 through practical actions to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals
- engaging people of goodwill all over the world in a common movement.
2017 United Nations International Year
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 September the Spiritual Caucus will gather for silence in the UN Meditation Room at UN Headquarters, New York on September 7 from 12.45 - 1.15 PM and for silence and discussion at the Conference Room of the NGO Resource Center at UN Headquarters in New York on September 15 from 2.30 - 3.45 PM.
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September Please Hold These Events in the Light
August 27 - September 1
World Water Week, Stockholm, Sweden
2017 theme: Water and Waste: Reduce and Reuse
World Water Week in Stockholm is the annual focal point for the globe’s water issues. Last year over 3,200 individuals and close to 330 convening organizations from 130 countries participated in the Week.
www.worldwaterweek.org/
September 5
International Day of Charity
Honoring the date of Mother Theresa's death, the United Nations General Assembly has designated September 5th as International Day of Charity.
Affirming the role of charity in furthering the culture of peace the Day seeks to draw attention to the value of charitable organizations. The day is dedicated to commemorate the common desire to help the most disadvantaged members of society and to promote charitable activities around the world. Charity, like the notions of volunteerism and philanthropy, provides real social bonding and contributes to the creation of inclusive and more resilient societies.
www.un.org/en/events/charityday/
September 5 - 6
UN High Level Meeting on the New Urban Agenda and UN Habitat, UN Headquarters, New York
The New Urban Agenda was agreed my UN Member states at the habitat III Conference in Ecuador last year. This Agenda sets a new global standard for sustainable urban development and will help us rethink how we plan, manage and live in cities.
This High Level Meeting at the General Assembly will keep the focus on the Agenda , cioncentrating on Best Practices and consider a report on the implementation of the Agenda.
www.un.org/pga/
September 6
Full Moon — Virgo
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 in 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 Sustainable Development Goals will be achieved.
www.lucistrust.org
www.worldservicegroup.com/
September 7
UN High Level Forum on the Culture of Peace, UN Headquarters, New York
Organized by the President of the General Assembly, this fifth High Level Forum provides an opportunity for UN member states, UN agencies, media and civil society to consider ways and means of implementing the UN Programme of Action on the Culture of Peace and its importance to the Sustainable Development Goals. The Forum, which will be attended by members of the public, seeks to support the global movement for the Culture of Peace. It can be watched live at webtv.un.org
www.un.org/pga/
September 8
International Literacy Day
Theme 2017: Literacy in a digital world
This special UNESCO Day celebrates one of the most basic movements in the education and uplift of consciousness: the movement to promote support and teach adult literacy programs. Large numbers of professionals and volunteers work in every country helping adults in their efforts to learn to read and write.
Literacy contributes to peace as it brings people closer to attaining individual freedoms and better understanding the world, as well as preventing or resolving conflict.
www.unesco.org
September 9 - 24
Global Unity Games
The Global Unity Games: Building Bridges seek to bring about unprecedented unity in communities around the world through compassionate action and service.
Iindividuals and groups are invited to register and to 'play their hearts out' during the days before and after the International Day of Peace by organizing service projects and acts of kindness in their community.
Scoreboards and results are co-ordinated by Compassion Games International which reports that Over the past five years, the Compassion Games have been played in over 40 countries by more than 490,000 players who have served over 5.4 million people.
compassiongames.org
September 10
World Suicide Prevention Day
Theme 2017: Take a minute, change a life
Supported by the World Health Organization, this annual Day promotes worldwide commitment and action to prevent suicides. Every year, more than 800,000 people die by suicide and up to 25 times as many make a suicide attempt. Behind these statistics are the individual stories of those who have, for many different reasons, questioned the value of their own lives.
www.iasp.info
September 12
United Nations General Assembly 71st Session opens with a Minute of Silence
Every year the annual session of the General Assembly at UN Headquarters in New York opens with a Minute of Silent Prayer or Meditation. The General Assembly is the one place where representatives of all 193 member states of the UN have the opportunity to take part in deliberation and policy making on global issues. The Minute of Silence is an important symbolic moment in UN affairs, when according to the Rules of Procedure, members are invited to stand to observe one minute of meditation or prayer.
Following the ceremonial opening of the session, the General Debate takes place over a number of days (starting September 20) when Heads of State from many of the member countries address the Assembly.The period surrounding the opening of the General Assembly marks a high point in international affairs every year because heads of state from many of the countries of the world are in New York City and a wide variety of other events are held.
Explore the function and purpose of the General Assembly at: www.un.org/ga/
September 15
International Day of Democracy
2017 theme: Democracy and Conflict Prevention
This United Nations Day highlights the state of democracy in the world.
Democracy is as much a process as a goal, and only with the full participation of and support by the international community, national governing bodies, civil society and individuals, can the ideal of democracy be made into a reality to be enjoyed by everyone, everywhere.
www.un.org/en/events/
September 15 - 17
Clean Up the World Weekend
2017 theme: Our Place. Our Planet. Our Responsibility
Groups, organisations, schools and businesses from communities around the world unite on Clean Up the World Weekend to take action at a local level to address global environmental issues. An estimated 35 million volunteers participate in this annual weekend of activities.
Clean Up activities include tree planting, cleaning parks or beaches, conserving water or running environmental awareness-raising and education initiatives.
www.cleanuptheworld.org
September 16
International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer
2017 theme: Montreal Protocol 30: Caring for All Life Under the Sun
The 1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the associated Montreal Protocol is one of the great successes of modern international action to protect the environment. As a result of concerted international efforts, the ozone layer is healing itself and is expected to recover by the middle of this century.
This is a Day to celebrate humanity’s ability to work together for a common cause and is a model for climate change agreements.
montreal-protocol.org/
www.un.org/en/events/ozoneday/
www.facebook.com/my.ozone.day
September 17
Social Good Summit, New York, USA
2017 theme: #2030NOW
The Social Good Summit examines the impact of technology and new media on social good initiatives around the world. Held in New York, while heads of state and others are gathered for the opening of the UN General Assembly,the Summit a lively community of global citizens and progressive thought leaders around a common theme: #2030NOW. A dynamic exploration of the world we want to live in by 2030, the Social Good Summit will focus on how we can unlock technology’s potential to make the world a better place.
September 18
United Nations Private Sector Forum, UN Headquarters, New York
2017 theme: Financing the 2030 Agenda
CEOs, Heads of State and Government, and leaders from the UN and civil society come together at the Forum to explore partnerships which address global challenges that no single organization or sector can tackle alone.
www.unglobalcompact.org
September 21
International Day of Peace
2017 theme: Together for Peace: Respect, Safety and Dignity for All.
UN Peace Day has come to be widely observed around the world with citizens undertaking a huge variety of local actions for peace including interfaith prayers, meditations and minutes of silence. At UN Headquarters, an annual ceremony is held during which the Secretary General ceremonially rings the Peace Bell and calls on the people of the world to observe a minute of silence at 12 noon. (This years ceremony will take place on September 15) The day is celebrated by the UN as a day of non-violence and cease fire, inviting all nations and people to honour a cessation of hostilities during the Day, and to otherwise commemorate the Day through education and public awareness on issues related to peace.
Events organized around the world on the day include festivals, concerts, a global Peace Wave with moments of silence at noon in every time zone and countless local activities. See the list at: internationaldayofpeace.org.
Meditation Vigils and inter faith events are being organized around the world for Peace Day - more information here A global 24 hour Vigil will again be organized by UNmeditation.org, using the Great Invocation or another world prayer every 15 minutes. To find out more and register for the Vigil visit: http://www.meditationvigil.org. Registration will be available shortly.
www.internationaldayofpeace.org
www.un.org/en/events/peaceday/
www.peaceoneday.org
September 21
United Nations Global Compact, Leaders Summit, New York, USA
The Summit brings together an international
community of leaders from business, civil society,academia, Government and the United Nations to accelerate local and global business action and partnerships to achieve the UN Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs).
www.unglobalcompact.org
September 23 - 24
World Peace Weekend
Activities will be held around the world on the weekend following International Day of Peace. These include Earthdance, 500 - 1,000 dance events. More than an entertainment event, Earthdance is an international network of communities coming together locally and connecting globally to deliver real solutions for peace, sustainability, and social justice. 'Play for Change' on September 23 will feature gatherings of musicians and music lovers on stages, street corners and schools to bring music into the lives of children around the world. There will also be a global synchronized meditation for world peace on September 24 at 12 noon PST (Pacific Summer Time in the US)
www.home.unify.org
September 24
World Rivers Day
Every year since 2005, when the UN Water for Life Decade was launched, millions of people around the world have observed the last Sunday of September as World Rivers Day.
World Rivers Day highlights the many values of our rivers, strives to increase public awareness, and encorages the improved stewardship of all rivers around the world. Activities include stream cleanups, habitat enhancement projects, educational outings, and community riverside celebrations. In previous years several million people across more than 60 countries have participated in the Day.
worldriversday.com
September 26
International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons
The UN has been aiming to achieve nuclear disarmament for much of its history. It was the subject of a General Assembly resolution in 1946. On July 17 this year the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted. This is the first multilateral legally binding instrument for nuclear disarmament to have been negotiated in 20 years, by 122 countries.
Today, some 15,000 nuclear weapons remain. Countries possessing such weapons have well-funded, long-term plans to modernize their nuclear arsenals. More than half of the world’s population still lives in countries that either have such weapons or are members of nuclear alliances.
www.un.org/en/events/
September 27
World Tourism Day
2017 theme: Sustainable Tourism: A Tool for Development
This United Nations Day seeks to foster awareness of the social, cultural and economic importance of tourism and its role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. 2017 is being observed as International Year for Sustainable Tourism for Development.
www.un.org/en/events/
wtd.unwto.org
September 28
World Rabies Day
2017 theme:Rabies: Zero by 30.
Marking the anniversary of the death of Louis Pasteur who developed the first rabies vaccine, this World Health Organization Day raises awareness about rabies prevention and celebrates progress in defeating the disease. This year's theme recognizes the goal agreed to by the WHO and FAO to achieve zero human deaths from canine rabies by 2030.
WHO promotes mass dog vaccinations and animal birth control programs among street and stray dog populations. Significant progress has been made in pioneering this work at Help in Suffering Animal Shelter in Jaipur India and the two shelters in the Darjeeling District of India administered by Darjeeling Goodwill Animal Shelters Trust.
www.who.int/rabies/
rabiesalliance.org/
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