Working together GLOBAL LEVEL A number of initiatives have been taken, however the goal of this section is not to give an exhaustive list, but more to give a few examples of the most recent and important projects.
UNITED NATIONS - Secretariat Agreement for the 50th anniversary of the UN, 1994 An agreement was signed on 9 March 1994 by the Secretary General of WOSM, and the Under Secretary General of the UN. This agreement, which can be found in Appendix C, allowed WOSM to use the UN50 emblem. World Summit on Social Development, Denmark, 1995 WOSM played an active role in this summit and in running the youth consultation organised by WAY (World Assembly of Youth) on the model of previous consultation. UN Commission for Crime Prevention, Vienna, 1995 WOSM’s representative in Vienna participated actively in the fourth meeting of this commission, notably in the discussion on child victims of crime and child criminals. 3rd World Youth Forum, Portugal, 1998 WSB participated in the 3rd World Youth Forum of the UN System held in Braga, Portugal. As a member of the Preparatory Committee, WOSM was heavily involved for two years. During the forum, WOSM was in charge of the working group on “The Participation of All Young People”. General ECOSOC Consultative Status granted to WOSM, 1998 A letter by UN’s chief of the NGO Section dated 11 September 1998 grants WOSM type I General Consultative Status. This letter can be found in Appendix C. WOSM had held Special Consultative Status since 1947, when these types of statuses were created. Expert Meeting on Youth, Finland, 2002 The expert meeting was convened by the UN youth unit (DESA) in order to prepare the UN Secretary-General’s World Youth Report 2003. The meeting was hosted by the Government of Finland in Helsinki. The contents of the meeting were based on the 10 themes from the World Programme of Action for Youth from 1995, and on 5 additional new themes that had been identified since the adoption of the World Programme (HIV/AIDS, Information and communication technologies, Globalisation, Youth in armed conflict, Intergenerational relations). The participants were 15 researchers/experts (one for each theme) and another 15 experts discussing and debating each theme. There were 15 youth organisation representatives coming from the Regional Youth Platforms and the Alliance of CEOs of youth organisations, including WOSM.
22 Scouting and the United Nations - © World Scout Bureau – April 2005