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 Event Reviews [ add ] |
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Posted By: Adrian Pintilie. Rating: 4 / 5. |
In terms of Civil Society involvement, the meeting marked a new success. The input from observers was read and some of the remarks were incorporated in the Declaration of Principles. Even if not all the remarks were incorporated by the governmental delegations, the meeting confirmed a procedure where governments delegates, business entities and civil societies representatives can work together towards a common goal, an Information Society for all in this case. I was told that this was unique in the landscape of UN conferences, a new milestone.
Moreover, each morning representatives from International Organizations, Business Communities and Civil Society had timeslots for speeches in the governmental plenary. Each Day! Romanian delegation efforts to support input from the observers were also acknowledged in one of these speeches (I thank for their support and let me be part of the Romanian official delegation).
Under the leadership of the chairwoman, the Declaration of Principles is much more better and concise. Definitely a progress since PC2!
Hot topics were also discussed in the last days, like the possibility to open new funds and commitments that will be devoted to developing countries. It was recognized that often this kind of initiatives haven't always been used appropriately or got
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Posted By: Nick Moraitis. Rating: 4 / 5. |
Overall, the meeting was far more important than I (and I think most
people) expected it to be. For a number of reasons, including that there were less diplomats, more specialists from governments, all of the key civil society representatives, and a growing sense of urgency to get something done, the meeting made a lot of positive progress towards WSIS. The draft document became much clearer and more focused. The Civil Society groups coordinated much better - I think there has been a learning process and some of the less practical groups were less active. We got to specifics on logistics, which was my major interest. I think more was accomplished at the short meeting perhaps than the entire Prepcom 2.
I believe the Youth Caucus succeeded (the best yet!) in focusing our attention on both the immediate issue of language in the declaration, and the broader context of real action/Youth Creating Digital Opportunities.
1) On the documents, we managed to get our paragraph reinserted after it was taken out by the European Union, and then improved after it was watered down. That it was skewed at the last minute to focus on volunteerism was clearly a mistake by the drafting group that can be fixed later. Together with UN Volunteers and Fiji (who championed the youth paragraph) we will write to the Secretariat about this.
2) On the broader issue, we were able to ensure that our agenda was clear - we were looking for major outcomes from the Summit to support youth, and our plan to achieve that was broader than just policy input at each meeting. We were the first group to focus on follow-up to the Summit in a statement to the plenary (presented by Ana), telling everyone that we found the present action plan unacceptable and that it needed to be much more specific - including true 'action'. I brought up the issue of followup action at a meeting between civil society representatives and the Governmental Bureau (the leaders of the most important countries in the Summit - like Switzerland, Tunisia, the US, Romania etc).
We published our newsletter for the first three days (not the last)... Including an edition highlighting our "Roadmap" for 2002-2004, which many found very helpful. And we had meetings with key stakeholders putting the Summit in a context of YCDO for next year. These included meetings with the head of PR for the Swiss government and the head of the Media for the ITU to discuss youth media related activities and PR, and various UN agencies and others (such as the International Chamber of
Commerce) about activities at the Summit - including the Awards program.
Again, I think Youth came across as one of the most organized groupings at the Summit in terms of our mobilization in/outside of the formal meetings.
It was great to work with other members of the Youth Caucus present, who
were:
- Franziska from Youth for Intergenerational Justice and Sustainability
(Germany)
- Ana Pascual from TakingITGlobal (Philippines)
- Adam Jantunen from TakingITGlobal, about to be working out of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions on youth and ICT related activities (Canada)
- Alex Fielding from TIG, who is the new full-time Youth Liaison at the WSIS Secretariat in Geneva (Canada)
- Adrian Pintilie from AEGEE-European Students Forum (Romania) and his colleague Nicholas from Paris.
We didn't have much time to become a 'team', but did so anyway, and everyone made a critical contribution. I think it was especially important and fortunate that Alex was able to attend the meeting - it really has given him a running start into his new job and provided a good background on the issues, people, and politics. Alex has an enormous task ahead of him to help organize the logistics of youth participation, and will need all our support and understanding.
The next steps?
A) There are still some funding issues for the Youth Caucus that we must resolve to support all the activities and the 'glue' that ties them together. The Canadian Government contributed modest funds to the WSIS for some youth activities more than six months ago but we are yet to sign the contract. Hopefully this will be resolved this week.
B) There are a range of media products to produce, including a book showcasing youth-led projects, and a video production.
C) Terri Willard of IISD will be leading a conversation with members of the YCDO Coalition to create an action plan for YCDO post-Summit as a major partnership initiative. (this would also incorporate the projects identified by Pearl through the Awards process).
D) Prepcom 3 is just around the corner. I believe it is very important that the Youth Caucus has a strong and diverse presence again - at least 30 people is very important. I think this will be a very key meeting for youth activities not only around ICTs but more broadly around international decision-making and action - setting new precedents and standards for engagement. At least 25 young people have applied for fellowships to attend the meeting. As far as I can tell, I think it is fair to say that only a small number of fellowships will be available for youth, so even if you have filled in an application for a fellowship, I strongly encourage you to consider seeking alternate funding from within your own country.
E) I am also concerned about the lack of young people on government delegations. Adrian from Romania was the only youth on a government delegation at the intersessional meeting. This must improve. There must be at least five youth on government delegations to Prepcom 3 - it is very important from the perspective of ensuring good dialogue and support from key governments. In particular, it would be good to have youth on the delegations of the Canada, the US (who had 15 people on their delegation to the intersessional meeting! A huge increase!), Australia (I will be), Switzerland, Romania, Japan, India, Italy (as current President of the EU) etc.
F) National level activities are critical. Many are already underway, but I know many are also waiting on modest funding being made available from international donors / central funding from the Youth Caucus. Because we have no central funding at the moment, this is on hold. However, I continue to believe that funds will be available very soon for a whole slate of activities so please do keep these national level activities at the front of your mind.
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Posted By: Adam Jantunen. Rating: 4 / 5. |
This was my one of my first international meetings, apart from various Model UN and debating conferences, and it was a highly interesting experience. Aside from helping draft the Youth Caucus speech to the plenary, my role was mainly that of listening and learning, along with meeting key contacts. As a result, I think that I will be well-prepared for Prepcom-3, where my role as a youth caucus member representing TIG and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions will be more active.
As for the meeting itself, I was pleased with the way that civil society was relatively well-organized and able to provide input directly to the process, both officially in the form of speeches to the plenary, and unofficially in terms of co-operating with government delegates who were sympathetic to their concerns. The inclusion of civil society in the policy process is vital for the WSIS and for other international conventions, in order for the policies agreed upon to gain legitimacy in the eyes of stakeholders, for key concepts (i.e. that the people who are the leading entrepreneurs in the ICT field should have recognition) and programs (i.e. YCDO) to be included, and most importantly, to make the process more democratic. Two years ago, I attended the Peoples' Summit in Quebec City, a forum conducted by civil society groups at the FTAA summit. Virtually every group involved was articulate and in many cases, visionary, yet their perspectives were completely shut out of the policy process; civil society wasn't even able to see the text of the FTAA until months after the summit took place. The lack of democracy and accountability was the main reason that I joined the 40 000 people protesting the FTAA summit. It was a much more positive experience being on the inside (figuratively and literally) of an international conference. Hopefully the intersessional marked the start of a new trend for events of its kind.
On a non-political note, I'd like to echo Adrian's comments on the festivities on the Seine ... it's a wonderful experience to sit by the river, watching people dancing, listening to music and drinking wine ... can't wait to go back to Paris!
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Posted By: Alex. Rating: 4 / 5. |
I would give it a five if not for the youth paragraph for the text of the Declaration of Principles. Especially considering the past barriers and ineffectiveness (ie. PrepCom 2), both civil society and government were more focused. The Civil Society Bureau meetings I attended actually accomplished a fair bit with logistics for PrepCom 3, and most importantly, developing a platform for dialogue between civil society and government during PrepCom 3. In terms of activities, youth is far more active in terms of real projects than the other "families" (though gender may be an exception).
Though few in number, we effectively lobbied, networked and continued to gain momentum for the Summit. A daily newsletter of youth was published as well as an excellent speech delivered at the main plenary. Some partnerships were advanced and details finalized for initiatives like our awards ceremony, youth media team and youth hub space.
I was mostly impressed by the performance of the chair in both the plenary and bureau meetings, which allowed us to stay focused on go through the agenda. However, the action plan was not finalized and really discussed, and our youth paragraph must be strengthened in the declaration.
Paris was beautiful, the people interesting and a lot of fun was had by all
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Host Organization
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United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
UNESCO develops international projects in support of education for all, the advancement of science, cultural diversity, and communication and expression. Activities include conferences, development of international standards and laws, and management of and funding of projects on topics ranging...
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