The United Nations Academic Impact Korea Council (hereinafter UNAI Korea, Chairman Kim Young-gil), that leads both national and international Global Citizenship Education with Handong Global University (President Chang Soon Heung), announced the 'Pyeongchang Declaration', a UNDP Sustainable Development Action Plan. In this, everyone can participate together with the UNAI ASPIRE Korea Student Group in celebration of the successful hosting of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, February 10th.
The Pyeongchang Declaration was read aloud at the UNAI ASPIRE Korea General Assembly by Sophomore Kim Eunju (School of Management and Economics) and Sophomore Seok Jeu (School of Management and Economics) of Handong Global University. UNAI ASPIRE Korea students have created and published activities that can be practiced at the university level in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Creative ideas from students, such as the 'Educational Service Using SNS', 'Prohibition of Language Promoting Prejudice' and 'Fair Trade Product Purchasing', stood out in particular, as they are based on the ten principles of UNAI, and on that anyone can easily participate. About a hundered students of ten universities from across the country attended the General Assembly and shared ideas on international development.
Chairman Kim Young-gil stated, "This action plan is meaningful because anyone can participate without difficulty. If every university student from across the country practiced even just one of these plans, it would be another stepping stone towards maintaining a sustainable and developing future."
Ban Ki-moon, the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations, mentioned, "These young university students, who are thinking about the roles they will play in a sustainable developing future, will not only be a paragon for the current generation but also for rising generations all around the world. I support these students' efforts in creating a sustainable, peaceful society during the commemoration of the Pyeongchang Olympics."
The full action plan can be found on the website of UNAI Korea at: http://www.unaikorea.org
※ Term explanation
Proposed in 2008, UNAI (United Nations Academic Impact) is a UN Global Program with the aim to address and find solutions for poverty, human rights, literacy, sustainable development and conflict resolution through education according to UNAI’s ten principles. Two years later, in 2010, UNAI was launched by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and now has more than 1,000 participating institutions of higher education from around the world. In November 2015, the United Nations designated UN Academic Impact as an institution to strengthen and promote Global Citizenship Education. https://academicimpact.un.org/
Launched in 2012, UNAI Korea is a nonprofit corporation under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It cooperates with both domestic and foreign institutions of higher education in implementing the ten principles of UNAI. Through higher education and Global Citizen Education, UNAI Korea hopes to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by strengthening the capacity of student organizations through research exchanges, professional expertise, UNAI ASPIRE, etc. http://unaikorea.org/
UNAI ASPIRE is a group of participating students who carry out pledged change through education. Working with UNAI and UNAI Korea, they carry out various campaigns, educational services and academic activities for spreading global citizenship. Currently young people, mainly university students, from age 15 to 34, are active in the chairman country South Korea, as well as in Japan, Mexico, and India. https://www.facebook.com/ASPIREKOREA
