New Online Hub Gives Youth a Connection to the UN
August 12, 2014
“Today’s youth are growing up in a world that’s more globally connected than ever, which offers exciting opportunities to connect with young people in the search for solutions to global challenges,” said UNA-USA Executive Director Chris Whatley. “At the same time, these young people are likely to see themselves as global citizens and to look for global approaches to the kinds of crises the UN is taking on every day. GenUN is both providing this new generation of Americans with a platform to become engaged, and enabling them to build a strong, constructive relationship with the UN that can help pave the way for change.”
Currently, over half of the global population is under 30 years of age. Today’s youth generation is the largest in American history, slated to constitute 33 percent of the eligible electorate by 2016. GenUN provides an interactive platform for young people to get involved, lend their unique perspectives, and help the UN build a better world for all. On the site, users can learn about pressing issues such as global health, empowering girls and women, and climate change, while accessing the tools needed for both online and offline activism. GenUN is also the online youth hub for UNA-USA, which boasts 11,000 youth members, from young Model UN delegates in middle school to international affairs students at the college level.
###
Media Contact
Amy Auguston
202. 213.7918
aauguston@unfoundation.org
About UNA-USA
The United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA) is a membership organization dedicated to inform, inspire, and mobilize the American people to support the ideals and vital work of the United Nations. For 70 years UNA-USA has worked to accomplish its mission through its national network of Chapters, youth engagement, advocacy efforts, education programs, and public events. UNA-USA is a program of the United Nations Foundation. UNA-USA and its sister organization the Better World Campaign represent the single largest network of advocates and supporters of the United Nations in the world. Learn more about UNA-USA’s programs and initiatives at www.unausa.org.
About the United Nations Foundation
The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world’s most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit www.unfoundation.org.
