Students for a Nuclear Weapons Free World was an initiative that we ran from 2006-2009 to engage young people from diverse academic disciplines with the topic of nuclear disarmament. WFUNA held two international student competitions and created a network of over 300 young people from around the world who were active in the field disarmament, as well as a web resource to support this network with information and communication pathways. These activities are still present today through our Zero World Program(link).
“WFUNA, through its Students for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World initiative, has raised a group of young disarmament leaders and has inspired others to join the cause.” – Wilson Chau, New Zealand
In November 2008, WFUNA organized the Global Youth MDG Summit in Mumbai, India, together with UNA-India and Jai Hind College. Over 300 participants from 13 countries representing every region of the world participated in the 5-day project where students learned about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and what is being done to achieve them. Students filmed their experiences working with NGOs in rural and urban India, conducted interviews, and finally presented their findings through short films. The resulting films were unveiled at the closing ceremony that was attended by politicians, NGO activists and Bollywood stars, and screened at UN Headquarters in New York. WFUNA’s new Youth Seminar Series (link) and Youth Training programs were partly developed from our experience with the Global Youth MDG Summit.
“The summit had help me realized what kind of leaders the world needs.” - Young Lim, Republic of Korea
“The summit created in me a sense of responsibility towards the MDG’s.” -Aparna Shenvi, India
Regional Model UN Program on the MDGs: Starting in 2004, WFUNA has organized a series of regional Model UN conferences.Three Asia-Pacific conferences were held in China, India, and the Republic of Korea, one Africa conference took place in South Africa, and several Latin American and Caribbean conferences were held in the Dominican Republic.
All these Model UN conferences were organized on the theme of the Millennium Development Goals by the WFUNA Secretariat in partnership with the local UNA. The 300-350 participants attending each conference came from different countries across the region, and were trained and supported by their UNAs. These conferences had a required follow-up component, in which the participants were asked to organize their own smaller-scale Model UN or implement an MDG community-service project after the conference. WFUNA’s new YOUth Impact (link) program is an expansion of the Regional Model UNs.
“As the Plenary Chair I learned that being a leader is a tremendous responsibility. People are relying on you for direction and guidance and you must rise to the occasion. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn and develop as a leader.” - Na Hyun-Jung, Republic of Korea, WFUNA’s Asia-Pacific Regional Model UN 2008
