represent Plan and YUGA at the United Nations!

Malala Day at the United Nations? What’s that?

July 12, 2013 is Malala Yousafza’s 16^th birthday. As you may know, on October 9, 2012, Malala was shot by the Taliban while she was travelling to school in Pakistan. She was targeted because of her committed campaigning for the right of all girls to get an education. She was flown to the UK to recover from the shooting and is now back at school and continues to campaign for every child’s right to education. She is marking her birthday by making her first high level public appearance and statement around the importance of education.

July 12, 2013 will also be the UN Youth Take Over Day. The Chair of the UN General Assembly, Ban Ki Moon, has formally secured the General Assembly for its first ever Youth Take Over. We hope that it will be an opportunity for youth (like you) to call on UN members states to deliver on Millennium Development Goal #2, universal primary education, at the post-2015 summit in September. Young leaders from around the world will convene at the Take Over Day in support of reaching the goal of all children, especially girls, in school and learning by 2015.

The main event will be a youth assembly held in the morning of July 12 in the Trusteeship Council Chamber of the United Nations. Malala will address hundreds of young leaders who support education for every child. The assembly will be an opportunity for youth to present their call for action on global education to the United Nations. The intended outcome will be an official UN Outcomes Document that will be circulated to member states. The Youth Advocacy Group of the Global Education First Initiative is soliciting global youth feedback on what should be included in the outcomes document—and we’ll provide ways for you to give your feedback!

After much deliberation at Plan’s International Headquarters, we have decided to create a Plan youth delegation. The intended Plan delegation will be: seven members of the Global Youth Steering Committee (from Uganda, Sierra Leone, Indonesia, El Salvador, UK, US and Sweden); one member from the Education First Youth Advocacy Group (also a UK Youth Advisory Panel member); one member from Plan Norway’s Youth Advisory (as they are attending Plan International USA’s at the same time); and two members of Plan International USA’s YUGA network – a total of 11 young people.

Want to be one of those two YUGA members who get to go to the United Nations?

 Here are some of the requirements:

1. You have to be a U.S.-based youth, ages 14 – 18.
2. You have to be available on July 11-12, 2013—and able to travel with Plan staff to New York City.
3. You have to have some experience with Plan and YUGA—running a campaign, participating in a chapter, attending the Summit, etc. etc.
4. You have to fill out an online application and be selected by the YUGA Steering Committee.
5. If you are attending the 2013 YUGA Leadership Summit, you will be asked to give a short presentation on Plan and YUGA’s participation in the event.

And so, without further ado, here’s the online application: click here to apply!

You must apply by Friday, May 31st to be considered for this opportunity. We will notify you of your status by Friday, June 7th. Good luck!

Related articles

• CONTEST: design a t-shirt for the YUGA summit! (yugaplanusa.wordpress.com)
• we want YOU for school-2-school linking! (yugaplanusa.wordpress.com)

we want YOU for school-2-school linking!

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! What are you doing to show your teachers how much you appreciate them?

Here’s an idea: tell them about School-2-School Linking (S2S)!

School-2-School Linking connects students here in the United States with their peers in the developing countries where Plan works. Through your S2S connection, you learn about life in other parts of the world and engage in educational activities with your partners. Your S2S Link is a unique window on the world, thanks to Plan’s history (we just celebrated 75 years of work!) and deep roots in communities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

School-2-School Linking represents a rare chance to build relationships with young people who might otherwise be out of reach. It’s also a way to directly support Plan’s efforts to change lives, community by community. Our linking partners here in the United States fundraise to help cover the costs of connecting to their partners in Plan communities. This is a critical component of the program, because many of Plan’s schools lack an Internet connection, working computers, or enough school supplies (like pens, pencils, and paper) for every student. Through your link, you can truly make a difference!

You get a whole year to connect with youth in a country where Plan works, like Cameroon, El Salvador, or Ghana. You can expect to receive monthly activities designed to stimulate cross-cultural learning, and then you connect and share those activities online, in addition to chatting with your linking partners through text messages. (We even had two YUGA members sign up their YUGA chapters to connect with classrooms in Ghana this past year!)

School-2-School Linking activities deal with a variety of international issues and ideas, from extreme poverty to environmental sustainability. As a result of this creative curriculum, your perspective on the world broadens and together with your linking partners, you bridge global divides.

In short, S2S is an incredible resource for teachers AND students. Learn more on our website: www.planusa.org/s2s – and spread the word!

CONTEST: design a t-shirt for the YUGA summit!

Every year for the YUGA Leadership Summit, we invite members of the YUGA network to submit fabulous original designs for the YUGA t-shirt that will be given to our participants. And so, without further ado, we’re happy to announce the opening of this year’s t-shirt design contest!

Get creative and send us your t-shirt designs by midnight on Saturday, June 1. We’ll put them up for a vote on Facebook and Twitter, announce a winner on Friday, June 7, and then print 50+ for our participants! (NOTE: Your design MUST include the YUGA logo in order to be considered.)

3 Simple Steps to Submit Your Design

1. Go to CustomInk to create your design: http://www.customink.com/lab
2. While creating your design on CustomInk, you have one requirement. Be sure to include the YUGA logo (below). You can add the logo by first downloading it to your computer, then clicking “upload art,” and uploading it to your design. Everything else is up to you!
3. After you’ve finished your design, click on “save/send.” After you save your design, share it with us by email (yuga@planusa.org), Facebook, or Twitter.

That’s it. If you have any questions or concerns, contact us at yuga@planusa.org.

Happy designing!