The United Nations Association in Canada (UNA-Canada) is an historic, national

charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

providing the leading policy voice on

multilateralism In international relations, multilateralism refers to an alliance of multiple countries pursuing a common goal. Definitions Multilateralism, in the form of membership in international institutions, serves to bind powerful nations, discourage ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Established in 1946, UNA-Canada was a founding member of the World Federation of United Nations Association.

Mission

UNA-Canada's mission is to educate and engage Canadians in the work of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

and the critical international issues that affect all. The Association believes that "A strong and effective United Nations is essential if we are to secure a future based on

equality Equality may refer to: Society * Political equality, in which all members of a society are of equal standing ** Consociationalism, in which an ethnically, religiously, or linguistically divided state functions by cooperation of each group's elit ...

dignity Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. It is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable ...

and

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

for all." UNA-Canada is dedicated to promoting constructive Canadian participation in the United Nations system and to growing global citizens in Canada who embrace the principles of the

UN Charter The Charter of the United Nations (UN) is the foundational treaty of the UN, an intergovernmental organization. It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the UN system, including its six principal organs: th ...

. The Association meets its mandate with a national network of 20,000 members and supporters, 20 volunteer branches spread from coast to coast and north into the

Territories A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

, and education programmes that are meant to inspire and mobilize Canadians in support of the principles and critical work of the UN. UNA-Canada has five signature programme areas. The overarching mandate is to foster understanding of an engagement in the broad spectrum of the

Sustainable Development Goals The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or Global Goals are a collection of 17 interlinked objectives designed to serve as a "shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future".United Nations (2017) R ...

, which have been set as guiding principles for the

UN System The United Nations System consists of the United Nations' six principal organs (the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the UN Secretariat), ...

, and the global community as a whole, between 2015 and 2030. UNA-Canada aims to: # Be the Canadian Centre of Excellence in Model UN Assemblies (MUN) and other empathy-based learning innovations such as the New Diplomacy of Natural Resources.New Diplomacy of Natural Resources
/ref> # Build and enhance the Association's already effective, competitive and prestigious internship programmes, such as the International Development & Diplomacy Internship Programme (IDDIP)International Development & Diplomacy Internship Programme (IDDIP)
/ref> and Canada Green Corps.Canada Green Corps
/ref> # To celebrate

United Nations Day United Nations Day is an annual commemorative day, reflecting the official creation of the United Nations on 24 October 1945. In 1947, the United Nations General Assembly declared 24 October, the anniversary of the Charter of the United Nations ...

, UN Season in Canada, and other UN designated days across Canada. # To implement national speaker/thinkers to elevate and increase national discussion on Canada's Place in the World. # To run Innovative Projects–Building a Better World that integrate or enhance the UN's charter and UNA-Canada's Strategic expertise. UNA-Canada's educational programmes, such as Sport-in-a-Box,Sport-in-a-Box
/ref> Building Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Employment,Building Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Employment
/ref> and Canada's Diversity AdvantageCanada's Diversity Advantage
/ref> strongly emphasize diversity.

Programmes

UNA-Canada aims to build a stronger, more outward-looking Canada ready to accept the greatest challenges by growing global citizens. For this, it runs various programmes, including: * Accelerating Action on Climate Change highlights Canadian subnational government level actions on

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. * International Development & Diplomacy Internship Programme (IDDIP) gives qualified and motivated Canadian graduates and professionals an opportunity to gain international experience through unique field placements in the

United Nations System The United Nations System consists of the United Nations' six principal organs (the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the UN Secretariat), ...

as Junior Professional Consultants (JPCs). * Canada Green Corps is an innovative results-focused initiative that strategically fulfills government commitments to provide new opportunities for youth and showcase national leadership on climate action. * Canadian International

Model UN Model United Nations, also known as Model UN or MUN, is an educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations. At a MUN conference, students work as the representative of a count ...

(CANIMUN) is a bilingual experiential learning simulation designed to provide youth with the ability to learn, negotiate, and exemplify representatives of the global community, crafting resolutions on security,

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

, environmental and

humanitarian intervention Humanitarian intervention is the use or threat of military force by a state (or states) across borders with the intent of ending severe and widespread human rights violations in a state which has not given permission for the use of force. Human ...

issues. * Active Citizens Social Enterprise trains young leaders to creatively address the UN's

in their local community.Active Citizens Social Enterprise
/ref> * Building Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Employment helps vulnerable youth in finding gainful and lasting employment through skills training and business mentoring. * Sport-in-a-Box is an educational programme aimed at encouraging children and youth participation in

physical activity Physical activity is defined as any voluntary bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure.Global Recommendations on Physical Activity for Health, 2009. World Health Organization. Geneva, Switzerland. Accessed 13/ ...

healthy eating A healthy diet is a diet that maintains or improves overall health. A healthy diet provides the body with essential nutrition: fluid, macronutrients such as protein, micronutrients such as vitamins, and adequate fibre and food energy. A healt ...

, and cross-cultural interaction through the universal language of sports. * Canada's Diversity Advantage is a multi-generational and multicultural initiative identifying Canadian's lived-experiences, to cultivate a deeper understanding of how diverse

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

s and

idea In common usage and in philosophy, ideas are the results of thought. Also in philosophy, ideas can also be mental representational images of some object. Many philosophers have considered ideas to be a fundamental ontological category of being ...

s have contributed to building a diverse and inclusive

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

shaped by many cultures.

References

External links

United Nations Association in Canada Official Website
{{Authority control Political advocacy groups in Canada World Federation of United Nations Associations Canada and the United Nations

Mission

Programmes

See also

References

External links