“The government alone cannot do everything. Therefore, support from civil societies, philanthropists, and religious leaders are desperately required. In order to resolve global challenges, it is time to work together with all global citizens and collect various opinions. “

-UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon

On May 30, 2016, representatives of NGOs from all over the world were gathered at HICO, Gyeongju, to resolve international issues. More than 4,351 people from 699 organizations were registered including: Human Rights Watch, Peace Boat, and Habitat for Humanity International.

From May 30 to June 1, the 66^th UN NGO Conference was held. The conference has a 71 year history with the UN. It is the most prestigious and historic event, representing global citizens, society and many fields of service. This venue discusses global cooperation issues and then form networks with representatives of 1,500 registered NGO organizations registered to UN Department of Public Information. This conference is the first event held in Korea among Asian and African countries. It is an affirmation of the global status of Korea.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of many people, the official UN international event was hosted in Gyeongju, Korea. The major players were Handong Global University host of the conference, the UN Academic Impact (UNAI) Korea, Dream Touch For All, and the Joint Committee of Korea. The President of Handong Global University, Soon-heung Chang, planned and prepared this event as the Chair of the 66^th UN NGO Conference Organizing Committee.

Such result was not made within just one or two years. The relationship with the UN was started from the era of the first President of HGU, Young-gil Kim. Now the results are the development of cooperative programs between HGU and the UN. In fact, HGU was designated as the host university of the UNSCO UNITWIN Program in 2007. HGU was the global hub organization of UN Academic Impact in 2011. The UN Deposit Library was placed at HGU in 2014. HGU has acquired the status of NGO of the UN DPI this year. This is a first for a Korean university. These are examples of the successful close relationship HGU has built with UN organizations.

Twenty-one students of the Graduate School of Interpretation and Translation offered simultaneous and consecutive interpretation services during the Conference. The Handong Media Team and Handong Archive took pictures and videos during the events. The ICT team developed applications for notifications of the Conference schedules. Tourism guides were provided under the leadership of Professor Changbum Choi, of the Creative and Converged Education Center. The international lawyers who graduated from Handong International Law School served as conference rapporteurs. In addition, many supporting hands were provided by the Regional Society for Development. The Keuma Bus Group offered free bus service between Handong Global University and HICO during the conference.

The theme was ‘Global Citizenship Education.’ The Conference served as a venue to discuss four major challenges: Rights regarding accessible, safe, and comprehensive learning spaces; Children and Youth: Future global citizens; Global citizens who protect the earth: four major current challenges: energy, the environment, and climate change. The Major speakers were the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, global leaders and experts from UNESCO and the United Nations Economic Social Commission. The Korean speakers were: President Young-gil Kim of UN Academic Impact; President Jaechoon Kim of the Korean Educational Development Institute; Chairman Seungwah Kim of the Board of the Korean Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity; Vice Principal Myeongsuk Cho of Yeomyeong School; President Myungja Kim of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies; and Yanghee Lee, Special Rapporteurs of the UN. In addition, 48 international workshops were held. Themed booths for each institution were displayed.

According to Professor Jaechun Won, the Dean of International Affairs at HGU, “I am very glad to realize the international capacity strengthening and local society development that are constantly stressed. Through successful hosting of the conference, we will introduce Gyeongju to the world and maximize the students’ and schools’ competencies.”

The President of HGU and the Chairperson of this Conference, Soon-heung Chang, mentioned, “I firmly believe that with this conference, the capacity of Korean citizens will be introduced to the world and will become more developed. It is significant because Korea has become the host country in 2016. This year commemorates the first year to implement the Sustainable Development Goals that will take the lead from 2016 to 2030 by the UN.”

The conference drew more attention due to the opening remarks by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on May 30, 2016.

※ Terminology

※ The United Nations Academic Impact, also known by its acronym UNAI, is a United Nations initiative to align institutions of higher education, scholarship and research with the United Nations and with each other. In the words of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: “The Academic Impact aims to generate a global movement of minds to promote a new culture of intellectual social responsibility. It is animated by a commitment to certain bedrock principles. Among them: freedom of inquiry, opinion and speech; educational opportunity for all; global citizenship; sustainability; and dialogue.”

※(UNESCO-UNITWIN; University Twining and Networking)

UNESCO-UNITWIN was established in 1992 by UNESCO to facilitate cooperation and collaboration among universities, institutions and various organizations of developing and developed countries in a network to improve the availability of educational resources, to open up opportunities and to promote educational excellence in developing countries.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated Handong Global University (HGU), Pohang, Republic of Korea, as the host university for UNESCO UNITWIN Network for Capacity Building for Sustainable Development of Developing Countries in the Asian Region

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