I opened the curtains to a city center shrouded in dense fog. It was dark and gloomy, the streets glistening from rain falling in a slow, tenacious, light curtain. What a difference a day makes. It’s Wednesday, and the last day of the conference. It has taken a bit, but I’ve finally started to figure out how this conference works. The NGO’s executive committee meets every morning in open session, with roughly 1,000 delegates attending. Events of the day are announced, with changes in the schedule and questions welcomed. The morning workshops commence, with a break for lunch, which is “stand up and network” time. Often, last-minute presentations are added, and documentaries are available for viewing in the breakout rooms. Afternoon workshops give way to roundtable discussions later at night. There is always something going on, but most events are unannounced, so you must be a sleuth to uncover the many things you are unaware of.
Security is high at this event. Similar to screenings at international airports, bags, coats and personal belongings are checked by hand, and each person is checked upon entering the primary meeting areas. Part of the registration process included submitting a passport-type picture weeks prior to the event. The resultant photo ID badge must be visible at all times, as security officers monitor the hallways, stopping those who do not visibly show their badge.
The big news of the morning was the reading of the “Declaration” document, significantly revised overnight to include many of the written comments submitted yesterday following the call for participation from Mary Norton, chair of the event. With almost standing room only, more than 1,500 delegates voted to support the Declaration, with only four dissenting votes.
Also at this session, Tim Costello, CEO of World Vision, called for a motion that delegates acknowledge the devastation of the flooding in Pakistan and that the world respond and assist during this catastrophic event. Since 3 percent of Pakistan’s income is spent to pay down debt to the World Bank, it was recommended that repayment of the debt be delayed for two years with no incurrence of further interest. Norton agreed to submit the request directly to the U.N. Secretary General.
The afternoon was spent in a workshop titled “Disability, Health and the MDGs.” The main message of this session was that the work of NG’s and countries must be disability inclusive. Disability is a human-rights issue, and people with disabilities are frequently excluded from development programs. Ten percent of the world’s population, estimated at 650 million people, has a disability. Seventy percent are in developing countries. Eighty-two percent of these people live below the poverty line. Ninety-two to 98 percent of children with disabilities do not attend school, and girls are more likely to be excluded from school than boys. A primary reason is the lack of private restroom facilities for disabled girls. The urgency to recognize disabilities in the Millennium Development Goals is pressing, as the MDGs cannot be met without addressing the fact that “the disabled cannot wait to become statistically visible.”
In discussing a document titled “Vision 2020,” (not to be confused with STTI’s Vision 2020 document), 80 percent of blindness is preventable or correctable, and globally, 64 percent are women. Since blindness relates directly to poverty, “Vision 2020 – The Right to Sight” has been adopted in more than 100 countries, and 188 countries have established prevention of blindness committees. It is estimated that 50 million fewer people are blind than would have been without Vision 2020. Success will occur through accessibility, building linkages and participation of those with disabilities.
In many sessions, we were reminded that only five years remain to meet MDG goals by 2015, and that the goals can’t be achieved if issues of population health are not addressed. Ian Howe, of the U.N. Population Fund in Bangkok, stated, “When the U.N. partners with NGOs, they can make substantial progress toward achieving the MDGs.” Addressing criticisms of NGOs having hidden political agendas, he stated, “Many do have political aspirations, but maternal death is still an unacceptable reality to the pregnant woman giving birth.” It was refreshing to see the issue of political accusations addressed in the context of urgency in meeting global health goals.
I had lunch with Judith Parker, head of the U.N. Association of Western Australia. The organization’s goal is to educate the young children of the country about the United Nations by conducting Model United Nations days and celebrating U.N. holidays. There is no involvement of nurses in this organization, but she would love to see nurses take an interest. She stated, “We see the U.N. as a platform where countries can get together and convene on a non-political stage,” the only such platform that exists in the world. The more I learn about the United Nations, the more I appreciate its openness and eager search for answers through collaboration to some of the world’s most difficult challenges. For us in the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI), the improvement of global health is critical.
 |
| STTI delegate Holly Shaw with Anne-Marie Carlson, chair of Committee on Teaching about the United Nations and vice chair of NGO/DPI executive committee |
One of the highlights of the afternoon for me was meeting Ann-Marie Carlson, chairperson of the Committee on Teaching about the United Nations (www.teachun.org) and vice chairperson of the NGO/DPI executive committee. This quiet, gracious and stately woman was thrilled to hear of Sigma Theta Tau International, as their organization will be in Indianapolis on 6 November of this year, conducting a U.N. orientation day. These meetings are wonderful opportunities for us to learn more about the United Nations, so check the website for a meeting near you. As for STTI, I encourage directors and headquarters staff who can attend the Indianapolis meeting to do so.
Closing session
Before we knew it, the time of the closing ceremony was at hand. All attendees gathered once more in the large conference hall, facing the lighted boulders, each displaying a symbol of an MDG.– The red banners changed to yellow as the sun began to set on the closing of our three-day journey. Aiko Agasaka, head of the Department of Public Information, began by stating the words I heard so often during this conference, “We respect and acknowledge the custodians of this land and the elders, past and present, on which this conference is held.”
He said, “The most urgent task for us is to help quicken the pace of progress in meeting the MDGs. This is not the time to question the validity of the MDGs themselves; it is the time to roll up our sleeves and ensure they are sustainable after 2015.”
Mick Gooda, an aboriginal social justice commissioner and past CEO of the Center for Research on Aboriginal Health, discussed challenges facing indigenous peoples worldwide. “Indigenous peoples are invisible in the original plans for the MDGs,” he observed. “We must ‘close the gap to bring indigenous health equality in a reasonable time.’” He also said, “Poverty, whether absolute or relative, is everyone’s business.”
 |
| Princess Muna al-Hussein of Jordan, honorary member of Sigma Theta Tau International, addresses the conference. |
A highlight for me was a video message to the group from Princess Muna al-Hussein of Jordan, who is an honorary member of Sigma Theta Tau International. A strong advocate of nursing and a true nursing leader in the grandest sense, HRH Princess Muna brought greetings from the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and talked for approximately 10 minutes about health statistics and improvements that must be made to ensure progress in global health. “For the first time in human population, the majority of the world’s population lives in cities,” she observed. To meet the MDGs, we must incorporate human rights privileges. She stated that 57 countries face a severe health workforce crisis in nursing and midwifery and that we must organize primary health care with an emphasis on prevention. Adequate sanitation and access to clean drinking water will be critical to meeting these goals.
Sir George Alleyne, chancellor of the University of West Indies, chairperson of the Department of Medicine and director emeriti of the World Health Organization, stated: “There is a causal relationship between complete global health and meeting the MDGs. There can be an improvement in health, without a huge increase in wealth; but global health and MDGs will not be addressed unless we address the noncommunicable diseases, chronic care, and access-to-care issues we face.”
Christopher Varney, a dynamic former U.N. Youth Ambassador, moved us with his passion and dedication, stating:“During our three-day conference, 75,000 children died a preventable death. …We are not gathered here for an end, we are gathered for the beginning of the next five years, and we must ask, how big is your hope?” When he finished by saying, “Let us resolve we will do everything to empower action for children’s health,” the entire room erupted in a standing ovation.
Jeffrey Huffins, chair of the DPI/NGO executive committee, stated, “Nothing will replace the primal importance of people meeting, in person, for good, old-fashioned face time.” He referred to the passionate debates about the Declaration and reminded us that it “has strength only to the extent we are willing to advocate with our organizations.” He also announced that the United Nations had reached agreement with the City of Bonn, Germany, to host the Summit next September, which may carry the theme “Sustainable Societies, Responsible Citizens.”
 |
| Conference Chair Mary Norton addresses attendees during the closing session. |
As with the opening ceremony, the last speaker of the night was Conference Chair Mary Norton. She reminded us that, on Day 1, she challenged us to develop an action plan and, to that end, the NGO Call to Action and resulting Declaration was almost unanimously passed. “We achieved these tasks without allowing the perfect to be the enemy of the good,” she said. She asked each country represented to submit the declaration to their governments for submission to the U.N. General Assembly when it meets to address the MDGs in September in New York City.
A long, three-day meeting full of healthy discussion, awareness and community building had come to a close. You could feel the level of exhaustion and raw energy in the audience as we each assessed the work that had been done and the challenges ahead. I thought often of how STTI members and chapters can make a true difference in their own countries and in the world. I was pleased that we had a presence for nursing at this conference, and hope it will grow in the future.
And so it ends. I am off to Sydney and eventually back to Indianapolis to put this new knowledge in context for STTI and our members around the world. Thank you for following this U.N. journey. I welcome your comments, thoughts and suggestions of ways you would like to see the honor society involved in the work of the United Nations or other global bodies. Nursing is central to ensuring the health of the world. Aren’t you proud to be a nurse? I certainly am.
Good day from Australia! RNL
K. Joanne McGlown, RN, PhD, FACHE is global business development director, Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.
Melbourne report: Day 1
Melbourne report: Day 2
