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Reflections on the 65th Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference


You Haixia August 27-29, as a member of the Chinese NGO Delegation, I took part in the 65th Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference held in UN headquarters in New York. The theme of this conference was “2015 and Beyond: Our Action Agenda”. 2015 will be the final year of UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and witness the 70 anniversary of UN. This conference aimed to draw on collective wisdom of civil society worldwide and make suggestions to the sustainable development of 2015-2030. After 7 years, this annual conference was held in UN headquarters again. According to the organizing committee, about 2 thousand representatives from over 900 organizations attended the 3-day conference. Poverty eradication, sustainable development, human rights and climate change were 4 primary topics. There were 2 parallel thematic roundtables for each topic. For instance, there were Roundtable 1 “The Global Partnerships for Sustainable Development: participation, Governance & Accountability” and Roundtable 2 “Fighting Inequalities-Economic, Social, Political & Environmental” for the topic of Poverty Eradication. Each roundtable lasted 1.5 hours, with 1 host and 5 keynote speakers, and all attendants could communicate with these keynote speakers by Q & A. Conference venues were Trusteeship Council Chamber and Conference Room 1 and Conference Room 2 in Conference Building. Besides the thematic roundtables, there were more than 60 workshops with rich content and flexible forms hosted by various NGOs after gaining approval from the organizing committee. These workshops varied in scale from 30 to 80 attendants who could take part in any workshop according to their focus and time arrangement. At the opening ceremony, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon made a video speech, stressing that UN always attaches great importance to the role of NGOs and there are increasingly closer exchanges and cooperation between UN and NGOs worldwide. Holding the principle of equal rights and equal responsibility, NGOs have comprehensive influence in the grassroots and have made positive contributions to the fulfillment of MDG. He also expressed the hope that all representatives in this annual conference should speak out their minds and push the international community into the right direction for the post 2015 development agenda. His speech aroused strong applauds from time to time. I attended 4 thematic roundtables during the Conference and heard the heated discussions of NGO representatives from various countries. I was deeply impressed by their devotion and dedication to the responsibility of the world as their own duties. I also noticed that representatives from developing countries have more concerns on poverty eradication and the inclusiveness of development, while those from developed countries cared more about human rights protection and climate change. In Roundtable 2 “Climate Justice in Practice” for the topic of Climate Change on August 29, Deputy Secretary-General Shi Guohui of China NGO Network for International Exchanges was one of the five keynote speakers. After precise briefing on China’s achievements and challenges in dealing with climate change, promoting environment protection and advocating eco-civilization, Mr. Shi emphasized that developing countries should rely on their own strength to solve problems as no single perfect mode could be suitable for every country. He also stated that the governments and enterprises of developed countries should take their historical responsibilities in real earnest and give financial and technological assistance to developing countries as to put climate justice into practice. His speech earned applauds several times. Many participants exchanged cards and views with him afterwards. I deeply felt that it was very important and meaningful for the Chinese NGOs to seize opportunities and make voices in significant international conferences, letting the international community to know a real China in an objective way. Talking with representatives from various countries, I found out that quite a number of international NGOs already dispatched resident representatives in New York. These resident representatives always took active part in various kinds of UN meetings and made related proposals, exerting influence on UN Resolutions. Of course, US NGOs can take great convenience of their favorable locations. Up to now, there was no resident representative of Chinese NGOs in New York, which to certain extent affected their full involvements in UN activities. Art performances during this annual meeting were very impressive. In the opening ceremony, the singing of South Korean singer Lee Seung Chul expressed the determination and courage of mankind to work hand in hand and meet global challenges. In the reception dinner, several South Korean dancers brought amazing dances with strong ethnic features. Many attendants took group photos with these beautiful dancers. There were absolutely Korean waves in the Hudson River! I could not help thinking that given opportunities, the Chinese artists could show their rich talents in this big event of global NGOs, which will further uplift China’s image and demonstrate the easy charm of NGOs in international community. Taking advantage of the gaps between meetings, I and several other Chinese representatives visited the UN Library and the conference room of the Security. We also had lunch in the Staff restaurant. I noticed that there were environmental friendly dish-wares made of recycled papers, and all items including salad, fruits, and main dishes were taken by customers themselves and all together charged by weight, which was helpful to healthy dietary and resources saving. However, there were also some amendments to be made. In terms of registration, the organizing work was rather loose. The day before the opening ceremony, the registration started at 12 o’clock in a quite slow pace and stopped at 17 o’clock despite the long queue. Many representatives had to leave with disappointment. Therefore, a number of representatives were still waiting to be enlisted just before the opening ceremony, which was rather inconvenient. As an ordinary participant in the people-to-people exchanges, I feel very lucky that I participated in the 65th Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference. What I have seen and heard within and outside the conference rooms were fresh and colorful. I believe that with further growth and development, more and more Chinese NGOs will be increasingly involved in UN activities and carry out exchanges and cooperation with NGOs from various countries, making greater contribution to the better understanding among people of different countries.