Commission on the Status of Women Shortly after International Women’s Day, close to 8,000 women gathered at the UN HQ in New York to participate in the 61st annual session of the Commission on the Status of Women which was held from March 13th – 24th. More than half the participants were members of official delegations of 169 member states, while 3,900 represented 580 NGOs from 138 countries. Our RSHM NGO presence was small but vibrant – enriched by the presence of Sr. Mary Genino RSHM who participated fully in the first week. We are preparing a special edition of the News from the UN on our experience of CSW 61 and the themes covered.

Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary NGO in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations since 2013 and with the Department of Public Information since 2006.

International Women’s Day – 8th March The UN’s annual International Women’s Day event at the UN attracted hundreds of attendees who were eager to hear about this year’s theme, “Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030.” The President of the General Assembly, Peter Thompson centered the opening statement around strengthening women’s roles and participation in leadership positions to combat the economic gender gap. Expert on the topic, Ms. Amina Mohammed spoke from experience as the current Deputy Secretary-General. She highlighted the importance of women’s and girls’ roles in promoting peace, and cited Iceland as a country to look to for best practices regarding gender equality. Another country recognized for its successes in narrowing the gender gap was the United Arab Emirates. Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh of the UAE discussed ways in which the country has lead in efforts

for gender equality in the Arab world, referencing the two-thirds women-to-men ratio in government positions as an example. Goodwill Ambassador Anne Hathaway then gave a speech on the importance of parental leave policies encompassing both genders to maximize benefits for families. The event successfully highlighted areas for countries to focus on in order to bring the world closer to fulfillment of SDG 5. Watch the video

International Day of Happiness In June of 2012, the General Assembly unanimously

adopted a resolution proclaiming March 20th, International Day of Happiness. In observance of Happiness Day, an event was held at the United Nations where Cristina Gallach, (Under Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information); Amina Mohammed, (Deputy Secretary-General); Ohood Al Roumi, (UAE Minister of State for Happiness); and Dr. Phra Anil Sakya, (Deputy Rector of Foreign Affairs of Mahamakut Buddhist University), spoke on a panel highlighting the importance of government’s role in creating conditions viable to the pursuit of happiness. The panel emphasized that a country’s GDP does not translate to a happy population and a happy population does not mean a wealthy population. They believe that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is the

key to creating social and economic climates more susceptible to happiness, as Ms. Amina Mohammed put it, “The SDGs are [the] building blocks of happiness.” Eradicating poverty and hunger, improving upon

health and education systems, and implementing sustainable economic practices will greatly increase the likelihood of happiness among all populations.

Watch the video And an animated video

Security Council Resolution 2347: The Protection of Heritage On March 24, 2017, the Security Council passed resolution 2347

for maintenance of international peace and security on, “the destruction and trafficking of cultural heritage by terrorist groups and in situations of armed conflict.” It is the first Security Council Resolution of its kind in that it focuses on the protection

and preservation of cultural heritage, recognizing this as a critical piece of international security. Members of the Security Council reinforced that the destruction, smuggling, and selling of unlawfully acquired cultural artifacts is considered a war crime under international law and perpetrators will face severe consequences. The unanimously adopted resolution urges Member States to implement comprehensive prevention strategies and calls for the creation of “safe havens” where cultural property can be stowed. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has been playing - and will continue to play - an active role in the realization of this resolution. It has partnered with Member States to identify and strengthen shortcomings in legislation that leave countries vulnerable to cultural attack. The Security Council acknowledged that ISIL and other terrorist groups have used the exploitation of cultural sites and artifacts as an economic tool for financing their actives and have pledged to implement barriers to thwart future efforts.

Read More:

News from the UN - # 81 RSHM at the UN March 2017

We invite you to learn more about CSW 61 by Looking at the annotated photo

albums on our newly formed RSHM NGO facebook page Please “like” us!

Visiting our twitter account @RSHMNGO Please “follow” us!

Did you know that: 663 million adults and children are living

without a quality source of drinking water. 250 km³ of water is being ‘lost’ each year

worldwide through food waste Globally, over 80% of all wastewater is

discharged without treatment. For every US$1 spent on sanitation, the

estimated return to society is US$5.5 The total water “footprint” of the average

consumer in the world is 3,800 litres (1,004 gallons) a day.

96.2% of this water footprint is “invisible”, related to products bought on the market

15,000 litres of water are needed to produce 1 kg of beef

“Access to safe drinkable water is a basic and universal human right, since it is essential to human survival and, as such, is a condition for the exercise of other human rights.”

( Pope Francis – Laudato Si # 30).

SDG 6 Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

Prepared by Veronica Brand RSHM & Iman Habib

Distribution: General Council Team; Provincials/ Regionals

JPIC Animators; International Network of RSHM Schools; UN Interest Group Translation: Maria Luisa Pinho RSCM

Portuguese translation by Maria Luisa Pinho, RSCM.

Among the targets to attain SDG 6 are the following: Read more…

6.1 By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all

6.2 By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all…..paying special attention to

the needs of women and girls….

6.3 By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution,

eliminating dumping ….substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally 6.4 By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency

across all sectors….

6.5 By 2030, implement integrated water resources

management at all levels….

6.6 By 2020, protect and restore water-related ecosystems..

6.A By 2030, expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes….

6.B Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management

March 22nd International Water Day On 22 March each year, the importance of taking action on water issues is highlighted by the commemoration of World Water Day. This year the theme chosen by the UN was Wastewater and the campaign, ‘Why waste water?’ drew attention to the need to reduce and reuse wastewater. It was an appropriate day for the NGO Mining Working Group - a coalition of NGOs at the UN that advocates for human and environmental rights

as related to harmful extractive industries – to launch its “Water Justice Guide” - A People’s Guide to SDG 6”. Last year our RSHM NGO joined with 21 other NGO members of the Committee in sponsoring the preparation of this publication,

which adopts a human rights-based approach to the implementation of the Goal on Water. To achieve the global pledge of “leaving no one behind” water needs to be recognised as a global good to which everyone has a fundamental right rather than a “commodity” to be traded on the market. Public financing needs to be increased and local communities empowered to ensure an equitable and sustainable distribution of water resources. Six sections of the Guide focus on the current water crisis , the SDGs and the Goal on Water, Red Flags to look for, use of a water-justice Litmus test in monitoring and channels for Advocacy at the UN. Read the fact sheet; watch the video; and one on wastewater study the infographic

Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Agenda The importance of taking action on climate change and sustainable development in a coordinated and coherent manner was the focus of the High Level SDG Action Event on “Climate Change and the Sustainable Development

Agenda” convened by the President of the General Assembly,

Peter Thomson on March 23rd. As he noted in his opening statement the the world is currently on track towards a 3 to 4°C increase in global temperatures – an unsustainable level of global warming that puts humanity’s survival on this planet in jeopardy. Although various positive actions such as the growing investment in renewable energy capacity are being taken to implement the Paris Agreement, much more needs to be done.

Part of the High Level event included a luncheon on sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12). As Mr. Thomson noted, Changing from ‘take, make, dispose’ into a circular economy would significantly reduce the need for new materials and minimize activities required to manage waste. He also noted the need to question our current consumption patterns, adjusting our preferences to materials or goods “that are kinder to the scarce resources upon which we depend”. “Doing more and better with less,” is the call for our future and for all future generations. Read more.