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UNHLM HIV/AIDS Blog Series: Part 1

Global Alliance at the UN High Level Meeting for HIV/AIDS and Side Events

 

The United Nations High Level Meeting (UNHLM) for HIV/AIDS and side events were held virtually from June 8-11 2021.  During the HLM, world leaders in the General Assembly adopted the Political Declaration which pledged urgent, transformative action to stop the global AIDS epidemic.  

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UNHLM HIV/AIDS Blog Series: Part 2

Integrating Mental Health is Critical to Overcoming Inequities and Ending AIDS

 

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UNHLM HIV/AIDS Blog Series: Part 3

Now is the Time: Ending Stigma Around Mental Illness and Improving Mental Health 

 

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Youth Well-being In a Digital Age

During Mental Health Month, the Global Alliance co-sponsored Youth Well-Being in a Digital World: The Roles of Schools and Communities along with:

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An Intern’s Experience at the 74th WHA-USDHHS Stakeholder Listening Session

On May 13th, 2021, I had the remarkable opportunity to attend the Stakeholder Listening Session hosted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS) Office of Global Affairs. The Listening Session was developed to help provide the U.S. delegation to the World Health Assembly with knowledge, ideas, and feedback from national organizations invested in global health matters, incorporating perspectives from public health and advocacy groups; state, local, and Tribal groups; private industry; minority health organizations; and academic and scientific organizations.

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Breaking Down GA Positions at 74th WHA-USDHHS Stakeholder Listening Session

Prior to the 74th World Health Assembly (held from May 24-June 1, 2021) the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS) Office of Global Affairs hosted a Listening Session on May 13th, 2021, to help provide the U.S. delegation to the World Health Assembly with knowledge, ideas, and feedback from national organizations invested in global health matters. The Global Alliance was represented at the Listening Session by Evelyn Tomaszewski, Gita Jaffe, and Surasya Guduru. In recognition of the urgent need to prioritize individual and community mental health, the Global Alliance was given the opportunity to provide statements on a variety of concerns we have historically advocated for.

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Graduate Student Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has created new realities for the entire world. In an effort to support graduate students during this time, The Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice invited graduate students via email to participate in a global discussion group to understand how COVID-19 impacts them, their educations, and their communities. Eleven graduate students in total representing the USA, Canada, and Nepal responded to the invitation and participated in the global discussion group. The authors of this blog post represent a portion of the students who participated and moderated the discussion. While multiple concerns were raised throughout the discussion, several key themes emerged, which centered on:

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GA attends UN-HLPF SDGs Series 2020

Starting the second week of July 2020, High-level Political Forum (HLPF) (the United Nations central platform for follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)) met virtually. The theme was Building back better after COVID-19 and acting where we will have the greatest impact on the SDGs. Focusing on  “Accelerated action and transformative pathways: realizing the decade of action and delivery for sustainable development” the HLPF did not adopt a Ministerial Declaration, however a summary from the president of ECOSOC to capture key messages of the discussions can be found here.

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GA at UN: Making the commitment to the SDGs: Universities and Beyond

On July 9, 2020, The United Nations Institute for training and research (UNITAR) convened a panel entitled Teaching, Learning, and Integrating the SDGs at Universities and Beyond; using SDG 4 as the springboard for discussion.  As a social worker and educator, I was pleased to hear about both the efforts within the academy and the commitment to honoring and including live-long learning (LLL) in the conversation.

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GA at UN: Partnerships

Developing transformational partnerships to catalyze SDGs implementation panelists shared practical examples of how collaboration is necessary to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs, both between the SDGs and among stakeholders.

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GA at UN: Digital Skills for Development

During the UN HLM session Accelerating action through digital technologies: Strengthening digital skills and capacities for human wellbeing, the discussion focused on the role of digital skills for development and the need to close the digital divide, particularly as the correlation between risks to COVID-19 intersecting with digital and social inequities were raised. The session highlighted examples from around the world with relation to access and barriers to reliable internet, in conjunction with the skills and platforms necessary to work remotely and attend virtual school. The central point was that digital skills (on desktops, laptops, and mobile devices) are required to accelerate the achievement of all SDGs. If used properly, such skills will be used as enablers, which means that without skills people will be left further behind. COVID-19 has brought to the surface the huge connectivity challenge, with over 90% of the world’s population living in an area that has service coverage, yet only 54% are using the internet, with less developed countries having significantly less usage (ITU, 2020)

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GA at UN: Food Systems

During the Food Systems and Nutrition Patterns: Biodiversity, Resilience, and Food Security UN HLM session, panelists shared strategies for improving how our global food systems operate. A central theme of this session included sustainable food production and distribution. That is, critically evaluating the methods for how food is grown, harvested, raised, fished, etc., and the effects these methods have on the environment.

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GA at UN: Energy and Participatory Science

Session 6, Energy decarbonization and universal access: Participatory Science and Stakeholder Capacity Building in Sustainable Energy Development, was closely tied to SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. Concepts relative to sustainability and energy decarbonization may not immediately come to mind when thinking of behavioral health or social justice, however, featured speakers passionately conveyed that having access to sustainable, clean energy sources is tied to health and wellness, as well as socioeconomic development. Two organizations were featured in this session.

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