The United Nations Foundation and the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA) will host the Global Leadership Dinner Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2014, at Cipriani 42nd Street, New York.
The prestigious gathering represents a moment to honor and thank the United Nations and the many people and organizations who help the UN do its vital work in achieving short-term humanitarian goals and long-term development goals. The dinner is made possible with the support of Merck & Co. and the Angelica Fuentes Foundation.
Guests and honorees of this year’s event include Valerie Amos, Under Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs; Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General; UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon; Congressman Adam Kinzinger; Michael Kirby, commissioner, UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; Kenneth Frazier, chairman and CEO, Merck & Co, Inc.; U.S. Senator Chris Murphy; Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever; Ivanka Trump; actress Kelly Rutherford; Ambassador Samantha Power, U.S Permanent Representative to the United Nations; Queen Rania of Jordan; Ted Turner, chairman and founder of the United Nations Foundation; and many others.
The 2014 dinner comes at a time when the world is focused on significant hot spots of conflict around the world. The speakers and distinguished guests of this year’s dinner recognize the importance of uniting to support UNA-USA programs to activate Americans in their support of the United Nations in its efforts to drive agendas of peace, stability and humanitarian development. The dinner takes place in the final 500 days of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals and within a year of the timeline for finalizing the post-2015 development framework. In each instance, the UN has a major leadership role to play, and in each instance, the UN cannot go it alone.
“With the approach of the 2015 target date of reaching the Millennium Development Goals, the Global Leadership Dinner comes at an opportune time to remind us of the importance of engaging today’s youth,” said Kathy Calvin, president and CEO of the UN Foundation. “We have the largest youth generation in history; they are more connected than ever — to each other and to global issues. They are passionate about a sustainable future, and it is up to all of us to support them as they work for change.”
Additionally, 2014 marks the fulfillment of Ted Turner’s $1 billion pledge in 1997 to support UN causes, which launched the UN Foundation. His historic gift has inspired countless others to get involved, and for each dollar donated by Turner, the Foundation has garnered more than $2 of additional support for programs that help the UN advance its work on global health, energy and climate, and empowering girls and women.
The United Nations Association, now a program of the UN Foundation, has recently transformed into an organization with a majority membership of young people. The dinner will honor the critical role young people play in helping make significant progress on such issues of global importance as the long-term sustainability of people and the planet, global health, humanitarian efforts and more.
