Youth Version of Human Development Report 07/08

Each year the UN publishes an Annual Human Development Report on issues which affect human development at global and national levels. These reports are used in many areas such as policy making, education, and economics. The focus of the 2007/2008 HDR is “Fighting climate change: Human solidarity in a divided world”.

While the HDR’s are among the mostly widely read documents published by the UN, they are not always accessible to young people. Peace Child International has undertaken a project to bring to life the key messages of the HDR using creative opinion pieces, reports, poems and stories, paintings, cartoons and photographs. This fascinating book will be written, illustrated, designed and edited by young people from across the globe.

Key messages of the report surround:

∙ The impact of climate change on the poor and marginalised citizens of the world
∙ The threat climate change poses to the inalienable rights of the human family to freedom,
justice and peace
∙ How climate change will hinder our ability to meet the Millennium Development Goals
∙ Mitigating the impact of climate change
∙ Practical ways of adapting our current lifestyles to take account of climate change
∙ The role of the UN in providing effective leadership in the fight against climate change

Youth were also invited to submit 30 to 90 second videos - info-mercials on how climate change affects them and what they felt should be done about it. Fifteen to twenty of these videos will be edited into a single 30 minute video.

The video and the booklet will be distributed by the UN around the world in time for World Environment Day on June 5th 2008.

Read the full UN report and overview at: http://hdr.undp.org/en/