The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, and the President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno, signed today in Paris a Memorandum of Understanding for a Strategic Partnership to expand existing cooperation between the two organizations.
According to the agreement UNESCO and the IDB will be able to undertake joint activities in Latin America and the Caribbean in the following areas:
capacity building for the achievement of Education for All (EFA) goals;
the use of information technologies (ICTs) in education;
ethics of science and technology;
strengthening of national science and technology capacities;
youth violence prevention; protection and promotion of biological and cultural diversity, including the promotion of multilingualism;
prevention of natural disasters;
protection and safeguarding of natural and cultural heritage, including intangible cultural heritage;
Picturing America is an exhibit developed by the National Endowment for Humanities. It was shown at UNESCO recently as part of American History and Culture Week. The show provides exhibition size and quality photos of masterpieces of American art. It is also available for use in classrooms and libraries. The Picturing America website has an interesting interactive show of the images contained in the exhibit.
UNESCO investigates alleged violations of human rights in its fields of competence, namely education, science, culture and communication. This procedure is set out in 104 EX/Decision 3.3 of the Executive Board, and is known as "Procedure 104". The investigations are implemented by a subsidiary organ of the Executive Board, the Committee on Conventions and Recommendations.
Last week the Committee had a special program in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the creation of Procedure 104. Participatin in the event were such luminaries as Dr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali (President of the National Council for Human Rights of Egypt and Former Secretary-General of the United Nations) and Dr. Torsten Wiesel (1981 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine).
Farouk Hosni, having served for two decades as Egyptian Minister of Culture, has been nominated by his government to be the next Director General of UNESCO, and is considered to be a leading candidate. He is also know internationally as an abstract artist. One of his paintings is reproduced above. The second term of office of the current Director General, Koïchiro Matsuura, ends in October 2009.
The Seminar is arranged around 3 major themes, physical integrity of historic urban landscapes, functional integrity of historic urban landscapes, visual integrity of historic urban landscapes.
It will be hosted by Hanoi University of Architecture (HAU), Hanoi People’s Committee (Vietnam). The Seminar official languages are English, French and Spanish. Interpretation services will be provided in English, French, Spanish and Vietnamese. More about the Forum.
The week long celebration centers on the ‘Picturing America’ exhibit, a collection of 40 printed representations of some of the country’s greatest works of art. The exhibit enables viewers to gain insights into the principles, ideals and aspirations that have animated American history since its founding and before.
“The exhibit is an engaging way for youth and adults alike to learn more about the United States and its history through art.” UNESCO Director General Koïchiro Matsuura.
The activities of the week also included the performance of Tha Boyz, a Native American chant group. Native American traditions were also portrayed in the "Picturing America" exhibit through Black Hawk’s "Sans Arc Lakota" ledger book, along with representations of America’s great leaders, such as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, and important works illustrating American democracy such as Norman Rockwell’s Freedom of Speech.
