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Lions Clubs International - Lion Phil Nathan |
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Show you care, get involved, let's enjoy ourselves |
Past International Director Phil Nathan
International 2nd Vice President Campaign
Representing Lions Clubs International at the Global Volunteers Conference
In mid-September I had the privilege of travelling to Budapest to represent the International Association at the Global Volunteers Conference.
This three day event, organised by the United Nations and the International Foundation of the Red Cross and red Crescent, was attended by some 200 representatives of
the world’s major charitable and volunteer organisations, as well as members of Parliament from a number of countries and very senior members of the United Nations. The event took the form of key note speakers, seminars and round table discussions.
Katerina Barcal, Manager, Program Development, LCI, was also present, in a reporting, negotiating and networking capacity.
Global Volunteer Conference
The conference examined the role of volunteers in addressing present and future challenges in an increasingly polarized and fragmented world. These discussions emphasized the link between protecting the planet and giving people a chance for a better life, between citizen engagement and sustainable solutions for the improvement of our societies.
My specific involvement, on behalf of the Association, was on Day 2, when I was a panel speaker; my fellow panelists included representatives of Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) from Sierra Leone and Haiti, as well as the UN Assistant Secretary for Peacebuilding. It was a pleasure to know that Lions Clubs International, our Association, is so well thought of as to lead with such distinguished company.
Many
of the speakers were presenting from a theoretical or academic
perspective, Lions Clubs International was one of the few to make a
presentation based on practical, hands on, experience.
The blessing, and curse, of modern communications media is that we are never out of contact or away from the office and it was noticeable that many of the attendees were using blackberries and mobile phones on a regular basis (yes, I know I am guilty of that as well!) so I was pleased to see, as my presentation progressed, that individuals stopped communicating and began to listen, to listen to the story of what Lions, what we, have achieved with our humanitarian programme, Gift for Living, over the years and about our ability to respond quickly and sustainably whenever and wherever disasters occur.
The round table discussions focused on best practices related to preparedness and relief, which presented me with an opportunity to discuss LCIs ALERT, Emergency Grant and Disaster Relief Programmes.
Also in attendance were representatives from major international corporations, including worldwide household names and I was able to discuss with them how Lions Club International could partner with them in supporting and undertaking major worldwide relief programmes.
Disappointingly, one of the representatives, with a very substantial budget, admitted to having spent several months in negotiation with Rotary but had not thought to approach Lions Clubs International. Hopefully, their understanding and knowledge of what we are capable of achieving will change their perspective.
One of the aims of the Conference was to underline the untapped potential of volunteering as a process mobilizing populations all over the world and thus contributing to the achievement of national and international development agendas. Volunteering is a cross-cutting force, addressing a broad spectrum of peace and development activities, striving for the eradication of poverty and the betterment of the human condition.
Speakers also discussed the links between volunteering and issues such as climate change, migration, youth involvement, solidarity between generations, crisis prevention and recovery, disaster risk reduction, gender or growing urbanization will be addressed.
The conference focused on the following broad themes.
➢ Volunteering during humanitarian crises and emergency situations
➢ Volunteering for peace and development: MDGs and beyond
➢ Promoting an enabling environment for volunteering
➢ Enhancing evidence of the impact, value, and power of volunteering and its contribution to peace and development
➢ Engaging national and international policy makers to enhance protection, recognition, and promotion of volunteers
Some of the questions that were addressed during the discussions (from a global perspective) included:
- What are the most effective means to render humanitarian support through volunteers?
- How can volunteer organizations be stronger advocates to governments in facilitating a more enabling environment for volunteers in emergencies?
- What are the key ingredients in strengthening community resilience after the disaster response phase?
At the end of the conference, what was clear is that all Governments need their communities to be ‘hands on’ and it was interesting to learn that, in some areas ‘community service’ is included within school curriculi.