Report on Session 1:
Earth Charter,
Sustainable Development and Youth Leadership
Tuesday, September 14th, 3pm GMT
“Thanks for the interactive session! It was a nice start off and fun. A good learning experience! Looking forward for the next session.”
through the online feedback form
The session consisted of the following components:
- An overview to the course, PowerPoint presentation
- e-GLO alumni testimonials, PowerPoint presentation
- The Earth Charter document, watch the video discussed during the session
- Social media, PowerPoint presentation
The minutes of the first session
The transcript of the presentations
1. Join the e-GLO Facebook group
2. Respond to the 3 questions on the Discussion Forum in the FB group.
Topics of the Discussions are:
– Read the Earth Charter
– Video: Overview of the Earth Charter
– Video: It Starts with One!
3. Upload 3 pictures of you to the Facebook group – see Jaana’s examples and add yours to the same album
e-GLO Facebook group
Follow us on Twitter
Earth Charter International secretariat, BeatBoard and Heart in Action Enterprises’
e-GLO is organized in “e-GLO Global Online Live & Interactive Seminar Room” that is a product of Heart In Action Enterprises’ and Asita Informatica.
Interactive New Media Web Multimedia Events –
“The power to touch the world continues through secured multimedia communication platform for social new media projects”.
Back: Session Structure
1st Session Experience
3pm GMT on Tuesday 14th 2010, 30 people from all over the world met on the e-GLO Global Online Live & Interactive Seminar Room. They are e-GLO 3 participants! They met first time in a journey of semester long learning and sharing experience. They met because they believe in YES! WE CAN. WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD!
Jaana Laitinen, Earth Charter International Youth Facilitator, joined from the UN mandated University for Peace, Costa Rica. Mike Sheehan, e-GLO Program Manager, walked his webcam around his house and garden in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was great to see his surrounding that gave a real sense of September in Victoria British Columbia. The session moved on with introduction of facilitators. Also staff of the Earth Charter International was quickly presented: Alicia, Demi, Betty, Lin and Wiktor are people behind the scene. In addition, Diego from Italy has been supporting us. You are the visionary, making the e-GLO success.
Dominic Stucker, the former EC International Youth Facilitator explained essence of EC. He quoted the Earth Charter: “Let ours be a time remembered for the awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life.”
There are also more experienced people behind the Earth Charter Movement. Rick Clugston, one of ECI Council Members has been involved with the Earth Charter for almost 20 years now and told that the international communication was much slower earlier. Rick gave us a short historical account of the Earth Charter process and making of the Earth Charter Principles through resolving different perspective of different values. He also discussed the importance of the Earth Charter in all spheres on life: religion, business, governments etc. Rick believes that platforms like e-GLO are essential in promoting sustainable change and influencing governments to adopt the Earth Charter.
We want to applause for his great work for the Earth Charter but our mics were off, so we wrote our comments to the text chat. Chat boxes were also popping up with interesting questions. Next we were encouraged to watch EC video on YouTube. If your country has blocked YouTube, don’t worry, you have alternative VIMEO Video. Like me, many of us watched it four times. It is a great, inspiring video. Simply, awesome!!!
You may follow the e-GLO sessions with high internet speed, or low speed, no matter! In case you cannot hear the audio, you could follow the minutes just keeping your eyes on specially designed ‘minutes window’ of the platform where Diego and Wiktor typed what was discussed. Thank you Diego and Wiktor!
Today, only 4 participants spoke. Harsha came live to us from India. He has been involved in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities for years. Daisy spoke from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and she is interested in sustainable development, hoping to become a teacher in education for sustainability. Demi from Greece and Wiktor from Poland are interns at the Earth Charter International secretariat. Demi and Daisy have conducted an Earth Charter Youth Leadership Course together. So great profiles! So nice to hear from different backgrounds and diverse interests in sustainable development! We have many more participants’ great profiles! They are eager to share their experience. Wait a bit, until next session!
Mike guided us through the power of social media, interesting presentation on astonishing pace of expanding social media like Facebook. Kris Krüg, a new media specialist gave his insight in bringing power to social networking.
Time to homework. We were in school! But who would not like to upload pictures on Facebook? So interesting homework, I was thinking, if the schools were so interesting, there might be high rate of literacy in many developing countries.
After 3 hours on the platform, it seemed we just logged in. Time flies so quickly! So, it was time to good bye. We will meet again!
Personally after the first session, I feel, I am not alone! There are many people around the world who want to change the world, devoted for a just world, envision a poverty free world. I feel connected, I am motivated, I feel inspired being on board of the Earth Charter Initiative.