2017 CTAUN Conference at the United Nations:

Refugees:  The 21st Century Challenge

Conference Statement

Refugee crises are not new in world history. Millions have been uprooted over the centuries, fleeing their homes due to well-founded fears of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

Yet by the end of 2015, according to the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees, there were some 65 million victims of conflict and persecution worldwide, including 27 million of the equally vulnerable, who are internally displaced in their own homelands. Wherever we turn, we are bombarded with media images of the desperate, but determined faces of people on frightening journeys, to overburdened and increasingly unwelcoming countries. Do we have the resources and political will to cope with the current demand? Or have we lost our moral compass in the overwhelming chaos?

US Ambassador Samantha Power, in previewing “Where the Children Sleep”, a photo exhibit currently on view at the NY Public Library, reminds us that it is not just a question of numbers. “ Truly appreciating that refugees are ordinary people means more than empathizing with their suffering. It also means recognizing their potential to make significant and lasting contributions to their new communities.”

How do we bridge the gap of fear on both sides? What are the cross-cultural issues involved in assimilation, and the challenges to host nations? What proven initiatives are working, and what other forces are exacerbating the problem? What are the implications, for all of us, of a generation deprived of its education, and what can we, as individuals and educators do to remedy that? And the often unasked question – What do we risk, in terms of global stability and security here at home by NOT doing more to alleviate the suffering?

Please join us on January 27th, 2017, for our eighteenth annual CTAUN conference at UN headquarters in NY, as we hear from UN and NGO representatives on the scene, and the personal experiences of the refugees themselves.

Global citizenship is everyone’s responsibility.

 

Register Now!

REGISTRATION CLOSES JANUARY !7th, 2017

CTAUN STUDENT POSTER COMPETITION

The Winners have been selected and contacted by CTAUN on 31 December 2016.  They will have the opportunity to display their posters and will be recognized publicly during the CTAUN Conference at the United Nations .   

For more information contact:  intlcoll@bridgeport.edu

EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION AWARD: 

This year's winners will receive their awards during the January 27th conference.   If you are including ideas from a recent CTAUN Conference in your classroom, you may be eligible for the CTAUN Excellence in Education Award and we are encouraging you to go to AWARD for details 

SPECIAL HOTEL RATES for CTAUN Conference Attendees: 

We have negotiated special nightly rates at

$129.00  single   $149.00  double

valid from January 26th through January 29th 2017

at the following hotel: 

The Lexington New York City, Autograph Collection (a Marriott hotel)

located  at 511 Lexington Avenue at 48th Street   

FOR HOTEL INFORMATION AND TO BOOK YOUR ROOM CLICK HERE

In order to get the special discount, BOOKINGS MUST BE MADE NO LATER THAN JANUARY 13, 2017