The UN Commission for Social Development recently convened under the theme of Social Inclusion: Building a Society for All, and invited the Pachamama Alliance to present both an organizational overview and Awakening the Dreamer Symposium.
A team of committed New York area Symposium Facilitators, led by Rocio Yanez, Judy Leaf, Adam Rogers, Eloise Bruce and Joan Olawski-Stiener, volunteered to take on the two separate appointments; to first present the Pachamama Alliance to the Civil Society Task Force, and to subsequently present an Awakening the Dreamer Symposium to the Commission for Social Development.
The team worked hard in advance to condense the Symposium into a format that would fit within the allocated time. This included a full rework of the audio-visual Symposium materials. The result was hugely successful and the feedback indicated that the presence and message of this group had brought a fresh and positive language to the forum, breathing new life into the established process of the UN. The Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues, the Economic and Social Council, and the Commission on Sustainable Development all expressed interest in integrating the Pachamama/Symposium message into their groups as well. This, in addition to the many Non-Governmental Organizations and individuals who were present and moved by the message, creates a broad and exciting opening for collaboration in the future.
