Holy See event at the UN for the International Year of Youth

(May 17, 2011) The Holy See’s Permanent Observer Mission at the United Nations is joining other groups in hosting an event on 3^rd June at the UN headquarters in New York to mark the current International Year of Youth. The event titled “International Year of Youth and the Fernando Rielo Prize for youth” will give an opportunity for youth to discuss some of the pressing issues facing young people today, especially the need to protect and promote human life. This award provides a forum for youth participants to express their own convictions uncontaminated by politics, fear or societal or economic pressure regarding the culture of death, which threatens not only the most vulnerable persons, but also the youth and the entire human race. The Fernando Rielo prize will consist of a trip to the Spanish capital Madrid to attend World Youth Day in August 16 – 21. The prize is to be awarded for the best essay, a song or a video, which expresses their convictions for the promotion of life, and how they can serve as beacons of truth and hope to change a culture of death into a culture of life. Among the co-sponsors of the June 3 event are Path to Peace Foundation and the World Youth Parliament.
The International Year for Youth was launched by the United Nations on 12th August last year on the theme “ Dialogue and reciprocal understanding” It is scheduled to conclude in August this year.