Here at United Nations in New York many aspects are coming together around a common theme – POVERTY ERADICATION.  Already some of you have been involved and contributed to a consultation on the Draft Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Right.  The Commission for Social Development will have it annual session February 1-10, 2012 with the priority theme of ‘Poverty Eradication.’   The Commission for the Status of Women will have its annual session February 27 – March 9, 2012 with the theme of ‘The empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges.’  From June 4-6, 2012 the RIO+20 Conference will take place and while it has two themes the first will focus on a green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication.  There is a particularly good website for this conference where you can find a lot of helpful material.   http://www.uncsd2012.org/rio20/index.php?menu=14       
The big theme is POVERTY ERADICATION and it has many components: a human rights dimension, effective global and national policies, rural women, the green economy, and sustainable development.  These are the issues that we can glean from the themes of the various conferences.  Each is multifaceted and complex but in a sense they all address our congregational directives seeking to address systemic and structural injustices through the United Nations. 

Outcome documents, resolutions and conventions from the United Nations are only effective if awareness is created about them and they are translated into national legislations and become part of national planning, have budget allocations, are implemented and followed up with monitoring and evaluation at national level.

The NGO Committee for Social Development is launching a signature campaign around a poverty eradication policy called the Social Protection Floor Initiative. This is a joint UN effort coordinated by the International Labour Organizations (ILO) and the World Health Organizations (WHO) and supported by numerous UN agencies, international NGO’s, development banks and other partners. A short explanation of the key elements of the Social Protection Floor and the opportunity to sign on the campaign can be accessed at   http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/signature-campaign-social-protection-floor.html

I am sure there are may question that you would like to ask?  Why not take this opportunity to ask them by using the response box below.  Consider the following questions and share with us your ideas.
What is your understanding of the Social Protection Floor?  Does your government talk of the Social Protection Floor?  What one thing can you do to promote the Social Protection Floor?

Some interesting reading about The Social Protection Floor is posted on the ILO site  http://www.ilo.org/Search3/search.do?searchWhat=The+Social+Protection+Floor&locale=en_US