Sustaining Global and Local Nursing Voice at the United Nations

Purpose: This presentation will describe the development of chapter and regional programs and projects that focus on UN goals and initiatives, highlighting the STTI Region 14 UN Interest group and the NIGH UN Interest Group Team. The response among STTI and NIGH members to these initiatives has been positive and enduring, with members demonstrating interest in pursuing meaningful opportunities to collaborate on global health and nursing issues. Programs have included evening education and all day symposia, networking, and fundraising events held at universities and UN Headquarters. UN goals and activities have provided young and experienced members with opportunities to collaborate and particpate in global health projects.

Methods: UN Interest Group leaders will present their experiences in the development of events, activities and projects related to Millennium Development Goals and the post 2015 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals. They will discuss their experiences engaging chapter and regional leaders to provide information and coordinate programming.

Results: The UN Interest Group initiatives have resulted in sucessful, ongoing UN programming and bringing over 400 nursing professionals on site to UN Headquarters in NYC.

Conclusion: The UN Interest Group can be a model for sucessful endeavors to stimulate interest and provide opportunities for contribution to UN goals and global health and nursing issues. While the proximity to UN Headquaters has provided an extra dimension to this experiences, the presenters will discuss methods for replication for all chapters and regions of STTI.