UN #WorldOceansDay 2022 : Cecilia presented a #SDG17 Environmental #Art + Case Study for #SDG6 #SDG14

I want to thank everyone at United Nations, New York and my fellow guests speakers for this honour, as well as The Light Millennium Project for hosting this event. Thank you for inviting me to present. Thank you for this beautiful certificate. In the wonderful spirit of Transparency, so valued within the UN systems, I would like to share my presentation and my sincere gratitude with all those who supported me as Ambassador for a network of Central and West Africa NGOs. I want to re-affirm that PEPA L’Humanitaire NGO share the value of Multilateralism, Transparency and respect for Human Rights; for that reason I will continue with my work as advocate/lobbyist for PEACE and Sustainability, in special consultation with UN ECOSOC since 2017. Thank you for the opportunity and the acknowledgement of my work and my art.
Namaste 🙏🏼🧡💛💚💙💜

Recording of my presentation:

Transcript of my presentation:

UN Secretary General, Directors, Excellencies, my fellow Sustainability Ambassadors, distinguished academic panelists, ladies and gentlemen in civil society:

Hello, Thank you for inviting me to join you for World Oceans Day 2022 celebration. My name is Cecilia.Yu in Hong Kong Cantonese that is 余詠詩. I am an Australia (of Hong Kong chinese descent) I am ambassador for PEPA L’Humanitaire NGO (in special consultation with UNECOSOC since 2017). We champion via our 150+ networks of NGOs the plight elderly, women and children in conflict zones in central & west africa. I also consult non-UN Private sector Social Enterprises like the Feminist Collective Spiralmuse, in the Missions District, San Francisco! We were early innovators to provide Digital Participation for creative women worldwide in mid-90s. We were the first to enable the concept of co-working space for online workers in the world! By 2012, we fiscal & technologically sponsored the soft launch of the Nobel women initiatives! I’m very excited that this year’s UN World Oceans Day 2022 is a mixed delivery method event, be opened by Secretary General ANTÓNIO GUTERRES. New Media, when used positively, like the way The Light Millennium Project does, help us drop artificial barriers , reach out and share our creativity/diversity. We can use our collective wisdom to RESPECT and PROTECT the Ocean.

So, today, I’m here in my capacity as an artist. My art has toured Japan for five years to inspire Fukkishima’s recovery from Nuclear crisis. My calligraphy-graffiti fusion collaboration with global graffiti artists appeared at UN Cop 26, cop 21, beginning in Copenhagen COP 15. Graffiti Art is the organic language that empowers the oppressed when “Dominant actors” stifle grassroot voices, at times with brutality and violence!

My Art is an ancient Chinese and Australian fusion. My “recorded” calligraphy art family lineage began about 53 generations ago in Ancient China. The New World Australian aspects of my art , are probably in the choices of colours and an open, effortless laid-back intangible “feeling” ! 🙂

In showing my art today, I want to highlight the important role of SDG12 (responsible consumption/production ,SDG17 (partnership for SDGs) in Protecting SDG14 (life below water).

At the Nobel Prize Summit Panel in 2021, Laureates talked about the central role Creatives must play in reversing our Climate Crisis. As an artist and an Sustainability researcher, I have some “insiders track” on how we can start the process….

At SotaVento by the sea, I sketched the activities of the World Cup windsurfing & kitesurfing athletes in training. Because of their World record breaking Speed Windsurfing activities, Sotavento was put on the world map and it attracted many Luxury Hotels investments! There were very serious problems of corporate social irresponsibility around SDG17 partnership . Residents were denied water access. The duty of the maintenance and repairs fell on the conglomerates in their public/private partnership. My former US Supreme Court Judge Donald.Lay Teacher, would probably say that controlling access to water was unconstitutional, an act of anti-trust. Such corporate irresponsibility undermines SDGs as Human Rights! We need to be willing to “lift the corporate veil ” so that Individual Executives on Boards, cannot hide behind it to stonewall grass-root civil society voices of dissent! We need this to prevent Greenwash!

Local Graffiti Artists voiced a lot of protest (their art was the reason why I asked the World Champion Surfers Cafe about the issue!) flagging a lot of UN SDGs issues.

While painting, I saw a swimmer leapt from the sea and jumped into the Large Water fountain of the Palace Hotel, showing his “Action Protest” as Performance Art! He started mock-bathing theatrically in the fountain ! Normal citizen had only two hours water access a day but the less than salubrious water fountain flowed away day and night at the Resort Hotel! Culture around “The sea” is a KEY UNICEF ICH category!

I hope you feel inspired to “Respect the Ocean” via this explanation of my art today. Intangible cultural heritage creators empower Equitable Economic & Social Development. To maximise #SDG, we must put our Collective Creativity & Culture at the FULCRUM of UN SDG 17 partnerships!

As the champion pro-surfers cafe community graffiti-ed :

“RESPECT the OCEAN! Protect the OCEAN!”

For WOD2022, I pledge to Continue BEING an ICH-creating Artist, and channel my Art towards Inspiring RESPECT and Protection for the Biodiversity of Live Below Water (SDG14)!

Thank you for your time.

Cecilia

Screenshots of the World Oceans day Observance with our United Nations family and fellow Ambassadors! Thank you so much! 🙂