Members of JCI Japan provide dental care and advice to children in a remote Cambodian village.
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With five years remaining until the deadline for the UN Millennium Development Goals (UN MDGs), now is the time to create programs for worldwide improvement.
As young active citizens and members of a worldwide community devoted to creating positive change, JCI Members are in a unique position to address issues central to the UN MDGs. Regardless of individual locale, every community is affected by at least one of the topics of the MDGs, and JCI has committed to helping solve these problems through the implementation of programs and fundraising.
Designing programs to address a specific goal is simple, and many Local and National Organizations have already implemented highly successful programs that target the MDGs. Think creatively when designing projects.
The JCI Awards program recognizes the best of JCI programs from across the globe at the Area Conferences and World Congress. Read on to learn how you can help address the MDG, along with award-winning projects to spark your imagination.
Innovate
JCI Members strive to create positive change, and all it takes to catalyze that action is a simple, creative idea and a passion for being better. JCI Lebanon dedicated themselves to MDG 7: Environmental Sustainability in 2008 and 2009, partnering with Lebanon’s Ministry of the environment to create CRAFT – the Campaign for Recycling Among Friends of Trees – to promote paper recycling throughout the country.
JCI Members conducted trainings at more than 400 organizations in Lebanon, including corporations, schools and government facilities. Members educated personnel on the importance and ease of proper paper recycling. In partnership with several paper recycling plants, JCI Lebanon provided special bins for recycling paper.
CRAFT is one of many excellent examples of JCI Members taking one of the MDGs, deciding on an issue important to them and taking action. After an initial pick-up of 650 kilograms of paper, CRAFT is still in operation and has proven so successful that it is undergoing a strategic restructuring to become an independent non-governmental organization.
Collaborate
Great ideas are just the first step towards an award-winning project. To expand your impact and effect broader change, work with other people and organizations that share a common interest in working towards the MDGs.
To address public health and fight HIV and AIDS, members of JCI Panama collaborated with organizations like Aid for AIDS, MINSA (Panama Department of Health) and the National Medical Students Association to reach out and help more people than they could have on their own.
The collaborative effort allowed JCI Panama to provide 400 of their fellow Panamanians with medical consultations, distribute more than 200 measles, flu and tetanus vaccines and deliver nearly 800 medical referrals to area physicians. By improving public health, JCI Members in Panama addressed two MDGs, and by reaching out to seek help in an effort to create greater impact, they added a third by creating global partnerships.
Participate
Creative ideas and passionate partners, however, are meaningless without the participation of JCI Members. JCI Ireland created the Fifty Ways to Active Citizenship program, which encourages JCI Members across Ireland and all of Europe to take an active role in the success of their communities and nations. JCI Members from every Local Organization in Ireland contributed to the project, which culminated in the creation of the www.fifty-ways.com website, which serves as a resource to JCI Members worldwide.
JCI Ireland tied active citizenship to the UN MDGs by creating four areas of concentration for their 50 ideas to be more active, including global partnership and volunteerism, environmental sustainability and ending poverty and hunger. The team effort by JCI Ireland not only created the definitive active citizenship how-to guide but won them international recognition by their peers in JCI and beyond and helped inspire JCI Members the world over.
Demonstrate
Execution is the most important aspect of project management because poor implementation can negate all great ideas, partnerships and participation. Set an example for other JCI Local and National Organizations to follow, and show strong leadership through your MDG project.
JCI Japan focused on the MDG 4: Child Health and MDG 5: Maternal Health in addition to combating HIV/AIDS and malaria with a project in 2008. Inspired by the efforts of JCI colleagues and the United Nations, JCI Japan collaborated with Local Organizations and the Ministry of Health to provide aid to Cambodians in a remote village and the surrounding region who otherwise would not have had access to proper medical and dental care.
Fifteen JCI Members, including 12 medical professionals, provided check-ups, lectures and public health materials to more than 500 local residents and children and significantly improved the quality of life for participants.
Throughout the remainder of the year, JCI will take a look at individual MDGs and the importance of taking action to improve the world around us. Stories will also feature JCI Local and National Organizations who have, through their programs, addressed the MDGs and committed themselves to creating sustainable, positive change.
Does your Local or National Organization have a project that’s award-worthy? Don’t forget to enter the JCI Awards program. Learn more.
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