The Briefing ...
	UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors: Face to Face
	UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors: Face to Face
	The UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY SUMMIT
	Welcome Brooke Johnson

Stan Bernstein of UNFPA began the Goodwill Ambassador briefing with an overview of population issues. Daniela Colombo, AIDOS, followed with a powerful presentation conveying the devastating consequences of female genital mutilation and stressing the importance of making the elimination of FGM a priority in the Face to Face Campaign. Joseph Speidel of the Hewlett Foundation gave an update on resource mobilization.

UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Mary Banotti, M.E.P., informed the conference delegates over lunch of her recent IPPF-sponsored parliamentarian visits to Uganda and Zambia. Dr. Pramilla Senanayake, IPPF, and Wendy Thomas, Population Concern, then updated the Goodwill Ambassadors on teenage sexuality issues.

Presentations continued through the afternoon with Patricia Hindmarsh, MSI, and Pamela Delargy, UNFPA, focusing on refugee camps and reproductive health. The Goodwill Ambassadors were given a new inter- agency field manual describing reproductive health in refugee situations. Susan Rich, Wallace Global Fund, and Steven Sinding, Columbia University, teamed up to discuss family planning and contraceptive shortfalls. The first day of briefings concluded with an update on population and the environment by Don Hinrichsen, UNFPA.

The second day of the conference opened with remarks by Kunio Waki, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director, who applauded the creative energies of conference participants to improve the reproductive health care and rights of women worldwide and stressed the value of public and private advocacy program partnerships. A final presentation on HIV/AIDS was made by Dr. Peer Sieben, UNFPA Representative (Botswana), and Mpule Kwelagobe, UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador (Botswana). Ms. Kwelagobe engaged the audience with her personal account of the devastating effects of HIV/AIDS on her generation and her country. She attributed her survival to a UNFPA-funded peer education program on the risks associated with teenage sex. Dr. Sieben reinforced Mpule's experiences with hard- hitting statistics on HIV/AIDS focusing on the epidemic in Botswana.

June 26-27, 2000, at the invitation of The International Foundation for Population and Development (IFPD), Swiss partner of the Face to Face Campaign, the first UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Conference convened in Geneva.

UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors representing nations from Western Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, Southern Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean participated in the conference along with Face to Face Campaign NGO partners and donors.

The UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador program now includes 33 outspoken celebrities, exceeding the number of UNICEF celebrity spokespersons and helping to demonstrate that women's issues are as vital as children's isues.

The UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Conference opened with official welcomes and remarks by Dr. Nafis Sadik, UNFPA Executive Director, and by Ingar Brueggemann, IPPF Director-General. Both speakers reaffirmed the commitment of their agencies to the Face to Face Campaign and thanked the UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors from around the globe for their help in saving women's lives.

A major factor in the success of this first-of-its-kind, two-day conference was the high level of attendance by Goodwill Ambassadors - 21 in all!

On the second day of the conference, Corrie Shanahan, Senior Information Officer, UNPFA IERD, and Walter Coddington, Face to Face Campaign Manager, briefed the Goodwill Ambassadors on the UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Program and the UNFPA/IPPF Face to Face Campaign. For many conference participants, this provided the first opportunity to hear about the scope and multifaceted initiatives of the Face to Face Campaign. During the briefing, several UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors shared their Face to Face Campaign project work. Goodwill Ambassadors Kattis Ahlstrom (Sweden), Mikko Kuustonen (Finland) and Goedele Liekens (Belgium) introduced clips from their respective Face to Face television documentaries. Video clips of Face to Face public service announcements by UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors Linda Gray, Catarina Furtado and Waris Dirie were also shown along with a video news release of UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Geri Halliwell's visit to the Philippines.

Afterwards, the Goodwill Ambassadors met informally to share their views and experiences. The enthusiasm and energy of the Goodwill Ambassadors were evident as they vocalized their desire to do more, increase communication between themselves and collaborate on future Face to Face projects.

Meanwhile, in a separate session, Face to Face Campaign NGO partners and donors had a chance to discuss resource mobilization and priority issues.

The UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Conference coincided with the special session of the UN General Assembly titled the "World Summit for Social Development and Beyond: Achieving Social Development for All in a Globalizing World." This UN General Assembly Summit convened to track the progress of commitments made in Copenhagen in 1995 for eradicating poverty, achieving full employment and strengthening social integration.

Numerous heads of State and VIPs attended the Summit in Geneva. Among them was Prince Albert of Monaco, who socialized with the UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors during a reception at the Palais des Nations celebrating the official opening of the UN Special Session.

Dr. Bertrand Piccard, UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador and Face to Face Campaign Spokesperson for Switzerland, delighted the reception participants by parachuting to the ground and speaking about social development, using his hot-air ballooning as a metaphor for life. While at the reception, Dr. Piccard was honored by UN General Assembly President Theo-Ben Gurirab for accomplishing one of the greatest feats in aviation history and for moving on to more human-centered challenges by agreeing to become a UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador.

A new staff member has been added to Face to Face International to help manage the increasing work load. As Development Manager, Brooke Johnson will focus on fundraising and development. Brooke is very committed to the advancement of women's rights internationally and has spent three years in developing countries working, studying, and researching. Brooke brings a valuable private sector perspective to Face to Face Campaign development, having worked as a marketer in a high-tech company for several years. Brooke is located in the New York office of Face to Face International. Please feel free to contact her with your questions, needs and new project ideas.