A STROLL WITH Under-Secretary-General GYAN ACHARYA (For United Nations Day)

Credit: UN-OHRLLS

I was a panelist at a book discussion during the just concluded 2014 Port Harcourt Book Festival, and the book we discussed was “Interventions: A Life at War and Peace”, by Kofi Annan and Nader Mousavizadeh. In course of the interaction  we discovered that, over the years, popular opinion of the United Nations has been of an organization made for the elite first-world nations to discuss their selfish interest, rather than an organization for “We the peoples…” as the UN Charter says. However, all that is slowly changing.

October 24th is United Nations Day and my guest, Mr Gyan, is saddled with the job of bringing the impact of the UN down to the worlds most vulnerable countries. USG Gyan Acharya is the High Representative for the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries, and small island developing states.

In course of this stroll, we discussed the 69th General Assembly; the work going on at the UN-OHRLLS; the MDGs; and much more. Here’s my conversation with USG Acharya;

A STROLL WITH RICHARD SAUL WURMAN (For World Development Information Day)

Richard Saul Wurman embodies creativity, curiosity, understanding, and innovation—all in one. An architect, designer, and author of 83 books; Wurman is best known for founding TED in 1984 which, 3 decades later, has grown into the biggest conference for discussing ideas and innovation around the world.

The following are some comments that Richard sent to me after a conversation where I asked him about his TED journey.

A STROLL WITH LUKE THOMAS (For World Food Day)

   "One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." ~ Virginia Woolf

(Image Source: Luke Thomas) 

I get the rare privilege of reporting from a world class kitchen or restaurant once every year, thanks to World Food Day. This year, I'm at Luke's Dining Room at Sanctum on the Green to catch up with my guest, the youngest head chef in the United Kingdom, Luke Thomas.

Luke, who recently turned 21, on 2nd October, began his culinary career at 12 and has worked for many prestigious establishments including; the Chester Governor Hotel, Liverpool One, the Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai, Alinea in Chicago, to name a few. In 2009, Luke won the Future Chef competition organized by Springboard and ever since he's been bouncing his way to the top through his diligent work and mature leadership.

Luke and I discussed a whole lot; from cooking, to global hunger, to even the English Premier League. Do well to grab a snack for this mouthwatering stroll. Here's our conversation;

A STROLL WITH CIARA JUDGE, EMER HICKEY, and SOPHIE HEALY-THOW (For International Day of the Girl Child)

“Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That’s what little girls are made of.” ~ Bethany Hamilton 

(Image Credit: GSF)

Apart from searching for keywords on the web, every year Google embarks on a search for smart teens around the world globe with creative solutions to problems in our world today.

Supported by LEGO, National Geographic, Scientific American, and Virgin Atlantic, this year’s Science Fair drew hundreds of entries from around the world, and out of those entries 15 finalists emerged. The finalists won different awards in their different age categories, but there was a grand prize. Yes, the big one, and this year’s grand prize went to a team of 3 Irish girls; Ciara Judge, Sophie Healy-Thow, and Emer Hickey.

I was lucky to catch up with these three smart and beautiful girls for a stroll. It was the first time I ever attempted strolling with three guests simultaneously (Thanks to Sharon, from Google, for giving the push), and the girls and I had so much in course of this stroll. Happy International Day of the Girl Child to every young lady out there, this stroll is dedicated to you.

A STROLL WITH GIRL UP (For International Day Of the Girl Child)

“Girls should not give up. As long as they believe in their dreams, they would one day see where it takes them. I dream too, and I’m already living some of my dreams…” ~ Zuriel Oduwole

October 11 is a day set aside by the United Nations to celebrate girls all around the world, and to mark this year’s observance, I’ll be taking an exclusive stroll with Melissa Hillebrenner, the Director of Girl Up.

Girl Up is a campaign of the United Nations Foundation that supports millions of adolescent girls growing up in developing countries. Girl Up’s vision is that, all girls, no matter their geographical location, have the opportunity to become educated, healthy, safe, counted, and positioned to be the next generation of leaders.
 
Melissa and I talked about this unique day, Girl Up’s vision and the journey so far, as well as the contribution we all can make, in our own little way, to support the cause of the girl child. Here’s our conversation;

A STROLL WITH GOSSY UKANWOKE (For World Teachers Day)

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” ~William Arthur Ward

Despite being called the ultimate profession, that is, the profession that makes other professions. Over the years, teaching has been relegated to the bottom of the pyramid in many countries around the world. For many University graduates today, it’s only a last resort when they can’t find white collar jobs, and I guess the question you’re asking is why is this so?

October 5th is World Teachers day and today’s guest, Gossy, and I take a walk to discuss possible answers to this question, as well as the future of education and the evolution of the traditional classroom.

Gossy is the founder of Beni American University and BAU Online (Nigeria's first Online University), and his dream is to leverage on technology to transform how education is provided in this 21st-Century-Africa. Previously featured on CNN African Startups and Forbes, in 2010 Gossy also founded Students Circle Network; an international, educational social network for college and high school students, providing free course resources, peer to peer learning, study groups and support services.

Join us. Here’s my stroll with Gossy;