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The United Nations International Day of Families is celebrated each May at the United Nations headquarters and around the world. The Universal Peace Federation joins in commemorating this day because it considers the family as a microcosm of the global community and because sustainable peace is grounded in the family as the most intimate social unit, the school of love. The theme of the 2012 observance was:
Ensuring Work Family Balance
Building on the theme of "balance" within the family, UPF programs also explored ways to develop a balanced partnership between husband and wife, balance spirituality and practical affairs, and balance public and private responsibilities. Click to read the UN's background note on the theme in English | French | Spanish | Chinese | Arabic | Russian. See also UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's message in English | French | Spanish | Chinese | Arabic | Russian.
Commemorations organized by UPF chapters, with dates of upcoming events in parentheses:
Buenos Aires, Argentina - UPF headquarters
Yerevan, Armenia - School #194
Vienna, Austria, UPF Headquarters
Belarus, various locations
Cotonou, Benin - Foreign Affairs Banquet Hall
Sao Paulo, Brazil - City Hall
Chork, Cambodia
Bafoussam, Kousseri, and Yaoundé, Cameroon
Montreal and Toronto, Canada - forum in Montreal and conference at the Don Valley Hotel in Toronto (June 9)
Bogota, Colombia - UPF headquarters
Pointe-Noire, Congo - Hotel Hilary
Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire - City Hall
Brno & Prague, Czech Republic - UPF Headquarters
Quito, Ecuador - Former Senate Hall of the National Assembly
Helsinki, Finland - UPF Headquarters
Libreville, Gabon, Sylvia Bongo Ondimba Foundation Center
Tbilisi, Georgia, school for mentally handicapped children and the Women's Information Center
Stuttgart and Frankfurt, Germany - UPF Headquarters
Accra, Ghana - UPF Headquarters
Georgetown, Guyana - Family Federation Headquarters
Reykjavik, Iceland - Downtown parade
New Delhi, Gangtok, and Lucknow, India
Jakarta, Indonesia - UPF Peace Center, KHBP Kebayoran Baru
Daliat El Carmel, Israel - home of a Druze sheik
Almaty, Kazakhstan - UPF Headquarters
Panevezys, Lithuania - with the NGO Atjauta
Kehlen, Luxembourg - UPF Headquarters
Bamako, Mali - Mayor's hall
Majuro, Marshall Islands - Marshall Islands Resort Hotel
Reduit, Mauritius - Maryse Justin Stadium
Chisinau, Moldova - Central District City Hall
Nepal - events in 15 cities
The Hague, Netherlands - Christus Triomfatorkerk
Parnell, New Zealand - Holy Trinity Cathedral
Managua, Nicaragua - Real Intercontinental Metrocenter
Niamey, Niger - UPF Headquarters
Oslo, Norway - Diakonhjemmet University College
Trujillo and Lima, Peru - Municipal offices of Trujillo, Peruvian Congress (May 25)
Moscow, Kamensk, Kazan, Khabarovsk, Novosibirsk, Perm, Pokrovskoye, Ryazan, St. Petersburg, Vladivostok and Yekaterinburg, Russia
San Marino - UPF Headquarters
Freetown, Sierra Leone - UPF Headquarters
Honiara, Solomon Islands - Rock Havens Inn Hotel
Colombo, Sri Lanka - Auditorium of the Department of Education, Western Province
Castries, St. Lucia - UPF Headquarters
Taipei, Taiwan - UPF Headquarters
Bangkok, Thailand - Rung Manee Pattana Community, Bangkapi
London, UK - House of Lords and Chiselhurst
Washington, DC, US - The Washington Times (May 29)
Montevideo, Uruguay - UPF Headquarters (June 10)
Lusaka, Zambia - UPF Headquarters
In addition, events were planned in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jamaica, Malaysia, Paraguay, Rwanda, Turkey, and Ukraine.
A UN Report on family issues recommends that the preparations for the observance of the 20th anniversary of the International Year of the Family in 2014 focus on developing and implementing policies in the areas of reducing family poverty and social exclusion; ensuring work and family balance; and advancing social integration and intergenerational solidarity. Governments, UN Agencies and bodies, civil society organizations, and academic institutions are encouraged to share good practices and data on family policy development, especially in the areas mentioned above. For more information, click here.
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