Dianova International has been approved as an “NGO, official partner of UNESCO” (Consultative status). This formal recognition granted to Dianova International has been made possible through the support provided by the organization to the work of Dianova teams in Nicaragua in Las Marias Holistic Educational Center. This school provides primary and secondary education to more than three hundred students each year, part of whom are stemming from disadvantaged, rural areas – a commitment which was rewarded in 2010 by its integration to UNESCO’s Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)
UNESCO’s directives concerning its relations with NGOs (excerpt from preamble)
“(…) UNESCO has built up over the years a valuable network of cooperative relations in its fields of competence with non-governmental organizations representing civil society. Given the pre-eminent role that the founders of UNESCO intended non-governmental organizations to play, this partnership bears witness to the importance of the work of those organizations alongside government-sponsored action in international cooperation in the service of peoples for development, equality, international under-standing and peace.
“(…) These relations are designed, on the one hand, to enable UNESCO to secure advice, technical cooperation and documentation from non-governmental organizations and, on the other, to enable such organizations, which represent important sections of public opinion, to express the views of their members.”
In addition to its educational activities, Las Marias school develops innovative initiatives, such as “Breathing for the Future”, a UNESCO-supported project dedicated to help students and their communities to become more aware of environmental issues, under the supervision of the nicaraguayan national Deptartment of Forests (INAFOR)
This affiliation as an NGO in operational relations with UNESCO represents a milestone for Dianova International as for each one of its member organizations, as it will provide greater visibility and credibility to Dianova projects and initiatives, particularly those related to such areas essential to our common future: education and youth.
