Members of the new Youth Council of the UNEP ‘Faith for Earth’ Initiative met for the first time to structure the foundations of their Council and establish various working groups. Mr. Daniel del Valle Blanco, Youth Delegate, represented the Sovereign Order of Malta in this assembly and will continue to follow each of the monthly sessions.

The Faith for Earth Initiative, established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2017, is tasked with strategically engaging and partnering with faith-based organisations to collectively contribute towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda.

Several months ago, the Director of the Initiative, Dr. Iyad Abumoghli, communicated UNEP’s interest´s in creating a Youth Council for this program, in which 15 to 30 young people from around the world would represent various faith-based organization, and aim to work cooperatively for the creation of various environmental protection strategies linked to a basic foundation of faith.

During this inaugural meeting, each of the Faith for Earth Youth Councilors introduced themselves and the important work they have been doing in the last year. The members of the UNEP Staff briefly introduced their expectations of the creation of the Youth Council and the activities and structure to be followed. Continually, mention was the democratic methods that will be followed for the election of a Chair and two vice Chairs for the leadership of the council. The meeting concluded with the confirmation of the date for the next meeting where the elective, technical, and logistical development processes of the Youth Council of the UNEP Faith for Earth Initiative will begin.