Message-ID: <Pine.SUN.3.91.950907094650.22754J-100000@igc3> Date: Thu, 7 Sep 1995 09:49:01 -0700 From: Art McGee-IGC User Support <mailto:support4@IGC.APC.ORG> Subject: UN Consultative Status for the APC To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L <mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU>
PRESS RELEASEDATE: August 12, 1995
CONTACT: Edie Farwell Tel: +1-415-442-0220 Fax: +1-415-546-1794 Email: mailto:apcadmin@apc.org
ASSOCIATION FOR PROGRESSIVE COMMUNICATIONS (APC) ACHIEVES CONSULTATIVE STATUS TO THE UNITED NATIONS
The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) has been granted Consultative Status, Category 1, with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
Category 1 is the highest level that a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) can achieve with the United Nations.
The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is the most extensive computer network in the world dedicated specifically to serving NGOs and citizen activists working for social change.
Organizations with Category I status are entitled to submit written statements to the Council, to be granted hearings and to propose agenda items for consideration by the Council and its subsidiary bodies. Category I status also allows APC to designate official representatives to the United Nations in New York, Geneva and Vienna.
APC will use the newly awarded Category I status to advise the United Nations and affiliated organizations on appropriate uses of information and communications technology, and to ensure that NGOs have adequate access to information and communications technology.
APC will also help the United Nations fulfill its mandate of disseminating information publicly by providing tools and expertise on distributing information via electronic networks targeted specifically for NGOs. Given the current worldwide interest in the Internet, the accreditation of APC is timely as the United Nations can access APC's expertise in this area as they strive to make use of the Internet themselves.
APC has had a long history with the United Nations and has been instrumental in forging communication links between NGOs and the United Nations.
In 1992, APC served as the primary provider of telecommunications for NGOs and UN delegates during the preparatory process and on-site at the Earth Summit (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This effort established computer networking as a powerful mechanism for better integrating NGOs into all aspects of United Nations conferences from preparation to follow-up. To provide continued access to UN events, APC has directed similar initiatives at the:
* 1993 United Nations Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, Austria
* 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt
* 1995 World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen, Denmark
* 1995 Climate Conference of the Parties to the Climate Convention in Berlin, Germany
* 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China
Throughout the year, APC works closely with several United Nations agencies to make them and their information more accessible to NGOs.
For further information on APC, contact;
APC International Secretariat Rua Vicente de Souza, 29 22251-070 Rio de Janeiro, BRASIL Tel: +55 (21) 286-0348 Fax: +55 (21) 286-0541 Email: mailto:apcadmin@apc.org
APC North American Regional Office 18 De Boom Street San Francisco, CA 94107 USA Tel: +1(415)442-0220 Fax: +1(415)546-1794 Email: mailto:apcadmin@apc.org