“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.”

– Nelson Mandela

Mandela fought for freedom, peace, and equality.

Today is the fourth year the world celebrates Nelson Mandela Day. On the 90th birthday celebration of Mandela, in Hyde Park in 2008, the UN and the Nelson Mandela Foundation decided that this day should be an annual day to celebrate the life and work of Mandela and of a culture of freedom and peace. The basic idea behind the day is simple: The United Nations calls everyone to give 67 minutes of their day for advocating human rights, whether it means supporting your chosen charity or serving your local community. The 67 minutes are based on the 67 years Nelson Mandela gave of his life fighting for conflict resolution, democracy, human rights, peace, and reconciliation.

Mandela was born in South Africa, in 1918. He became one of the most well-known anti-apartheid activists, and was imprisoned in 1964 for his views. He spent more than 27 years in prison, during which the political climate of South Africa stormed but essentially stayed unchanged. Straight after his release in 1990, Mandela plunged into his life’s work, and in 1991 was elected the first black president of South Africa. In 1993, he was awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize.

Today is World Population Day.

The world's population is over 7 billion people.

In the year 1810 the world had one billion people. Today, in 2012, the world is a home to more than seven billion people. July 11th was declared as the World Population Day in 1989 as a response to population issues, such as growth, food shortage, and the right to plan a family.

This year’s theme is Universal Access to Reproductive Health Services. The United Nations Population Fund Website (UNFPA) presents the theme well in the following slogan: “Delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.” The slogan illustrates how population issues are not just about the number of births, but that factors such as the human right to plan a family, the mother’s health and wellbeing, and the quality of the baby’s future upbringing must also be recognized.

According to the UNFPA website, there are 222 million women every year who would like to avoid or delay pregnancy but lack access to reproductive health services. In addition, 800 women die every day in the process of giving birth, and every year 1.8 billion adolescents grow up without the knowledge or services that they need in order to protect themselves.

These facts are shocking and instead of the business-political side they highlight the human side of population growth.

There are several lectures, talks, plays, conferences, and films viewings going on in various cities today. For events that are going on in London click here.

Also in July:

Dharma Day – July 3rd

After having lived in many countries, traveled through various cultures, and read piles of academic books it’s always humbling to discover that there’s still basic knowledge in this world that I haven’t acquired.

Mount Carmel is a place of pilgrimage

Today is the Martyrdom of the Bab, (according to the BBC: “a major holy day”) and until this morning I had never heard about it. My immediate reaction was skepticism: the day must not be that major…Turns out, Martyrdom of the Bab is not only a holiday I’ve never heard of, but that it’s a part of the Baha’i fate, a religion completely unknown to me.

And, this religion is not even a very distant one: there are approximately 6 million Baha’is in the world, 6,000 of them in the UK. Realising that there is a world religion out there (or, out here, in London, probably!) which I had never heard of felt the same as finding out that Pluto is no longer a planet. The row of paper mache planets I had built in third grade is now dated and inaccurate because it includes Pluto, a whole extra paper mache ball which, I found out a few years ago, has not been considered a planet since 2006.

Anyway, I am, and was, both dumbfounded and thrilled. Today is the Martyrdom of the Bab and I looked into it a bit further…

International Day of Cooperatives was proclaimed by the UN in 1992, but only in the recent years has the day grown in significance.

2012 is the International Year of Cooperatives

Globalisation and changing economy have highlighted the importance of the international cooperative movement and the idea of international community, and, to quote the UN secretary Ban Ki Moon, “The global financial and economic crisis has demonstrated the resilience of alternative financial institutions such as cooperative banks and credit unions.” 2012 was, thus, named the International Year of Cooperatives by the United Nations.

There are over 1.4 million cooperative businesses across the world, and over 3 billion people rely to cooperative businesses for their livelihood. In the UK, there are 5450 cooperative businesses. This year, we can expect to see a range of fairs, exhibits, contests, and campaigns world wide, all looking to raise awareness of cooperative businesses, and strengthen relationships between cooperatives and other actors such as governments.

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle,
and the life of the candle will not be shortened.
Happiness never decreases by being shared.

Buddha and his five disciples

This widely spread Buddhist saying captures the essence of Dharma day: a day to celebrate the first teachings of Buddha. The word Dharma translates to ‘truth’ or to ‘the way to enlightenment.’ This date, every full moon of July, marks the day in Siddhartha’s life when he, right after his enlightenment, sought out his five original disciples and begun teaching them what he had learned.

This day is also known as Dharmachakra, or the First Turning of the Wheel of Dharma, which implies that Dharma day was the day the Buddhist fate begun to form and spread. In ancient times, the Dharma day also used to mark the beginning of rainy season…

Today’s date commemorates a day in 1976 when ten thousand school children gathered for a march in Soweto, South Africa, to protest the poor quality of their education and demanding the right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of children were shot and more than a thousand were injured in the protest.

The International Day of the African Child has been celebrated since 1991. It is an important day for campaigning for children’s rights, and for essentials such as health care and education. Moreover, it is a day for African children to celebrate and voice their opinions through drama, poetry, or organized debates. In addition, thousands of football matches for children take place across African countries on this day.

Although every year has its own unique theme, most years so far have highlighted the lack of quality education for children in Africa. The gap between legislation and practice is enormous. All African countries recognize the United Nations declaration of Human Rights and agree that all children are entitled to good, basic education. According to the Right to Education project, however, there are 75 million children in the world who do not have access to basic education, and 150 million children currently enrolled will drop out before completing primary education and least two-thirds of them are girls. Out of the 75 million children approximately 40 million are in Africa.

Watch this video about how Mozambique celebrated International Day for the African Child two years ago.

Today the world celebrates Music Day, also known as Fete de la Musique. On this day, anyone can make music of any genre in any location, provided that the music is free. The main purpose of World Music Day is to make all genres of music accessible for everyone.

The day originated in France in 1982, but it is now observed by 110 countries all around the world. Each year, events around World Music Day consist of free performances organized in parks, public squares, and indoor venues, as well as unofficial concerts given along city streets.

Today is the longest day of the year, or Summer Solstice! It is not an official, religious, or even a UN observance day but Summer Solstice has had symbolic and spiritual significance around the world for thousands of years.

During summer solstice, people gather to celebrate in Stonehenge

Humans have always wondered and been mesmerized by the power of sun. The word ‘solstice’ derives from Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still).

 According to the BBC different religions have celebrated Summer Solstice in the following ways: “Celts celebrated with bonfires that would add to the sun’s energy, Christians placed the feast of St John the Baptist towards the end of June and it is also the festival of Li, the Chinese Goddess of light.”

In the UK alone, hundreds of different traditions are practiced during Summer Solstice. Gathering at Stonehenge is particularly popular for the ancient, religious significance of the place. Stonehenge is usually only accessible from a distance and visitors can admire it from the Visitor’s Center or from along a guided path. On the longest day of the year, however, the organization that protects English historic artifacts and environment, English Heritage, allows 20,000 people to come and celebrate among the stones freely.

Apart from the celebrating and praying, Summer Solstice used to have a third purpose: the day used to be absolutely essential for one’s well being. Associated with agriculture, the summer solstice was a reminder that a turning point in the growing season had been reached.

Every year, on June 20^th, the United Nations observes World Refugee Day. Some countries also organize an annual refuge week.

Burmese refugees march on World Refugee Day.

In the UK, the refuge week is from the 18^th to the 24^th of June. Refuge week is a time to recognize the hardships, determination, and courage of people who are forced to leave their homes due to war and oppression. Moreover, in the UK, refuge week is a time to celebrate the various contributions refugees bring to the country. The Telegraph lists ten examples of refugee contributions, among which are the following:

– One of Britain’s most famous buildings, Hampton Court Palace, was designed by a French Huguenot refugee.

– It is believed that fish and chips was brought over in the 17th century by Jewish refugees from Portugal.

– Hip-hop musician, political activist and designer M.I.A. is a Sri Lankan refugee.

– A son of an Italian refugee designed the Millennium Dome.

In 2011, there was a 20% increase in the amount of asylum seekers around the world. The on-going conflict in Afghanistan means that the country has more asylum seekers than any other country in the world. In 2011 alone 36,000 Afghans requested asylum. Other examples of countries producing a high number of asylum requests are Serbia, China, and Pakistan. United States, France, and Germany received the most requests for international protection. In 2011, UK was the seventh biggest receiver.

Today is the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought. The aim of this day is to highlight the different ways in which we can prevent desertification and cover areas that are in draught. The reason why it’s important to fight desertification is that moist, healthy soil maintains biodiversity, whereas dry land destroys life.