UNICEF: Beyond Sport Summit highlights the role of sport in creating positive social change

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/usa_56322.html

CHICAGO, USA, 4 October 2010 - Dozens of athletes and leaders from the world of sport gathered last week in Chicago for a summit hosted by "Beyond Sport," a global organization that promotes, develops and funds the use of sport to create positive social change in youth - goals that are shared by UNICEF.

While most would agree that all children have the right to play, delegates at the Beyond Sport summit look to sport as a means of solving myriad problems. These include bringing attention to the public humanitarian crises by working with famous athletes, mobilizing resources and resolving conflicts by bringing children and communities together.

Sport is playing a role in helping nations reach the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - intended to improve the lives of the world's poorest people by addressing problems of disease, inadequate shelter, gender inequality and environmental degradation -- especially those involving girls and young women.

"By getting them leadership skills, it also teaches them to be very self-confident about themselves, and that tackles other MDG goals such as health," said Auma Obama, from CARE International.

"Because if a girl is more self-confident, she'll be able to say 'no.' She's not so vulnerable to abuse -- in terms of possibly getting HIV/AIDS. In terms of possibly becoming a teenage mom," she said.

Beyond Sport also works to ensure that facilities built for mega sporting events -- like the Olympics and the World Cup -- are made accessible to communities who want to bring sport to children after those events are over.

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