ATD Fourth World at the United Nations

Kathleen Saint-Amand and Alycia Burnside

ATD Fourth World had a very busy spring at the United Nations (UN) in New York. As part of the 63rd Commission on Social Development (CSocD63, February 10th -14th), we presented the webinar, “Keeping the promise of the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development by Achieving Legal Identity for All.”  ATD Fourth World’s Main UN Representative, Maryann Broxton, spoke on the Working Group to End Homelessness side panel, “Centering Homelessness in the Light of the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and Achieving Agenda 2023,” along with offering closing remarks at the Civil Society Forum. We also cosponsored a side panel with the NGO CSocD Committee’s Grassroots subcommittee, “Building a Collective Future: Grassroots Voices on Emerging Priorities for the Second World Social Summit,” and with Life Project 4 Youth (LP4Y), “Marginalized Youth in Action: Addressing Climate Crisis.”   

As part of the 69th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69, March 10th -21st) in March, UN and New York team intern, Kathleen Saint-Amand, spoke on UNICEF’s side panel, “Years of Her Life: Gender Responsive Social Protection across the Life Course.” Read her full presentation here.

Aye Aye Win, President of the International Committee for October 17th (ICO17), and Jan Switek, from ATD Fourth World’s International Advocacy Office, joined Maryann in visiting Member States to raise awareness and support for the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The visits included ten Member States from the global North and South, along with visits to the ILO, the OHCHR, and UN DESA.

At the end of March (24th-26th), Maryann travelled to Washington D.C. with ATD Fourth World New York Volunteer Corps members and Activists for the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s (NLIHC) 2025 Housing Policy Forum.  

In April, Alycia Burnside, ATD Fourth World Volunteer Corps member, Gallup, New Mexico,  joined Kathleen and Maryann in attending the first 3 days (April 21st -23rd) of the 24th session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). After the opening ceremony in the General Assembly, they had an opportunity to meet ECOSOC President, Ambassador to the Mission of Canada, Bob Rae. They also attend panels on advancing Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination, Indigenous women’s access to justice, a youth led roundtable, and Indigenous-led protocols on free, prior, and informed consent. They also attended the “Second World Summit for Social Development Informal Hearing on the Food for Thought Paper.”

From January to April, the Social Justice Movie Club also convened, showing two episodes of The 1619 Project: “Democracy” and “Race,” “Stamped from the Beginning,” and “Miss Navajo.” These gatherings brought together NYC Activists, Allies, UN agency members (UNICEF and UN DESA), and NGO’s (UNANIMA and LP4Y) to freely discuss important topics in an informal setting.