Art is a universal language that brings everyone and everything together, a powerful

vehicle for dialogue between generations and different backgrounds.

In support of the COP28 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Friends of Arts

and Science came together in Dubai, UAE, on 7 December at the Four Points By

Sheraton. The community of next generation leaders, hosted by Dr. Roman Chukov, the

Center for International Promotion of Russian Initiatives, with Regine Guevara, producer

of AsiaTV studios, aims to preserve, protect and promote natural and cultural heritage

around Asia, Africa, Latin America, and beyond.

International artist Xander Pratt, born in Zimbabwe, with roots from Ghana, brought to

Dubai his unique painting pieces from The New World Collection, which was first

introduced in COP27 last year, as part of a continuous conversation and creative tribute

to climate action. The series is a message to the future. With a unique style of modern,

abstract surrealism, the special alphabet contains diverse languages of the world from

Arabic to Hebrew to Zulu to Sanskrit, some ancient hieroglyphics, as well occasionally

human experiences and the elements of nature. This year, Pratt was awarded by the

International Youth Center as Artist of the Year. With Regine Guevara as art curator, he

has sold solo pieces of the Sultanate of Sulu, ICESCO and UNESCO. Together, they

have been able to breathe life and emotion into NFTs, while building bridges between

reality and the Metaverse. They will stay in Dubai for 2 more weeks to promote the

Global South Initiative with local artists through shows, exhibitions and other productions.

A moderator of the session, a founding member of the Friends for Leadership, Dr.

Roman Chukov concluded the session by sharing the feedback on the projects

presented during the session. “Today we heard a lot of interesting and scalable youth-led

SDGs solutions, which can be replicated in many countries of the world. A new

generation strives to make a difference and lead by example while uniting the efforts

globally to help the UN not only reach the 2030 Sustainable Agenda, but also to

strategise about the future goals post-2050. We plan to continue these discussions and

work under the auspices of the Ecumene Club in the series of forthcoming international

events”, he added.

In this year’s COP28 which is the most attended climate conference yet to date, the side

event co-hosted by Ecumene “Towards Generational Transition” shed light on the crucial

roles of today’s youth as well as women in building sustainable societies, especially in

the Global South that are most affected by climate action, and where scalable solutions

are also in most need of support. Other expert speakers in the panel included John

Aggrey ‒ Founder & CEO of HIRED Consult, Member of the Friends for Leadership,

Ekaterina Grushko – G20 Youth Sustainability Delegate 2021, Jorge Laguna-Celis –

Head of the UN One Planet Network Secretariat; Yulia Mullina – General Director, the

International and Comparative Law Research Center; Anastasia Nikitina – Chief

Sustainability Officer, Forbes Russia; Igor Tsvirko – Principal Dancer, the Bolshoi Ballet;

and Zekai Wang ‒ CEO, YouTHINK China.

Leading up to this, international next generations leaders network Friends for

Leadership, who are operating in more than 130 countries worldwide and act under the

recently acquired UN ECOSOC Special Consultative status, has been working towards

the global spread of our work and support the UN-related projects and initiatives globally.

Other side events over the last 5 years with AsiaTV studios have included partners such

as UNESCO Artist for Peace, Regenesis Art Hub for Sustainability, and Urban Catalyst

Lab at the ECOSOC Youth Forum which have dutifully highlighted local and regional

case studies around alternative solutions for climate justice.

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