SEVENTEEN was named UNESCO’s Youth Goodwill Ambassador on June 11, becoming the first-ever K-pop group to receive this honor.
All SEVENTEEN members arrived at the UNESCO Headquarters on June 26 at 10:30 AM (local time) to attend a special nomination ceremony.
They were formally appointed as UNESCO Youth Goodwill Ambassadors, receiving a letter of designation from Secretary-General Audrey Azoulay at the UNESCO Headquarters. The group then delivered a powerful 10-minute speech, inspiring youth.
Joshua, speaking on behalf of the group, stated, “Today, we’re truly thrilled to announce that we’re joining hands with UNESCO to take our ‘Going Together’ campaign to the next level.”
He then went on to talk about their life experiences, sharing how they sang about youth’s love and hope to spread positive energy to young people their age. Even though they faced tough times, they used music to express the world’s pain and sang together to hide their sadness.
They strived to break free from these challenges and become heroes to themselves.
Joshua announced a $1 million donation, saying, “For the next chapter of the ‘Going Together’ campaign, SEVENTEEN will donate $1 million to rejoin the global youth grand scheme with UNESCO. We believe that the youth have the most creative ideas and the strongest determination to make the world a better place.”
He shared the group’s intention to support the dreams of youngsters, “By providing funds and supporting those brilliant ideas, we hope this program will serve as a stepping stone for building positive youth communities.”
He revealed that the official announcement will be made in August, and asked everyone to look forward to it.