Seventeen becomes first K-pop group to give speech at UNESCO’s Youth Forum

Seoul, Oct 27 (IANS) K-pop stars Seventeen are cementing their place internationally as they will now be attending the 13th edition of the UNESCO Youth Forum, set to take place on November 14-15 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. They will deliver a speech, making them the first K-pop artist to ever do so.

At the UNESCO Headquarters’ historic main hall on November 14, the popular boy band will present a speech and a performance as a representative of youth through a special 60-minute session.

This marks a call for the public to open their eyes and ears, so that they can pay attention to UNESCO's themes. The focus for the session is on how education and solidarity among youth can bring a better future and radiate positivity. This is the first time a musical artist has been invited for a dedicated session at the forum.

UNESCO Youth Forum is a global forum that provides youth with the space to engage in constructive dialogue, along with the opportunity to share ideas and with the Member States of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as a part of the UNESCO General Conference.

The forum has been held every two years since 1999 as with the General Conference, and will be attended this year by representatives from the 194 Member States of UNESCO, as well as representatives from youth related institutions under the UN and governmental/non-governmental organisations around the world.

Ahead of the event, the Korean company PLEDIS Entertainment, UNESCO and the Korean National Commission for UNESCO (KNCU) also announced that they signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which signified a global expansion of the existing partnership between PLEDIS Entertainment and KNCU.

The band's agency Pledis Entertainment issued a statement on October 27 and said: "Seventeen will take the stage at the 13th UNESCO Youth Forum at 7 p.m., local time, on November 14. They will be assigned a special session and give a speech and perform for about an hour."

Under PLEDIS Entertainment’s previous partnership with KNCU, Seventeen launched their ‘#GoingTogether’ campaign globally in August back in 2022, as advocates of education and youth initiatives.

Multiple projects were set in motion over the past year, including a donation campaign with the boy band’s fans on the International Day of Education held last January.

The group donated a significant part of the proceeds from their world tour ‘Seventeen World Tour' ( ‘Be The Sun’) to provide educational aid for children in Malawi.

Campaign booths were also set up at the act’s fan meets, in order to raise awareness of the importance of making education more accessible to underprivileged children.

The K-pop music giant HYBE said: “Educational aid from UNESCO helped the Republic of Korea (South Korea) recover from the aftermath of war 70 years ago.

“An artiste from that same country, speaking to youth around the world at UNESCO about hope achieved through solidarity and education, will be both a moment of historical significance and a momentous milestone for Seventeen as an icon in K-pop.”

The announcement of the group’s extended partnership with UNESCO arrives at the peak of excitement in K-pop, with the group’s new mini album/ EP ‘Seventeenth Heaven’ having just been released on October 23.

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