UN NGO Committee Meeting Presenters
The United Nations NGO Committee (Non-Governmental Organizations) on Sustainable Development invited Friends of Autistic People, FAP, to present at its General Membership Meeting in New York City on October 27. The focus of the meeting was Supporting Mental Health & Well-being for the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.
The keynote address was delivered by His Excellency Dr. Caleb Otto, Ambassador of Palau to the United Nations, a longtime advocate of mental health and well-being around the world, followed by several well-known experts on various aspects of the subject. These included H.E. Ms. Dessima Williams, Special Advisor on Implementation of Sustainable Goals to the President of the 71 st UN General Assembly, and Professor Judy Kuriansky, Ph.D. Columbia University, Main UN NGO Representative, the International Association of Applied Psychology who both spoke eloquently on how at the base of all sustainability initiatives must be Mental Health and Well Being.
Dr. Caleb Otto, Ambassador of Palau to the UN and Brita Darany von Regensburg, Founder and President of FAP
Brita Darany von Regensburg, founder and president of FAP, a Greenwich based all volunteer advocacy organization for children and adults on the autism spectrum spoke about FAP’s work and plans as it relates to the work of the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development.
FAP’s plans for an Independent Community of Homesteads where adults with autism will be able to choose to live, is designed with sustainability in mind and is very much in line with the NGO Committee’s objectives. “The Community of Homesteads, a community-engaged, farm centered development, for which FAP is raising funds and is looking for land donors in CT, will be designed to reduce carbon footprint and increase environmental sustainability…” This plan cross-cuts through many aspects of sustainability from enabling people with autism/disabilities to preserving the environment and open space.
“Our plans are reproducible in other countries of the United Nations,” said Darany von Regensburg to the members of the UN NGO Committee, the general membership and guests, going on to offer her services as an advisor.
For further information or to consider a legacy and tax benefits through a land donation to help adult children with autism or just to make a cash donation, please contact Brita Darany von Regensburg, 203 661-8510, fap.autismct@gmail.com. Online donations may be made visiting www.autisticadults.net