The Third UN-Observed World Diabetes Day

November 14, 2009 was the Third United Nations Observed World Diabetes Day. For this special day, my husband, two daughters and I journeyed to the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site. I advocated for and was able to receive a World Diabetes Day Proclamation from the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition to the Proclamation, we also received artifacts from the Joggins Site for the Resolution Torch Living Time Capsule. This included a book about the fossil cliffs: "The Fossil Cliffs of Joggins" by Laing Ferguson as well as the official package for the Nomination of the Joggins Fossil Cliffs for Inscription on the World Heritage List.

You can find out more about the Joggins World Heritage site at:
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1285

To commemorate this day my family and I completed a Global Diabetes Walk along the beach of the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site - Find out more at: http://www.globaldiabeteswalk.net/

We also placed Resolution Torch Inuksuk Torch 04 at the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site. Included with the Inuksuk was a small, laminated cards explaining the story. Although we had planned to place two inuksuks, one for each daughter present, my youngest who is two decided that she did not want to leave her blue hoop at the site she wanted to keep it. Flexibility is the key - at least one of the inuksuks was able to be placed on the Joggins site.

Also a part of World Diabetes Day celebrations, monuments and buildings around the world are illuminated in blue. This year we made a valiant attempt to have some aspect of the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site lit in blue - See some related photos at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=172906&id=695826141

Third UN-Observed World Diabetes Day Only Days Away

It is hard to believe that the third UN-Observed World Diabetes Day is only days away. This year, we will be building upon the United Nations connection to the UN Resolution on Diabetes by taking the Resolution Torch that was started at the UN Headquarters on the first UN-observed World Diabetes Day to the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site. While there we will complete a symbolic World Diabetes Day Walk, and will receive from the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage Site a World Diabetes Day Proclamation and artifacts for the Resolution Torch living time capsule. We will also be trying to find a way to illuminate the Joggings UNESCO World Heritage site (or part of it at least) in blue. The kids and I have decorated some shorts with the symbolic blue circles and we have received some special blue circle hula hoops and pins that we will be placing to be passed on at the Joggins UNESCO World Heritage site. We will keep you posted on our World Diabetes Day adventures.

You can find out more about the World Diabetes Day Walks at: http://www.globaldiabeteswalk.net

Inuksuk Torch 02 and 03: Banff, Alberta

I placed the Resolution Torch of Diabetes Advocacy Inuksuk Torch 02 and 03 at the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks UNESCO World Heritage Site in Banff, Alberta, Canada. Included with the Inuksuks were small, laminated cards explaining the story of the Inuksuks and including this blog site address encouraging people who find the blue circle hula hoops to share when they found the torch and what happened next in the journey...I look forward to hearing more, or at least imagining more about what happened to the Inuksuks...

For more information about this UNESCO World Heritage Site: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/304

Inuksuk Torch 01: Dinosaur Park, Alberta

I placed the Resolution Torch of Diabetes Advocacy Inuksuk Torch 01 at the Dinosaur Provincial Park UNESCO World Heritage Site in Alberta, Canada. Included with the Inuksuk was a small, laminated card explaining the story of the Inuksuk and including this blog site address encouraging people who find the blue circle hula hoop to share when they found the torch and what happened next in the journey...I look forward to hearing more, or at least imagining more about what happened to the Inuksuk...

For more information about this UNESCO World Heritage Site: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/71

Inuksuk Torch 00: Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

I placed the Resolution Torch of Diabetes Advocacy Inuksuk Torch 00 at the Historic Town of Lunenburg UNESCO World Heritage Site in Nova Scotia, Canada on the second UN-observed World Diabetes Day - November 14, 2008. I look forward to hearing more, or at least imagining more about what happened to the Inuksuk...

For more information about this UNESCO World Heritage Site:
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/741

Resolution Torch Inuksuks

The word inuksuk means "something which acts for or performs the function of a person" - With the Resolution Torch of Diabetes Advocacy I have started the process of leaving blue circle hula hoops produced by the Canadian Diabetes Association as living Inuksuks at UNESCO World Heritage Sites. After igniting the torch on the first UN observed World Diabetes Day, the Second UN Observed World Diabetes Day saw the placement of the first Torch Inuksuk - a sympbolic blue circle torch intended to be passed on to help evolve diabetes knowledge, attitudes and behaviours. Torch Inuksuk 00 was left was at the Historic Town of Lunenburg UNESCO World Heritage Site on November 14, 2008 . The only thing is I have no idea what happened to this torch inuksuk. When I visited the site recently, the blue circle torches were gone, and my mind was working overtime trying to imagine the scenarios and possibilities of what could have happened to these blue circle hula hoops... There are all kinds of magical stories and possibilities...Did the hoops stay on the statue for a full day? Did the hoops stay on the statue for a full week? Did the hoops stay on the statue for a full month? More than a month? I wonder what happened...

This was a part of the epiphany I had in Ottawa at the Rideau Canal UNESCO World Heritage Site - the need to document the journey of these inuksuk torches - to create brief, weather proof cards that could accompany the torches including this blog site address encouraging people who find the blue circles to share when they found the torch and what happened next in the journey...

I plan on initiating this process with Inuksuk Torch 01 when I visit my next UNESCO World Heritage Site. I'll be interested to see what happens...