Matthew Cimone, 2007 Chosen as UN Goodwill Ambassador
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In 2007, Matthew Cimone, a student in his final year of the International Development Studies (IDS) co-op program, was chosen from young people across the country to represent Canada for a two-year term with the United Nations, focusing on issues that affect the world’s youth.
One of the ambassadors’ first responsibilities was to travel to New York this fall to represent Canada at the UN Global Youth Leadership Summit, the first of its kind to recognize the role of youth in international development goals. The delegates at the one-week summit met with top organizers from agencies like UNICEF and the World Food Program, and they discussed issues related to youth and global poverty -- with a particular focus on how sport and culture can bring about positive change.
Cimone represented both Canada and , a humanitarian organization that uses sports and play programs to encourage healthy physical, social and emotional development of refugee children, former child combatants, children in conflict areas, and young people at risk of or orphaned by HIV/AIDS.