New York, NY (13 May, 2014)– The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and International Organization for Migration (IOM) invite youth to submit original and creative videos focusing on Migration, Diversity and Social inclusion by 27 June 2014 for consideration in the 2014 PLURAL+ Youth Video Festival.

Recognizing youth as powerful agents of social change in a world often characterized by intolerance, and cultural and religious divisions, PLURAL+ invites youth to address key challenges and opportunities related to social inclusion and cohesion, migrant integration, respect for identity, diversity, and human rights, both at local and global levels. Young people up to 25 years old are invited to submit short videos of five minutes maximum in length.

The UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, says that PLURAL+, provides youth around the world with the opportunity to submit real stories told by real people, which when widely disseminated “would help foster intercultural dialogue and understanding, respect for diversity and tolerance.”

“PLURAL+ videos touch very sensitive issues in a very real way,” said William Lacy Swing, Director General of the International Organization for Migration. “They capture the reality of people’s lives and enable young people to express profound ideas in ways that lead to dialogue.”

Nico Daswani, a member of the PLURAL+ 2013 International Jury commented, “The imagination, craftsmanship and care reflected in such a diversity of videos submitted from around the world is an indication that there is an entire generation of people determined to create and shape the world they live in. We should all be working towards helping unleash that creativity.”

PLURAL+ supports young people’s expression of their opinions by providing them with a variety of media platforms and distribution networks, including broadcasts, video festivals, conferences and events around the world. PLURAL+ not only provides young people with an effective platform to express themselves on key migration and diversity issues, but also reinforces the firm belief of IOM and UNAOC that youth are powerful and creative agents of social change.

A prestigious international jury will select three winners in each age category (9-12, 13-17, 18-25). International Jury winners will be invited to New York, all travel expenses paid, to present their work at the PLURAL + 2014 Awards Ceremony at the Paley Center for Media in December 2014.

PLURAL+ partner organizations will also award other prizes and professional opportunities, such as winning participants presenting their work at film and video festivals, conferences and events around the world.

The PLURAL+ 2014 deadline for video submission is 27 June, 2014. Further information, including guidelines, regulations, awards, and the entry form can be downloaded here and is also available on the PLURAL+ website pluralplus.unaoc.org

You can watch PLURAL+ 2013 award winning videos here

PLURAL+ is organized by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and the International Organization for Migration with the collaboration of many international partners, including: Red UNIAL, Gulen Institute, MTS Travel, SIGNIS, Global Block, Humanity Without Borders Foundation, Television America Latina (TAL), Universal Forum of Cultures Foundation, NEXOS Alianza, CHINH India, Turkish Cultural Center of New York, COPEAM, Without Borders Film Festival, IAAI GloCha, Doha Center for Media Freedom, CNTV Chile, Paley Center for Media, Amara, OjoCojo, Scalabrini International Migration Network, IUEDESP, Balkan Media Education Centre, MiCE, IOM Migration Research and Training Centre, Anna Lindh Foundation, UN Television, RAIScuola, GoodnessTV, Cine y Salud, Global Film Initiative, Insight Festival, UNICEF, MediaBus, AFS, and MTV Exit.

For more information, please contact: plural@unaoc.org