MANY LANGUAGES, ONE WORLD

2016 Student Essay Contest and Global Youth Forum

Share your ideas and be heard… perhaps even in the General Assembly
Hall of the United Nations!
60 Students will be selected as delegates to the 2016 United Nations Academic Impact Global
Youth Forum, 25-31 July, 2016, where they will create action plans related to the United
Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The students will present these action
plans at United Nations Headquarters in New York City.
Airfare, Room and Meals will be provided by ELS Educational Services, Inc.
To Participate:
Write an original essay (2,000 words or less) discussing global citizenship and cultural
understanding and the role that multilingual ability can play in fostering these. The essay
should reflect your personal, academic, cultural and national context. Essays must be written
in an official language of the United Nations that is not your first language or primary language
of instruction during your primary or secondary education. The official United Nations
languages are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. You will need to
demonstrate both written and verbal competency in the language of the essay. You must be a
full-time university student, recommended and endorsed by a Faculty Member or University
Representative, and must be 18 years of age or older by the contest deadline.
Essay Submission Deadline: Thursday, 31 March, 2016 at 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time
(EST)
Recent News

Contest Rules
Many Languages, One World 2016 Student Essay Contest and Global
Youth Forum
The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), in collaboration with ELS Educational Services,
Inc., (ELS) invites students, 18 years and older, who are enrolled in a full-time course of study
at a college or university, to participate in the Many Languages, One World Essay Contest
(ManyLanguagesOneWorld.ELS.edu).
ESSAY TOPIC: The essay should discuss global citizenship and cultural understanding and the
role that multilingual ability can play in fostering these. The essay should reflect the student’s
personal, academic, cultural and national context.
Entries, of up to 2,000 words in length must be written in an official language of the United
Nations that is not the first language of the Entrant or the principal language of instruction
during his or her primary or secondary education. The official languages of the United Nations
are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
A Faculty Member or other Authorized Representative of the institution is required to complete
a Reference Form attesting that the Entrant is a current full-time student of the institution in
good standing, that the essay is written in a language that is not the Entrant’s first language or
the principal language of instruction during the Entrant’s primary or secondary education, and
that the entry is the Entrant's original, unaided work. Entries must be uploaded in MS Word
format to the website ManyLanguagesOneWorld.ELS.edu by 11:59 pm Eastern Standard Time
on Thursday, 31 March, 2016.
A total of 60 contest Winners will be selected through a rigorous three -stage process. Ten
winners will be selected from Entrants in each of the 6 official United Nations languages.
These Winners will be invited to New York to participate in a series of events during the week
of July 25-31, 2016. These events will include a Global Youth Forum on “Transforming our
world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” in the context of multilingualism,
cultural diversity and global citizenship at United Nations Headquarters, preceded by a
preparatory conference sponsored and arranged by ELS E ducational Services, Inc.
During the preparatory conference, Winners will work with their language group to prepare
plans of action which could be undertaken by student and local communities towards the
realization of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These plans will
be presented at the Global Youth Forum at United Nations Headquarters. Please note that
Winners will not be reading or presenting the text of their essays at this event.
ELS will pay for roundtrip economy class airfares in carriers of its choosing between the airport
nearest to the Winners’ home city and New York, and be responsible for the Winners’ travel,
room and meals for the duration of the conference (6-7 days). Sightseeing and tourism
opportunities will also be arranged by ELS. No extensions of stay or early arrivals will be
possible. Winners are responsible for all documentation relating to their journey, including
passports and visas and the costs related to these, as well as appropriate medical insurance for
their journey and temporary stay in the United States. ELS will provide each winning student
with a basic travel and accident insurance policy, for which the premium will be paid by ELS.
All Winners attending the conference will be given certificates of participation by ELS,
signifying they have participated in the Global Youth Forum arranged in cooperation with the
United Nations Academic Impact.
As a condition of participation, Winners will agree to waive liability for both ELS and the
United Nations specifying they understand that ELS is the organizer and they agree to hold
both ELS and the United Nations harmless for any injury or liability which might occur during
the conference or at the United Nations.
On the Student Entry Form, participants will have to acknowledge that they have read,
understood and agree to accept the Indemnification, Limitation of Liability and Release
statements below:

INDEMNIFICATION AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

By entering the contest, each entrant agrees to indemnify, release and hold harmless ELS
educational services, Inc., the United Nations and all of their respective parent, affiliate and
subsidiary companies, administrators, officers, directors, employees, representatives and
agents (collectively, the “RELEASEES”), from any liability, damages, losses or injury of any
kind resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from that entrant’s participation in
the contest, including but not limited to, property damage, personal injury or death which
may result from or occur in connection with, preparation for, travel to and/or participation in
the contest or from the acceptance, possession, or use or misuse of any prize awarded or
participation in any prize-related activity and for any claims based on publicity rights,
defamation or invasion of privacy and prize delivery. RELEASEES do not make any warranties,
express or implied, as to the condition, fitness or merchantability of any prize. RELEASEES
disclaim any liability for damage to any computer system resulting from access to or the
download of information or materials connected with the contest.
For the avoidance of doubt, this limitation of liability is a comprehensive limitation of liability
that applies to all damages of any kind, including (without limitation) compensatory, direct,
indirect, or consequential damages; loss of data, income, or profit; loss or damage to
property; and claims of third parties. Entrants agree that RELEASEES have not made nor are in
any manner responsible or liable for any warranty, representation, or guarantee, statutory,
express or implied (including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability,
title, and fitness for a particular purpose), in fact or in law, relative to the contest or the prize
awarded. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, RELEASEES do not make any express
or implied warranties or representations with respect to any promotional website and
RELEASEES shall not be liable for the consequences of any interruptions or errors related
thereto.
RELEASEES are not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, illegible, inaccurate, delayed,
garbled, damaged, stolen or misdirected submissions, or problems of any kind, whether
mechanical, human or electronic. RELEASEES are not responsible for technical, hardware or
software malfunctions, telephone failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network
connections, inability to access a website, inability to submit an entry, or fraud, incomplete,
garbled, or delayed computer transmissions or inaccurate transcription of en try information,
whether caused by RELEASEES, users or by any of the equipment or programming associated
with or utilized in the contest or by any technical or human error which may occur in the
processing of submissions which may damage a user’s system or limit an entrant’s ability to
participate in the contest. Releases are not responsible for late, lost, incomplete, illegible,
damaged or misdirected entries or mail.

INFORMATION RELEASE
I understand that while I retain the rights to my essay, by participating in Many Languages,
One World Global Youth Forum, I grant ELS and the UN (“RELEASEES”) a worldwide, exclusive,
royalty-free, and irrevocable license to use the content of the essays in whole or in part. In
addition, I grant ELS permission to photograph, record, and videotape all activities during the
conference. These recordings and photographs will become the property of ELS for didactic
use at their discretion, in all media, in perpetuity, to promote multilingualism and global
understanding. I also grant the United Nations permission to photograph, record, and
videotape all activities during the conference. These recordings and photographs will become
the property of the United Nations.
For the avoidance of doubt, I hereby irrevocably grant RELEASEES p erpetually, exclusively, for
all media throughout the world (including, but not limited to, print, non -theatrical, audio,
video, film, CD, Internet and any other electronic medium presently in existence or invented
in the future), the right to use and incorporate (alone or together with other materials), in
whole or in part, recordings, photographs, and/or images made of me or submitted by me to
RELEASEES, my name, voice or likeness (“Image”), in written, audio, video or still photography
format, in television advertising, radio advertising, press advertising, promotional material,
and any and all internal documents, including but not limited to annual reports, public
relations displays and other publications, including website publications, without payment or
any other consideration. I acknowledge RELEASEES’ right to discontinue use of my Image
without notice and/or to edit or treat my Image at its discretion. I also acknowledge that
RELEASEES may choose not to use my Image at this time, but may do so at its own discretion at
a later date.
I hereby agree that I will not bring or consent to others bringing claim or action against
RELEASEES on the grounds that my Image, or the manner in which my Image is/are used, is
defamatory, reflects adversely on me, violates any other right whatsoever, including, without
limitation, rights of privacy and publicity.
I hereby release RELEASEES from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, causes of
action, suits, costs, expenses, liabilities and damages (“Claims”) wh atsoever that I may
hereafter have against any or all of them in connection with my Image.
 How to Enter
Essay Topic:
Write an original essay (2,000 words or less) discussing global citizenship and cultural
understanding and the role that multilingual ability can play in fostering these. The essay
should reflect your personal, academic, cultural and national context. The essay must be
written in an official language of the United Nations that is not your first language or the
principal language of instruction during your primary or secondary education. The official
languages of the United Nations are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. The
essay must be your own, unaided work. For complete contest rules and information on how to
enter, please visit Contest Rules and Frequently Asked Questions.

Eligibility Guidelines
1. Full-time college or university students, 18 years of age or older by 31 M arch 2016, can participate in the
contest.
2. A University Faculty M ember or Authorized Representative must recommend you for participation in the
contest by completing the form under the tab: Fa culty Member/University Administrator Reference Form. The
university representative must attest that you are a full time student in good standing and that you are
submitting an essay in an official language of the United Nations that is not your first language or principal
language of instruction in your primary or secondary education. S/He must also attest that the essay you are
submitting is your own, unaided work.
3. Functional knowledge of English is required for participation in the preparatory conference.

Entry Process
1. Write your essay according to the contest rules and eligibility guidelines.
2. Share your essay with the University Faculty M ember or Authorized Representative who recommended you so
that s/he can attest to the fact that you have followed the contest rules.
3. Have that Faculty M ember or University Administrator complete the Faculty Member/University Administrator
Reference Form in support of your participation in the contest.
4. After the Faculty Reference form is submitted, the Faculty M ember will receive an email from M any
Languages, One World requesting confirmation of the reference.
5. M ake sure that your Faculty member looks for this email and clicks on the confirmation link. They may need to
check their spam or junk mail folder. If your Faculty member does not confirm their recommendation, you will
not be able to submit an entry.
6. Once the Reference Form has been received and confirmed by M any Languages, One World, you will receive an
email with further information, and a link where you can complete your Student Entry Form and upload your
essay to the contest website.
7. The Student Entry Form must be completed in its entirety, and in English. If your entry form is incomplete, you
will be disqualified. Be sure to include your government-issued identity card number or passport number, and
submit your full name as it appears on your official documents or passport. Do not submit your photo.
8. At the bottom of the Student Entry form you will find the link to upload your essay to the contest website.
9. The essay must be submitted/uploaded in M S WORD format. Please title your essay as follows:
LastName_FirstName-LanguageofEssay (ie, Smith_Jane-Arabic). Do not include a cover page with personal
information, as the essays will be evaluated anonymously.
10. Only essays submitted through this link will be accepted. You can only submit one essay.
11. Essays must be received by 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time on Thursday 31 March, 2016 in order to qualify.
Do not wait until the deadline date to submit. Give you rself time to ensure that your essay will be received
successfully.
Please Note: If the contest directors learn that you have violated any of the rules, or that
you have neglected to cite sources, or have used any translation service or software to
write your essay, you will be immediately disqualified.

Selection Process
Step 1: Two panels of judges will read and evaluate essays on the quality of ideas expressed
and their fluency of language. These two scores will be combined, and the top essayists will
pass to the interview stage of the competition.
Step 2: The top essayists will be invited to complete a personal interview regarding their essay
with a member of our international panel of judges. This interview will be conducted in the
language of the essay, online via SKYPE video call. You will be expected to show your
government-issued identification or your passport at the beginning of the interview, to verify
your identity.
Step 3: Winners will be selected based on the scoring of Step 1 and Step 2. Selection criteria
includes the originality and quality of thought and the written and spoken language proficiency
in the essay and interview.

Notification
Please do not send inquiries regarding your individual status as an entrant. We will not
send notification until after the winners have been chosen and confirmed their attendance
at the Global Youth Forum.
A total of 60 Winners will be chosen: 10 Winners for each of the six official UN languages. In
mid-May, ELS Educational Services, Inc. will begin notifying Finalists for interviews. ELS
Educational Services, Inc. will send Winners a letter of invitation to the 2016 Global Youth
Forum and ELS Preparatory Conference. At that time, Winners will also receive complete rules
of participation for the ELS Preparatory Conference. Winners are required to sign a statement
promising to abide by all of these, and acknowledging that they will be sent home
immediately, at their expense, if they disobey any of them.* Winners will also receive detailed
instructions about visa application, e-ticketing for the round trip (non-refundable) air ticket,
arrival procedures and the tentative agenda of Conference, which will take place from 25-31
July 2016.
*No e-ticket will be issued until the Winner’s signed statement has been received by Many
Languages, One World
 Frequently Asked Questions
1. What does "first language" mean?
Your first language is the language you grew up speaking - for example at school or at home.
2. What is meant by Language of Instruction?
Language of instruction means the principal language in which most of your primary and secondary school
classes were taught.
3. I grew up speaking two languages and speak them fluently, can I write in one of them if it is an official
language of the United Nations?
One purpose of this contest is to encourage multilingualism and the study of a new language. Therefore, if you
grew up speaking one of the official languages of the United N ations (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian
and Spanish) or received your primary or secondary education in one or more of those languages, you cannot
write your essay in any of those languages.
4. I am a graduate student - can I enter the contest?
Yes, anyone 18 years of age and older by the contest deadline, and currently enrolled full-time in a college or
university degree program can enter the contest.
5. I am a high school student and graduating this year - can I enter the contest?
Only full-time college or university students, aged 18 years or older at the time of the contest deadline may
enter the essay competition.
6. I am enrolled in a language program at a college but it is not at a degree level - can I apply?
No, only students enrolled in a full-time college or university degree program are eligible to participate.
7. Why am I required a sponsor/Faculty/Authorized University Reference?
One of the requirements of the contest is that your application is supported by a Faculty M ember or University
Administrator at the institution where you are currently studying. The Institutional Representative is required
to attest that you have followed all of the contest rules and that you meet the eligibility requirements. After
you write your essay, please share it with your Institutional Representative who should then be able to attest
to your work by filling out the Faculty M ember/University Administrator Reference Form. We advise that s/he print
and sign a copy of the Faculty/University Reference form with the university’s seal as a supporting document
and have it ready if needed for further verification.
8. Who can complete the Faculty or University Reference Form?
The person providing your reference must be a competent authority from your university or college (e.g.
professor, dean of studies or college administrator). The reference should know you well enough to be in a
position to attest that: a. you are a full-time student of the institution in good standing, b. your essay is
written in a language that is not your first language, nor was it the principal language of instruction during
your primary or secondary education. AND c. The reference must also attest that your essay is your original,
unaided work.
9. The link to the Student Entry Form is not working. What do I do?
If this happens, please clear your browser history and your cache and try again.
10. How long should my essay be?
Your essay must be 2,000 words or less
11. Can I include citations/bibliography as part of my essay? Will they be included in the word limit of 2,000?
Please add citations and references as appropriate, and to avoid plagiarism. The references, including
citations, footnotes, endnotes and bibliography will not count toward the word limit of the essay.
12. If I win the contest, do I have to pay to visit the US for the Global Youth Forum?
ELS Educational Services, Inc. (ELS) will pay for each contest winner’s travel, room and meals throughout their
participation in the Global Youth Forum and Conference. However, winners are required to pay for the
expenses related to their passports and visas. For detailed information on the contest rules, please visit:
http://www.els.edu/M anyLanguagesOneWorld/ContestRules
13. If you are experiencing issues loading the form or are having trouble submitting your essay, please try
using another browser
If you have any questions not mentioned here, please write us at:
manylanguagesoneworld@els.edu