Programs

New Voices 4 Global Solutions Essay Contest

Overview

CGS is excited to announce the launch of the New Voices 4 Global Solutions Essay Contest!

Do you believe that international law, justice and human rights are vital issues?

Across the US, young people are lifting their voices to support more effective international institutions and laws to meet the global challenges posed by conflict, human rights violations, threats to democracy and the rule of law, and the climate crisis.

CGS’s New Voices 4 Global Solutions Essay Contest offers young people (aged 18-30) across the country the opportunity to propose and argue for ideas to strengthen the global governance system on such subjects  as ending war, the guarantee of human rights, or protecting the environment.

Compelling essays will be published in our flagship journal Mondial and the contest winner will win an expenses-paid trip to attend the 2024 Ventotene International Seminar (September 1-6), on the island of Ventotene, Italy!

We’re looking for big ideas that can make a real difference!

If you need some inspiration, check out some of our initiatives, such as the Law Not War campaign supporting the universal jurisdiction and effectiveness of the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice, and the Mobilizing an Earth Governance Alliance campaign, or the initiatives that we support, such as campaigns for an elected United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, a United Nations Rapporteur for Democracy, a UN Emergency Peace Service, a World Court of Human Rights, and an International Anti-Corruption Court, all of which offer realistic ways to strengthen global governance. If you have got ideas how to bring one of these initiatives to fruition, include it in your essay!

Learn More by Registering for the Online Workshop

The 2024 Essay Contest is now closed. Stay tuned for 2025 Workshops to learn more about our advocacy initiatives, get inspiration for an essay topic, and guidance on submitting essays.

Register Here

Eligibility Criteria & Guidelines

Eligibility

U.S. Residents aged 18-30.

Deadline

June 30, 2024, midnight Pacific Time (PT).

Essay Length and Style

Up to 2,000 words.

Authors should adhere to the APA style guidelines to the extent possible for formatting, citations, and referencing as much as possible.

Submission

By email to outreach@globalsolutions.org (subject line “Essay contest submission”). Please submit your essay as a PDF.

Authorship

Essays (or parts of essays) by the author that have already been submitted for a class or course are eligible for the contest. In such cases, it should be clearly indicated that part or all of the essay has already been submitted elsewhere. In all cases essays submitted to the New Voices 4 Global Solutions Essay Contest must be written entirely by the submitting author.

Publication Rights

Authors grant the Citizens for Global Solutions the right to publish and distribute their work in “Mondial“, CGS’s flagship publication, and CGS website and related platforms. In the case that an essay is chosen for publication, authors are expected to maintain an open and cooperative stance towards feedback and proposed revisions required for publication.

Non-political and Non-promotional

Submissions must refrain from advocating for specific political parties, individuals, or commercial interests.

Ethical Considerations

Authors must strictly adhere to ethical standards, giving due credit to sources and avoiding any form of plagiarism. Using Generative AI tools will result in disqualification.

Prize Award & Conditions

Prize

The contest (first place) prize is a place at the 2024 Ventotene International Seminar (September 1-6). The seminar, organized annually on the island of Ventotene, Italy, by the Altiero Spinelli Institute for Federalist Studies, gathers young  federalists and leading experts from the European and World Federalist Movement to explore federalist thinking on European and global issues.

Costs Covered

Costs to attend the seminar (travel from the US to Italy and within Italy to Ventotene, and accommodation at Ventotene for the duration of the seminar, as well as a stipend for meals) will be covered by CGS.

Contingency

Should circumstances preclude the winning author from traveling to Ventotene at this time, a conference of similar prestige and value can be substituted in consultation with the winning author. 

Disclaimer

Please note that if no essay is submitted meeting the contest eligibility and submission rules, the prize may not be awarded.

Judging Criteria

Essays will be judged according to the specified criteria:

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Relevant and timely content

Submissions should address current events, emerging issues, or pertinent topics within the realm of global governance.

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In-depth analysis

Submissions are expected to provide comprehensive analysis and well-substantiated arguments pertaining to the chosen subject matter.

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Originality and uniqueness

Authors are encouraged to offer original insights, unique perspectives or creative solutions on topics pertinent to global governance.

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Clarity and writing style

Submissions should be clear and engaging. Authors should strive for a polished and accessible writing style.

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Use of credible sources

Authors are required to employ reputable and verifiable sources to corroborate their arguments and assertions.

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Respect for diverse perspectives

Authors should exemplify inclusivity and respect for various viewpoints, fostering constructive and insightful discourse.

Questions?

Please use the form below to ask further questions. Alternatively, you can email to outreach@globalsolutions.org (subject line “Essay contest submission”).

Anthony Vance

Anthony Vance

Senior Representative, Bahá'ís of the U.S. Office of Public Affairs

Anthony oversees the development of the Bahá'ís of the United States Office of Public Affairs programs and strategic direction. He joined the office in 2010 after spending four years at the Baháʼí World Center in Haifa, Israel representing it to the diplomatic community, civil society, and parts of the host government. A lawyer by training, he spent 21 years in the U.S. Agency for International Development in legal and managerial positions in Washington, Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Botswana, and Egypt. Anthony holds a B.A. in Economics, an MBA, and a J.D. from Harvard University.

James Lowell May

James Lowell May

Program Officer

James May is a programme and project development specialist. He has lived in Serbia since 2005, and prior to joining Citizens for Global Solutions, worked across the Western Balkans on a broad range of issues including human, minority and child rights, accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity, Holocaust commemoration, democratic participation, social justice and economic empowerment, and environmental restoration.

James began working in the Western Balkans on issues related to accountability for human rights violations, first for the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, a coalition of NGOs active in the countries of the former Yugoslavia, as the network’s development coordinator, then the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights, leading a research project documenting the nomenclatural of the Milosevic Regime, and then the Federation of Jewish Communities in Serbia, running a Holocaust research and education project.

James then transitioned from accountability to efforts to protect and fulfil the rights of marginalised communities. For a decade James worked for the Centre for Youth Integration, an NGO that provides specialized services for children and youth in street situations in Belgrade, where he began as a volunteer before taking up a permanent role, while concurrently volunteering for community mental health organizations, as well as consultancy work for a number of local and international organizations, and most recently branched out to apply his experience to the environmental sector, focussing on social impact assessments and community-oriented nature-based solutions projects.

James has a degree in Archaeology from University College London. He was born and grew up in Great Britain. He is an avid cyclist.

Honorable David J. Scheffer

Honorable David J. Scheffer

Former U.S. Ambassador

Amb. David J. Scheffer is senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), with a focus on international law and international criminal justice. Scheffer was the Mayer Brown/Robert A. Helman Professor of Law (2006-2020) and is Director Emeritus of the Center for International Human Rights at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. He is Professor of Practice at Arizona State University (Washington offices). He was Vice-President of the American Society of International Law (2020-2022) and held the International Francqui Professorship at KU Leuven in Belgium in 2022. From 2012 to 2018 he was the UN Secretary-General’s Special Expert on UN Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials, and he was the Tom A. Bernstein Genocide Prevention Fellow working with the Ferencz International Justice Initiative at the Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (2019-2021).

During the second term of the Clinton Administration (1997-2001), Scheffer was the first ever U.S. Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues and led the U.S. delegation to the UN talks establishing the International Criminal Court (ICC). He signed the Rome Statute of the ICC on behalf of the United States on December 31, 2000. He negotiated the creation of five war crimes tribunals: the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, and the ICC. He chaired the Atrocities Prevention Inter-Agency Working Group (1998-2001). During the first term of the Clinton Administration (1993-1997), Scheffer served as senior advisor and counsel to the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dr. Madeleine Albright, and he served on the Deputies Committee of the National Security Council. Ambassador Scheffer received an A.B. (Government and Economics) from Harvard College, B.A. (Honour School of Jurisprudence) from Oxford University (where he was a Knox Fellow), and LL.M. (International and Comparative Law) from Georgetown University Law Center.

Alex Andrei

Alex Andrei

Director of Technology and Design

Alex is an experienced professional in designing digital products, managing online applications, and providing IT consulting services. Their background is in working with online applications design, digital accessibility, learning management platforms, user experience and interface design for online and mobile applications. They have over 10 years of experience working with higher-education institutions, nonprofits, and business.

He believes that in today’s rapidly evolving landscape, organizations need to adapt and thrive in the digital realm to gain a competitive edge and be as successful as they can be. Alex specializes in supporting organizations in their digital transformation initiatives and creating effective user experiences and driving efficiency through technology to empower people.

As Director of Technology and Design, Alex focuses on identifying opportunities to integrate various technologies in ongoing operations and new initiatives at CGS to support programs, partners, and team members in achieving their goals.

Alex has a passion strategically leveraging cutting edge technologies to maximize the value of what can be done with limited resources to create a lasting impact and great experiences for people.