Oral

The Right to Development is the human right to realize a vector of multiple human rights through the development process. Adopted by the United Nations in 1986 Declaration on the Right to Development, the United Nations proclaimed this new human right, “by virtue of which every human person and all peoples are entitled to participate in and contribute to and enjoy economic, social, cultural, and political development, in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms can be fully realized.” This panel will discuss the answers to critical questions about the implementation of this human right for the public’s health: What does the Right to Development bring to rights-based social justice? How can the Right to Development be protected and enforced in a globalized world? How can implementing the Right to Development help meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a set of eight goals adopted by the United Nations to save billions of people from poverty, hunger, sickness, death, discrimination and environmental self-destruction? What can Public Health professionals do to advance the Right to Development and contribute to meet MDGs in the US and abroad? The panelists will propose answers to these questions and a framework for the audience to consider the application of the Right to Development as a means to address the MDGs in public health practice.

Session Objectives: 1. Discuss the human right to development as a means to realize global development goals and improve public health systems 2. Discuss ways of applying right-based approaches to achieving the Millennium Development Goals

CE Credits: Medical (CME), Health Education (CHES), Nursing (CNE), Public Health (CPH)