International Day of Friendship 2019
International Day of Friendship- 30th July 2019!
Today is International Day of Friendship and we want your help to celebrate on the forums!
What is International Day of Friendship all about?
International Day of Friendship stems from the work of UNESCO and the UN who in 1997 brought forward a proposal to promote international peace and prevent world conflict. There was a recognition in the years following that reducing conflict involves a strong focus on educating the next generation, young people and children, about peace, harmony and friendship.
From the important work on peace that has happened globally over the last 20 years, International Day of Friendship was announced in 2011 to celebrate friendship between people, cultures and countries, in the hope that friendship will help to build peace and connect people from all backgrounds! International Day of Friendship is all about building social connections between people for a better, brighter, and more peaceful global future! As young people and the next generation of leaders, we have a role to place in ensuring world peace 
What can I do to get involved in International Day of Friendship?
- Reach out to those around you
- Start conversations about your interests, shared experiences and passions
- Listen to others, try to understand different perspectives and challenge yourself to be open to new ideas and ways of seeing the world
- Hold space for those in your life to come to you and share their views/thoughts/feelings/ideas
- Let your friends know that you value them
- Share the importance of International Day of Friendship, and it's history, with those around you to educate others about steps they can take to promote international peace through friendship
Want to learn more about the International Day of friendship? Check out information on the UN website here, and see the release from 2011 declaring International Day of Friendship here
Activity time!:
- What is the role and value of friendship in your life?
- How can friendship help to promote peace and harmony?
- What will you do this International Friendship Day to celebrate the friendships in your life?
Comments
I too am jumping onto this one a little late, sorry!
But I think the idea of international day of friendship is super cute and also our social supports are so so important in maintaining positive mental health.
Sometimes you need your alone time but in the end it is always better for you to have your friends around 
- What is the role and value of friendship in your life? Friendship plays a big role in my life! I always had trouble finding good housemates who I could live and get along with and having that stress at home led to some crappy times. Now I live with two friends who I had fell out of touch with for a while but moved in with and I couldn't be happier with my situation! They're lovely people and so supportive and I value every single day with them
- How can friendship help to promote peace and harmony?I believe that when you're surrounded by good people, you're happier, which makes you exert happier vibezz on the world making it a better place. Also I've found if you treat everyone you meet like your friend, you'll find people will respond to you better too!
- What will you do this International Friendship Day to celebrate the friendships in your life?Even though I've technically missed International Friendship Day, this weekend I'm going to put my study aside to spend some quality chill time with my friend for her birthday
I'm a bit late to the conversation @Jess1-RO but I LOVE the idea of International Day of Friendship so much! I like to think of every day as one of Friendship in my life, haha! 🙂
- What is the role and value of friendship in your life?
I wouldn't be who I am without my friendships, so friendship has undeniably had a huge role in my life, and continues to be a major part of how I understand myself and how I spend my time - with the people who nurture and support me.
- How can friendship help to promote peace and harmony?
Friendship is all about unconditional acceptance, it's a bond of mutual affection with another person or group of people. A bond, in other words, based ideally on peace and harmony. Therefore, friendship is essential to the promotion of peace and harmony in the world, and friendship can be used to promote them in big and small ways. I try to start small by reaching out to my friends with a message every so often reminding them they are amazing and that I am enormously grateful for their presence in my life and in the world 🙂
- What will you do this International Friendship Day to celebrate the friendships in your life?
I suppose I'm too late to answer this one properly, but in honour of International Friendship Day, I will try to reinstate contact with several of my friends, because as a result of various life factors, I know I've been neglecting my friends lately.
What is the role and value of friendship in your life?
To me, friendship means being able to have an enjoyable time with someone and looking out for each other. Friends have been a great distraction and support to me while I've been dealing with family problems.
How can friendship help to promote peace and harmony?
A good friend usually respects your opinions, even if they disagree with them. They stick up for you when you need to have your voice heard or someone is being negative towards you. I've heard an expression that says that a problem shared is a problem halved. I think this is true in a lot of cases, especially when you have the support of friends. Sometimes, chatting to a friend can broaden your perspective and help you to be more tolerant of other cultures and diverse experiences.
What will you do this International Friendship Day to celebrate the friendships in your life?
We got in touch with an old family friend who moved interstate and let her know how much we appreciated her support.
I completely forgot all about friendship day!
1. Friendship is a special thing to me, and I could not live without it. But I know that I’m struggling with it currently too. Ever since I was in prep, my friends would leave me in some way, shape, or form. But anyways, I think I’ll have to agree with @WheresMySquishy on this one. Having a friend has been important to me, because I need someone to physically sit with and hang out with. Someone I can emotionally rely on, and keep myself safe with.
Currently, I have a Japanese Buddy. She is a little shy, but we’re building our friendship up. Having the ability to make friends with people who don’t speak much English, is a pretty good gift to have.
I know that I definitely need my friends right now. Sometimes we all need a little time with our friends
2. Again, I agree with WheresMySquishy. Especially the sticking up for you scenario. My friends never did/do that, and it kinda hurts. But some people stick up for others in different ways. I think......
3. As I didn’t know it was friendship day today, I’ll do an activity tomorrow.
But I do have my Japanese buddy, so I look after her during break times and take her to the correct classroom. But for my friends, I’ll try to look out for them. I know that some of them need it.
I love this kind of topic! We should have a GR about it at some point... 😉
// Nothing is impossible. The word itself says “I’m Possible” //
What is the role and value of friendship in your life?
I talk to my friends more than I talk to my family. Friends are so important as they can help us problem solve, introduce us to new things, and help keep us safe during really dark times like @xXLexi_Lou122Xx mentioned.
How can friendship help to promote peace and harmony?
There's truth to the saying 'love trumps hate'. Many people who resort to violence or other antisocial acts have been mistreated by people - we are all social creatures and need love and connection in our lives.
What will you do this International Friendship Day to celebrate the friendships in your life?
Spam them with gifs as usual 😛
I am going to tag a bunch of members who might be interested in this one! To share the friendship today, tag more members to invite them into this conversation!
@recharging_introvert @reach804 @lokifish @JanaG @xXLexi_Lou122Xx @Andrea-RO @Andiamo97 @lennycat2017 @mspaceK @cmoo99
