GVI is a network, catalyst and think-tank for creating a universal-values-driven international system. It has been in existence since 2003, with the participation of hundreds of actors from among UN staff, the diplomatic corps, civil society, the private sector, and citizens, comprising a network of over 3,000 persons. We believe that rising to the global challenges and potential of our times calls for an effective, inclusive and adaptive global governance regime based on the values of the United Nations. GVI draws on the values promoted in the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Millennium Declaration, the Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and related international instruments. These values include peace, diversity, tolerance, justice, accountability, transparency, equality, human dignity, solidarity and environmental sustainability.
What do these values look like in practice? While not meant to be exhaustive, GVI outcomes over the years have revolved around the following solution areas:
- Have a personal mission: be the change
- Hire for integrity
- Take risks and embrace the 21st century
- Communicate, communicate
- Be clear on accountability
- Build in participation
- Operationalize collaboration
- Be a steward of resources
- Make diversity practical
- Make leadership accessible
Through measuring values and cultures in values assessments, and supporting behavior change through coaching, we focus on the role of the individual actor in embodying these values. GVI empowers actors and teams in and around the United Nations and larger international system to translate values into behaviours, relationships and organizational culture, as well as the processes, programming and policies of the international system.
This initiative, with a mission to revitalize the international system based on core universal values, has been evolving since 2003. Beginning as the Wisdom at Work Association, it grew into the International Vision Collective and then the Global Vision Institute. GVI is tasked with supporting professionals in and around the UN system in creatively exploring and actively pursuing the realization of universal values in their lives and work. Its purpose is to nurture a network of professionals, a common vision, and a wider culture in the international community devoted to universal-values-based methodologies, policies, programming and practice.
Donations to GVI help to offset operational and administrative costs, contribute to compensation of personnel, and also further sustain values-driven collaborative projects by UN change agents and Global Visionaries in the GVI community. GVI is a tax exempt 501(c)3 organization so your contributions are tax deductible.
GVI Mission
Global Vision Institute (GVI) is committed to actualizing transformation in international systems. GVI works with United Nations entities to support the personal, organizational and social transformation needed to align policy and practice with the UN values for peace, justice, equality, human dignity, and environmental sustainability. GVI uses innovative tools and methodologies to support evolution toward the full expression of UN values.
GVI Objectives
- Creating and sustaining a network – To provide a space for frank exchanges among UN staff, diplomats, civil society members, private sector actors and academics, participating in principle in their personal capacities. This will seek to encourage people to connect with their own personal sense and experiences of universal values, as the foundation for all work on values, and also to promote informal fellowship networks around which ideas and experiences on values can more easily flow.
- Building awareness, knowledge and skills – To facilitate sharing of experience and information, as well as values-based professional development. This will include forums for exchanges with relevant personalities; workshops, retreats and other development activities; and identification and dissemination of best practices, research and documentation on values promotion and application initiatives.
- Vision, mapping and action development – To collectively develop an evolving, comprehensive, actionable vision of a values-based international system. This will involve facilitating creative exploration of options for new ways of addressing issues, policies and mechanisms, and for relating and collaborating among actors, which is cognizant of growing global complexity, expanding human awareness and new technologies; as well as identifying and pursuing, individually and collectively, concrete action towards realization of selected options.
- To do all such other lawful and ethical things as may be incidental or conducive to the mission of the initiative and/or shall further the above objectives or any of them.
GVI Programs & Services
- Transformational workshops on innovation, collaboration and personal commitments to action
- Values assessments and values analysis for capacity development
- Coaching and consulting with country and organizational teams
Our current workshops include: