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MILAN – Whilst in attendance at the Nerazzurri Christmas dinner, an event organised for the club’s sponsors, Javier Zanetti found time for a word or two on the team’s current spell: “We hope to build of the performance we put in at Verona but winning our next game.

“That would be important and would make for a more relaxing Christmas break! We have great faith and we’re convinced that the team can continue to grow. In order to wear the Nerazzurri jersey, the players need to want to work hard and focus solely on football,” explained Zanetti.

There also was a mention for Massimo Moratti and newly returned boss Roberto Mancini: “Moratti loves this club. Inter are his team – the club is always in his heart. I know Mancini very well and it’s been lovely to see him again as we embark on this journey together.

“It’s important that club and team alike continue to grow. And keeping that in mind, another win on Sunday would be a massive step forward,” concluded the Nerazzurri vice-president. 

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MILAN – Whilst in attendance at the Nerazzurri Christmas dinner, an event organised for the club’s sponsors, Javier Zanetti found time for a word or two on the team’s current spell: “We hope to build of the performance we put in at Verona but winning our next game.

“That would be important and would make for a more relaxing Christmas break! We have great faith and we’re convinced that the team can continue to grow. In order to wear the Nerazzurri jersey, the players need to want to work hard and focus solely on football,” explained Zanetti.

There also was a mention for Massimo Moratti and newly returned boss Roberto Mancini: “Moratti loves this club. Inter are his team – the club is always in his heart. I know Mancini very well and it’s been lovely to see him again as we embark on this journey together.

“It’s important that club and team alike continue to grow. And keeping that in mind, another win on Sunday would be a massive step forward,” concluded the Nerazzurri vice-president. 

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NEW YORK – The Inter Campus journey has been a long one. 17 years have passed since the first centre was opened in Recife, Brazil in 1997. The project has grown exponentially since then, with centres springing up wherever sport – and the Nerazzurri jersey – could make a difference.

The initiative developed organically, borne of a desire to make a social contribution using the joy of football. It’s a passion that has taken Inter Campus to the four corners of the Earth: from Cambodia to Chiapas, Russia to Angola, Israel to Palestine.

The Inter Campus journey is one seemingly without end, as the project tackles the wide array of problems that afflict the poorest areas of the world on a daily basis. Drugs, violence and a lack of education and integration are just a few of the issues covered.

Yesterday, Inter Campus visited New York to testify as to how sport can be an effective tool against violence towards children. During the Sport, Children and Development conference at the Trusteeship Council Chamber of the United Nations, Massimo Moratti and Javier Zanetti presented the project to a prestigious, impassioned audience.

Moratti recalled how Inter Campus was formed out of “a courageous attempt to help children, defeat fear and ensure that hope was not extinguished. A big football club like Inter cannot overlook its social responsibility to those in need, especially in regard to children. Being such a well-respected club, we couldn’t not launch a project like Inter Campus.”

Moratti went on to explain how these values are an intrinsic part of the Nerazzurri history and an important element of the club’s identity. Thanks to their symbolic value, the Nerazzurri jerseys “make those who wear them feel important, winning them instant respect because they are part of a great project.”

Moratti then thanked Inter for the passion with which the club has carried the project forth, before the attendees were shown a short film detailing the activities and philosophy of Inter Campus.

Despite the illustrious figures in the chamber, there was a distinct rustle of excitement when ex-Inter and Argentina captain Javier Zanetti took to the floor. Zanetti emphasised the great professionalism, dedication and responsibility that have enabled the Inter Campus project to flourish.

“The Moratti family’s sense of respect for other human beings has made Inter Campus one of the foremost social responsibility initiatives in the sporting world,” stated the Nerazzurri vice-president. Zanetti was quick to point out that the effectiveness of Inter Campus is also down to the proximity of the project to local communities. It has a presence in a great many countries, working tirelessly to further children’s rights to protection, development and the ability to make informed choices.

This spirit is embodied by one young man from the PUPI Foundation, the Inter Campus partner organisation run by Zanetti himself. Once the youngster passed the maximum age limit for the project, he decided to dedicate himself to helping new recruits by working as a volunteer rather than bringing his involvement to an end.

The curtain was brought down on the event to the sound of rapturous applause. Jerseys were exchanged happily. The Inter Campus journey, of course, does not stop here. It lives on in the smiles of the children and in the recognition the project has received over the years from the international institutions.

Inter Campus’ achievements fill the Nerazzurri family with great pride. Not only does the club aspire to be the best on the field of play, it is also engaged in a relentless pursuit of social excellence. Spurred on by a burning desire not to let down the thousands of children who pull on the Inter jersey every day, it’s a challenge we will do everything in our power to rise to.

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NEW YORK – Millions of young people across the world take part in sporting activity every single day. Sport has the power to educate and empower them, particular those facing adversity. Sport can help them to develop basic life skills, improve their health, further their development and promote school attendance.

Sport can also have a wider impact in terms of benefitting the community through teaching children to resolve conflicts and establish peaceful relations. Moreover, playing sport can help to heal children and communities ravaged by war, instability or natural disasters.

This was just one of the many subjects discussed yesterday at the Sport, Children and Development conference, held at the United Nations Trusteeship Council Chamber in New York. Inter Campus, which was invited to take part as an example of best practice in the field, was represented at the event by Massimo Moratti and Javier Zanetti.

The Italian Permanent Representation to the UN was one of the real driving forces behind the conference, organising the event in collaboration with the Jamaican Representation as Italy’s presidency of the Council of the European Union draws to a close. 2014 also marks 25 years since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Italian and Jamaican ambassadors were on hand to inaugurate the event. Starting by highlighting the rights set forth in the Convention, Italian Ambassador Sebastiano Cardi talked of the importance of access to leisure, rest and free time, all of which are essential to young people’s healthy development within the community. After a detailed review of sporting values, Cardi emphasised just how much events such as these promote sustainable development, in turn contributing to the implementation of the Post-2015 Development Agenda, which will in itself become the reference point for the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals until 2030.

Jamaican Ambassador Courtenay Rattray explained how both governmental policies aimed at promoting participation in sporting activity from a young age and the country’s “culture of possibility” are delivering impressive results in Jamaican athletics and bobsleighing.

Save the Children Representative to the International Institutions Francesco Aureli moderated the first session of the conference, giving the floor to Marta Santos Pais, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children.

Santos Pais spoke of her belief that sport carries with it a wealth of positive memories that accompany us from childhood. These memories embody the type of rules, values and sense of equality that are at the base of a democratic community. Where natural disasters, poverty and social insecurity are the characteristics of daily life, sport is one of the best ways of introducing a sense of normality into the lives of the children.

Santos Pais went on to discuss the risks of exploitation and violence against minors, something that is also present in sport. These include training which exploits child labour, diets which lead to eating disorders and levels of competition which can have harmful effects on psychological wellbeing. In turn, these consequences can have a negative bearing on the way young people view the world. Amongst the solutions identified for eliminating these risks and allowing children to pursue their dreams were the establishment of specific legislation against violence, the investment or resources into the professional development of trainers and instructors and the participation of well-known sporting figures.

UNICEF Child Protection Section Chief Susan Bissell used her speech to outline how the attraction of young people to sport makes it an effective vehicle for the resolution of social problems. Sport can reduce infant mortality and help children to reclaim adequate social space in refugee camps, for example. Bissell went on to concur with what Santos Pais had stated in the previous speech, declaring that young people are children first and athletes second.

Yoka Brandt, the Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF, took to the floor to open the second part of the conference. Brandt introduced the topic of disability in sport, placing particular emphasis on inclusion and on the importance of having children from different social groups playing together.

Next up was a great friend of Inter Campus in Wilfried Lemke, United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace. Lemke stated his belief that there needs to be tangible investment across all levels of education, given that it is a powerful, essential tool for guaranteeing development. Lemke also recognised the importance of the ongoing collaboration between Inter Campus and his UN agency, reminding the audience that the Nerazzurri organisation’s next training initiative for local instructors is set to take place in Bogota in 2015.

Amina Mohammed, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Advisor on Post-2015 Development Planning, then brought the second part of the conference to an end. Mohammed’s speech revolved around the basic principle that all children have a right to childhood, and that when this is denied, the process of reclaiming it becomes even more vital. Thought perhaps sport is sometimes not considered an essential part of the discussion on this issue, Mohammed stated her belief that sport is in fact an intrinsic part of the topic.

The Post-2015 Development Agenda aims to give renewed impulse to existing objectives, tackling issues such as when religious considerations stop children from taking part in sport, or when disabled children are exluded from parcticipating sporting activity. Mohammed argued that governments should invest heavily in sport, given that it can add dignity to young people’s lives and contribute to their physical and mental health.

By way of reviewing the achievements already made in terms of promoting the right of children to practice sports, it was finally time for Yoka Brandt to introduce Inter Campus, which was at the conference as an example of best practice.

Attendees were shown an emotive film which depicted some of the locations of Inter Campus’ activity, along with crowds of smiling children in Nerazzurri jerseys. This was accompanied by some passionate words from Massimo Moratti about how the project grew almost spontaneously, as a way of responding to the needs of young people the world over.

Inter Campus creates a safe area for children inside and outside of their families. Through the hallowed Nerazzurri jersey, Inter Campus creates the conditions for young people to be respected, starting in their own homes, where episodes of violence are common.

Thanking Ambassador Cardi and the other attendees for their welcome and continued support of Inter Campus, Moratti shared his memories of how the initiative was born: “It was a great sense of respect that first led us to create such a far-reaching project for the protection of young people.”

Javier Zanetti brought the curtain down on the conference with a personal reflection. Part of the Inter family for 20 years, Zanetti has followed the Inter Campus journey from the very beginning. The Nerazzurri vice-president spoke of how the initiative helps young people to grow as human beings, offering them an alternative to violence and a sense of hope for the future. 

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