"The best way to spread knowledge these days is through social media, and that's what I do!" Moeka Sakamoto is a UN Youth University Volunteer from Japan and serves as Communications Assistant with the United Nations Information Center (UNIC) in Lusaka. By creating digital media, Moeka spreads the word about the UN in Zambia and according to her, she brings UN closer to the people.
I am a student at the Kwansei Gakuin University in Hyogo in International Relations. I was always curious about digital information and how technology affects people's lives.
I believe as young people we are evolving with new technologies. Gender gap exists. Very few women are given the opportunity to explore their talent. We must bring everyone into the fold of fold, men and women to create solutions and come up with innovations.
I explore the digital world through my UN Volunteer assignment and put my skills to practice. I find creative ways to make people aware about the UN.
I design visual content, graphics, banners, flyers and selfie frames for events on Sustainable Development Goals and the UN's work in Zambia.
Selfies are the big thing these days. So I use selfies in an innovative way. One of my recent achievements was creating a set of five selfie frames. I call the series, 'Bringing the UN, the 5Ps of the SDGs and the Cooperation Framework closer to people'. The frames were based on the four pillars called, 'Peace', 'Prosperity', 'Planet' and 'People, I changed the name of the fifth P from "Partnerships' to 'Bringing the UN closer to me.' These frames are now used at UN events in Zambia including International Volunteer Day, UN Day, and also the UN job fairs.
Beatric Mutali, UN Resident Coordinator in Zambia (left), W.K. Mutale Nalumango, Vice President of Zambia (right), hold a selfie frame at the UN Cooperation Framework launch in Zambia. ©UNV, 2022.
By creating infographics and social media cards, I let the impact of the UN be seen. Be it the UN recruitment processes with interview tips or the UN Day, or awareness campaign days such as International Day of Solidarity with Palestinians and the Holocaust Remembrance, and not to forget the pandemic time and COVID-19 prevention, the multimedia I've created has reached many. And also found its way to the official Twitter accounts of the UN in Zambia.
Moeka Sakamoto (right) photographs an event at the Quorum Kabulonga in Lusaka. ©UNV, 2022.
Moeka has contributed to the work of United Nations Information Center and conveyed key UN messages to many people. --Mark Maseko, National Information Officer at UNIC comments on Maeko's commitment as a digital information professional.
Spreading knowledge of what the United Nations does in terms of impact and what it stands for is something I do with digital media. Few women have the opportunity to explore this field and that's why we need to promote gender equality and women's empowerment in digital technology, so more women and girls find it easy and safe to use this space.
Moeka Sakamoto (right) with Doreen Sefuke Mawaba, Zambia's Minister of Community Development and Social Services (right) on the occasion of International Volunteer Day in Lusaka. ©UNV, 2022.