ALTHOUGH Bermuda may be small geographically, the island is to make a significant "cultural" impact at the United Nations next week.

On Wednesday, a local contingent will unveil a cultural prototype at UN headquarters in New York, illustrating Bermuda's "unique" ability to cohesively combat key issues of racism, discrimination, intolerance and violence within the local community.

The travelling party, represented by all segments of the local community, is being co-ordinated by Global Arts Entertainment, founded 18 months ago in partnership with the UN's Quest for Global Peace and Tolerance project.

Bermuda was invited to attend this year's Global Peace and Tolerance Awards ceremony by the Friends of the United Nations (FOUN), a non-governmental organisation designed to promote the programmes and efforts of the UN.

The island will be presented with an award during the ceremony honouring individuals and organisations that have significantly advanced the cause of global peace and tolerance in the delegates' dining room at the UN.

In addition, local school students will have the distinction of having a creative mural, depicting images of peace and tolerance, exhibited in the main lobby at UN headquarters following an official opening ceremony featuring the world-renowned New York City Choir. They will also attend the UN International School to share personal views on global peace.

"This is going to be a sample of all the unique things that make up Bermuda's diverse culture," said Global Arts CEO Andrew Phillips.

"We achieved this with a number of initiatives and once they were all put together formed a prototype which was broken up in three basic groups ? education, sports and culture ? so that we can present an example of who we are to the rest of the world."

He added: "We are launching this actual prototype and it's almost like a car. We have assembled the car and now it is going to the world-class show at the UN to be circulated among 185 countries."

In 2001, late Tourism Minister David Allen met FOUN president Dr. Noel Brown at the World Conference Against Racism and Xenophobia in South Africa. After further discussion and investigation, it was decided that Bermuda be selected as a model country to promote the United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Peace and Tolerance programme.

"From the sporting perspective, tennis was the chosen sport and so we have used children from the tennis in the schools programme," said project director Sam Maybury, who was once a force on the local tennis scene.

"We have solicited children who haven't had an experience in tennis as a way to initiate the Bermuda Grass Roots Tennis League and those (three) children were selected out of a hat of 100 children who participated at the tennis fun day at the Tennis Stadium last July."

This year's ceremony will be dedicated to the memory of UN High Commissioner of Human Rights Viera de Mello, UN staff members, and all those who perished in the bombing of the Iraqi capital Baghdad last August.

At the ceremony, a presentation and musical will be shown by the local contingent in attendance offering an in-depth insight into the island's culture.

Mr. Phillips said this prototype would be the first step in an "ever-evolving" process.

"The prototype is going to start a tour over the next seven years to a variety of countries where we will get to show them directly in person how this was achieved," he said.

Minister Without portfolio Ashfield DeVent will accompany the local contingent along with representatives from sponsors Cellular One and Gorham's Limited.