Going Global with the UN

Please see our new blog

2011-09-23T12:14:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Thanks for visiting.

I've transferred my blogging to the following address, and hope you'll visit and subscribe:
http://unasouthernny.wordpress.com/

I'm now serving as president of the United Nations Association of the USA Southern New York State Division. The blog still includes materials on the UN, on global issues, on UNA-USA and on the Southern New York State Division. It now also includes materials from some colleagues.

Hope to see you there, or at our website: http://www.unasouthernny.org/ and our new Facebook page.

We also have a new Energy Project, led by Dr. George A. Garland. Visit http://UNAEnergy.wordpress.com or our twitter page: @UNAEnergy

Jeanne Betsock Stillman

MANAGING HAITI EARTHQUAKE LOGISTICS

2010-01-23T12:49:00.001-08:00

Only through pooling information from many relief sources can one start to understand what is happening on the ground in relation to the Haiti Earthquake, getting aid to Haiti, and the cross-border situation of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The Interagency Standing Committee (IASC) of the United Nations is "the primary mechanism for interagency coordination of humanitarian assistance. It is a unique forum involving key UN and non-UN humanitarian partners." SEE http://www.humanitarianinfo.org/iasc/

The IASC committee is chaired by the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), Sir John Holmes. The full members are the heads of the UN humanitarian agencies; standing invitees include Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, World Bank, International Organization for Migration, International Committee of the Red Cross, IFRC, Inter-Action, International Council of Voluntary Agencies (represented by World Vision International) and the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (represented by Oxfam). Nine Clusters were agreed, with a lead agency for each.

The Logistics Cluster of the IASC is an excellent source for daily news updates which give information on the logistics situation in Haiti and in the D.R. for Haiti, as well as other extensive information. See the http://www.logcluster.org website

The World Food Program is the lead agency for Logistics Cluster.

Haiti Earthquake Brings Disaster to 9 Million

2010-01-21T15:09:00.000-08:00

Writing can be therapeutic, and perhaps it's my way of mourning. We (my husband and I) daily view paintings of the Haitian people and countryside all over our home, from time spent in Haiti in the 1990s. We've seen the rolling hills, the beautiful natural settings, the barren mountains, the stalwart people who daily try to meet the challenges of life in the poorest country in the hemisphere. We know people who have died and places that have been destroyed. The infrastructure, never robust, is gone.

I've been too busy in the past week working on Haiti relief to write an article about the calamity and the needs faced by the Haitian people since the earthquake of January 12. By now we've all seen the television coverage. Notably, Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta of CNN have brought it into our livingrooms. The major stations have had excellent coverage in the first week. Today we hear that up to 200,000 may already have perished, and that many more may die unless they receive proper medical care, water and food.

The U.S. and the American people have galvanized to try to assist. We see massive amounts of aid pouring in, although distribution systems are yet lacking. The United Nations and the U.S. 82nd Airborne are trying to work with remnants of the Haitian Government to restore a semblance of order - at least in relation to hospitals, food and water distribution, and security. Already on January 15 my husband met search and rescue teams from Poland who were en route from Santo Domingo, D.R., to Port-au-Prince. They were working under the auspices of the United Nations International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG).

The faces of people, especially children - confused, frightened, hungry, in agony - are haunting. Destruction hit the slum of Cite Soleil, as well as my favorite hotel - Hotel Montana - on the way up the mountain from Port-au-Prince to Petionville, hospitals, schools, and the port. Port-au-Prince, home to over 2 million, suffered the greatest casualties, but the damage to the epicenters of Carrefour and Leogane have not really been assessed. I don't know what happened to the Episcopal Hospital in Leogane - a model for community service.

What we learned is that anyone can suffer broken limbs and lacerations, but also that people would die unless treated. Amputations have been a grizzly effect of need to help people survive over the possibility of quality of life in future. All - old, young, rich, poor, faced lack of medical teams, operating facilities, and vital supplies. - and suffered through "civil war medicine."

Yes, it has taken time for even the minimal of services to be organized. The United Nations MINUSTAH peacekeeping force suffered its own tragedy. Special Representative of the Secretary General, Hedi Annabi, and his deputy, Luiz Carlos Da Costa, Douglas Coates, the mission's Acting Police Commissioner, at least 70 peacekeepers have died and 140 are unaccounted for. Our friends at the United Nations have frantically sought information about colleagues. So have members of the Haitian Diaspora, with whom we have been working. Their loss is greater yet, with nearly each person having family members in the country.

Post-natural-disaster relief must be handled first and foremost by the large organizations prepared to do it: the United Nations, the World Food Program, UNICEF. We heard by the January 14th that the World Food Program was already feeding 3,000 in the port town of Jacmel, on the southern coast. The large private agencies - Mercy Corps, Salvation Army, Red Cross - are on the ground too. Still, there are enormous gaps. Dr. Sanjay Gupta personally went to the airport go obtain medical supplies; the supplies were already available in warehouses or out in the open, but distribution was poorly organized. 120 flights were arriving daily with food, water, relief supplies and personnel.

Notables - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, President Bill Clinton - have all come to assess the situation and to give assurance that aid is forthcoming. President Obama has pledged $100 million in American support, and Michelle Obama has sought to raise funds for the American Red Cross. Aid agencies, the U.S. Government, the United Nations, and the many many mission organizations and non-governmental organizations that are the backbone of Haitian life, are all trying to ramp up their abilities to provide supplies, personnel, road clearance and transport. This is a massive undertaking, hampered by an airport with a single runway and a seaport that will take weeks or months to re-open.

We've learned of diplomats being flown to Santo Domingo, and missionary flights that daily bring in supplies and remove 50 missionaries at a time. I personally know of a 19 year old college student, who was volunteering in a mission station in the hills above Petionville. Her family was gladdened to hear from her, the house where she was staying was not affected, and she was evacuated to the U.S. via one of the missionary flights to return to school. At the same time we hear of the exodus of people from Port-au-Prince to the countryside, including toward the Dominican border. From my experience with Afghan refugees in Pakistan, I know how problematic an influx of refugees would be to the neighboring country. We hear of plans to create tent camps away from the capital but within the Haitian border, so that distribution of relief can be systematized and so that clearing of rubble can begin.

The Dominican Republic, for its part, is serving as a staging area for aid to Haiti, for large meetings to assess needs and determine future multilateral actions, and also for providing immediate health care in overworked, stressed, hospitals and clinics in border towns. Tensions are likely to grow even more, as Haitians press into the relatively safety of the D. R.

WHAT IS NEXT?
Almost everything is left to be done. The outpouring of pledges of assistance from around the world must be translated into food, water, heavy machinery, doctors, nurses, architects, urban planners and educators. Journalists will be needed to keep alive the telling of the story and communicating the gaps in aid.
It will be important to control in some manner the outpouring of people who want to travel to Haiti to help. An article on the MSNBC website discusses the problems that occur when inexperienced but well-meaning people try to help. See: Disaster do-gooders can actually hinder help: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34958965/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake/

WHAT CAN INDIVIDUALS AND SMALL ORGANIZATIONS DO?
1) Continue to donate to the United Nations and to reliable non-governmental organizations with experience working in Haiti. The United Nations Association of the USA recommends giving funds to UNICEF, the World Food Program, the World Health Organization / Pan American Health Organization and the Central Emergency Response Fund.

2) Remember the ongoing needs, as days, weeks and months go by.

3) Remind policymakers of the crucial long-term actions that will be needed.

4) Support the United Nations and the UN System in its ongoing work in Haiti.

5) Learn about disaster relief from experts and from the following resources:

The Sphere Handbook: Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response
http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/hpu/conflict/epidemiology/media/Sphere_Handbook_2nd_Edition_2004.pdf

The Center for International Disaster Information
http://www.cidi.org/

Nuclear proliferation: an existential threat | DailyTidings.com

2010-01-09T14:57:00.003-08:00

Nuclear proliferation: an existential threat | DailyTidings.com

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How to Support the United Nations

2010-01-05T19:01:00.000-08:00

If you're an American, or live in the United States, you have a great opportunity to support the work of the United Nations through membership in the United Nations Association of the USA. UNA-USA supports the UN through offering programs to the general public, giving individuals a way to learn about important global issues, and providing a way to advocate for vital actions by the international community and by the U.S. Government.

These are exciting times, with a US President and Congress willing to work multinationally, and winning the respect and admiration of countries around the world.

Why join? Because the United Nations is the only global body that brings together 192 countries for mutual understanding, interest, interaction and policymaking.

Why join? Because the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the UN Population Fund, the World Meteorological Organization, the World Food Program, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the UN Development Programme, the UN Institute for the Training and Advancement of Women, and many other parts of the United Nations System help countries work on areas of mutual interests. WFP feeds refugees and starving children. UNICEF provides programs that help improve children's lives; FAO helps farmers with new agricultural methods and knowledge. The United Nations itself works through principal bodies including the Economic and Social Council, the Security Council and the General Assembly, to give voice to the opinions and ideas of countries around the world.

Why join? To become part of the global conversation!

Why join? To help all Americans to learn about the work of our country in the international arena, and to help the United States have a positive impact on multilateral decisionmaking, go to: http://www.unausa.org/ and go to "Join us" -- fill out the form or print a .pdf, fill it out and mail it.

UNA-USA has many local chapters - if there is not one in your area, you can start a group or a chapter. If you area at a school or college, you can join or start a Student Alliance.

For information in Southern New York State, go to: http://www.unasouthernny.org/

Best wishes for a better world in 2010. Be an active part of it!

US State Department Supports Adoption of CEDAW

2009-12-23T08:12:00.000-08:00

The US State Department spokesman issued a press release on December 18th, the 30th anniversary of the UN's Adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, known as CEDAW, supporting its ratification by the US. Only the US and a handful of other countries have not ratified this treaty. Although Secretary Hillary Clinton's position has been known for some time, the press release should be good news to all who support CEDAW's ratification by the U.S. Senate. It is now important to make sure CEDAW gets on the agenda of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, chaired by John Kerry, (D - Mass), who has indicated that he supports the bill. Senator Barbara Boxer, a strong supporter, chairs the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy, and Global Women’s Issues, where the bill will be debated.

According to the statement, "President Obama’s Administration views CEDAW as a powerful tool for making gender equality a reality. We are committed to U.S. ratification of the Convention and look forward to joining the countries that have adopted it as a central part of their efforts to ensure that human rights are enjoyed fully and equally by all people."

It takes 67 Senators to vote for ratification, and it will be necessary for strong grassroots pressure for this to be achieved in a political climate of partisanship.

Congresswoman Nita Lowey named International Family Planning Hero

2009-12-09T09:21:00.000-08:00

l to r: Cecile Richard (PPFA), Reina Schiffren (PP HP), The Hon. Nita Lowey, Dr. Gill Greer (IPPF), Kathy Bushkin Calvin (UN Foundation)

I was very happy to attend a breakfast at the Rye Town Hilton in Westchester County, at which Congresswoman Nita Lowey received the first "International Family Planning Hero" award offered by the UN Foundation and Planned Parenthood Federation of America, as well as Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic. About 90 community leaders, politicians and Planned Parenthood supporters attended. Brenda Smith, board member of UNA Westchester and former Superintendent of Schools of Mount Vernon, Noema Chaplin, board member of UNA Queens and I made up the UNA-USA contingent.

I had a chance to talk with Kathy Bushkin Calvin of the UN Foundation, Amir Dossal, Executive Director of the UN Office for Partnerships, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, State Senator from my district (Greenburgh, Yonkers), Representative John Hall of the 19th Congressional District, Reina Schiffrin, President of PP Hudson Peconic, and Dr. Gill Greer, Director-General of IPPF. Adequate funding and U.S. support for family planning services and education, as well as linked issues such as women's economic rights and human rights, and education for women and girls, are very important to me.

I worked for many years as an international family planning consultant, beginning my career in family planning with Planned Parenthood's Washington office, and later worked in the IPPF Western Hemisphere Office in New York. I also consulted with the UN Population Fund. I'm a strong supporter of family planning- not only because for its implications for women's personal choice, but also for its impact on family health & economics and community & national development.

Through her position as the chair of the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Lowey has worked to increase the level of funding for international reproductive health programs to an all-time high of $648.5 million in the Fiscal Year 2010 House Appropriations bill. The 2010 appropriations bill also expands funding for the UN Population Fund. Mrs. Lowey has also fought consistently against the Ronald Reagan/George H. W. Bush Mexico City policy that barred any foreign organization receiving U.S. foreign assistance from using its own funds or funds from other donors to perform abortions; advocate for the liberalization or decriminalization of abortion in laws and policies; or provide information, make referrals, or counsel women on the procedure—even in countries where abortion is legal. That policy was overturned by the Clinton Administration, reinstated by the Bush administration in 2001, and repealed by President Obama this year.

Madagascar's Youth - a UNICEF Study

2009-12-09T08:45:00.000-08:00

Nombone, 26, has six children, with whom she lives in a rickety hut in Anjado village. Many Madagascans have been left without a livelihood amid the turmoil and economic decline since a coup in March. (Graeme Williams / UNICEF/ World Food Program / October 14, 2009)

Madagascar was a "least developed country" and one of the poorest in the world when political unrest began in January 2009. Now, nearly a year later, conditions are worse and worsening for the majority of its people. Especially hard-hit are children and youth.

I've just read a report for UNICEF published in June called "Pandora's Box: Youth at a Crossroad," which assesses the status of youth in relation to the socio-political crisis in Madagascar. It's a disturbing picture of societal breakdown related to political unrest, reduced jobs and income, and the hopes, fears, beliefs, expectations and experiences of the mainly urban youth who were interviewed. Worth a read. It will take some while for the country to be restored to peace.

Robyn Dixon of the L.A. Times has also reported on the status of youth in her Los Angeles Times article "Madagascar's children face hunger, abuse and neglect."

Perspectives on the International Criminal Court & US Membership

2009-11-23T22:53:00.001-08:00

UNA Westchester will present a discussion on the International Criminal Court in cooperation wih Pace Law School on December 1, 2009 at 5:00 p.m. John Washburn, Director and Convener of the American NGO Coalition for the ICC and Prof. Jide Nzalibe, Visiting Professor at NYU and Professor of Law at Northwestern School of Law, will speak. Prof. Alexander Greenawalt of Pace Unversity Law School will moderate the meeting, which will focus on the different views of the advantages and disadvantages of the Interational Criminal Court and US membership in it.

Co-sponsors include Pace Law School,Citizens for Global Situations, Unitarian Universalist UN Office and the Westchester Bar Association. The meeting will be held at Pace Law School - Preston Hall - Tudor Room, at 52 North Broadway, White Plains, NY. All are welcome. A question and answer period will follow the pogram and refreshments will be served.
For more information, contact: philreynolds60@hotmail.com ; call him at 914-472-5490.

Exciting Times / Challenging Times

2009-11-23T14:04:00.000-08:00

I'm grateful and honored to be the President-Elect of the UNA Southern New York State Division, and to work with the team that includes Catherine D. White and Marcia Brewster, Vice Presidents, Margaret Shannon, Secretary, and Lee H. Bloom, Treasurer, as well as the rest of the UNA Southern New York State Division Board.

I've been approached in the last few weeks by several prospective UNA volunteers who are offering their time and talent to the UNA Southern New York State Division. In this new era of U.S. multilateralism, it's exciting to meet people who have found us on-line and want to become part of the UNA-USA mission to support the United Nations.

Ambassador Tom Miller, who has been President of UNA-USA just since May, has asked Chapters, Divisions and individual members to step up their volunteer support as well as financial support, so that we can together bring to the American public the important news of the important work of the UN. Tom's remarks and Jeff Laurenti's remarks to the Annual Meeting of the UNA Southern NY State Division are posted on our new Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/UNAsouthernNYStatedv

Several of us will be calling UNA friends to encourage greater involvement as well as the needed financial support. I hope you will step up, volunteer your time and enthusiasm, and lend your strong support to the United Nations. Email or call me to become part of this volunteer effort or just to learn more. jinka.stillman@gmail.com

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

UNA Connecticut Division and Connecticut Post Publish Supplement for the Schools

2009-11-07T13:46:00.000-08:00

The Connecticut Post has published a supplement "The United Nations and You" for UN Day 2009. This Newspaper in Education supplement was spearheaded by Division member Mary Keane and includes a welcome letter from Division president Dr. Joseph Baxer. Lafayette College senior Alina Stelman served as editor. The supplement has been distributed to schools in Bridgeport, as well as electronically. Hard copies distributed by the Division included the excellent annual Peace Calendar. Congratulations to all involved!

I particularly enjoyed a recipe for "Peace Pudding", which starts with "In a large bowl, gently sift 1 c. tolerance, 1 c. respect, 1/2 c. empathy, 1 tsp. patience...."

The Supplement includes articles on the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, US Ambassador Susan Rice, and pieces on a number of Connecticut people who have devoted their time to global issues and the United Nations. Other articles are on Sports and Peace, Model UN, UNA-USA Student Alliance, and UN Peacekeepers. Some articles first appeared in supplements produced by The Journal News Newspaper in Education program.

If the supplement becomes available on-line, this blog will let you know!

Development jobs

2009-10-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

I came across a very interesting resource for international development jobs that might be of particular interest to UNA Young Professionals for International Cooperation, or anyone seeking employment in the international development area. There seems to be a broad range of positions, in the US and UK and generally internationally.
http://www.indevjobs.org/subscribe.htm

UNA-USA Southern New York State Division Elects Officers

2009-10-26T10:28:00.000-07:00

At its Annual Meeting on October 20, at the National Arts Club in Manhattan, the UNA-USA Southern New York State Division elected officers for 2010-2011. Elected are: Jeanne Betsock Stillman, President; Catherine D. White and Marcia Brewster, Vice Presidents, Margaret Shannon, Secretary, and Lee H. Bloom, Treasurer. The two-year terms begin January 1, 2010.
You can double click on the photo to get a larger size.

Ambassador Tom Miller, President of UNA-USA, spoke of his vision for UNA-USA and especially work with the Chapters and Divisions. He mentioned that the strength of UNA-USA is in its 12,000+ members, and its 135 chapters. The challenge is to educate the American people about the UN, and to work on certain policy issues. He concluded by saying, "We have the wind at our backs, with an administration that 'gets' multilateral diplomacy, and the challenge for us is to take advantage of this."

Jeffrey Laurenti, UNA-USA Board member representing the Mid-Atlantic Region, spoke on international policy issues before the Obama administration as well as how chapters, divisions and individuals can be strong advocates for a positive US policy vis-a-vis the United Nations. Laurenti is senior fellow and director of foreign policy programs at The Century Foundation.

Dr. Joseph Baxer, president of the UNA Connecticut Division, spoke about his travel to South Korea to attend the International Plenary of the World Federaion of United Nations Associations (WFUNA), held in Seoul from August 10-12, 2009. He, Ambassador Miller and Jeff Laurenti were part of a 10-person U.S. delegation to the conference. He gave some of the history of WFUNA, and UNA-USA's important role in it. He urged that chapters and divisions should consider partner relationships with other countries' UNAs. Bilateral relationships were good, but chapters and divisions could also become involved. For example, the Connecticut Division had for some time partnered with the Dominican Republic.

Patricia Sacristan, Chair of the Division's Young Professionals for International Cooperation group, spoke of the upcoming travel by YPIC members to Haiti, as part of their flagship program, The Haiti Expedition Project. The group planned to fly on UN Day to Port-au-Prince, and to return to New York on November 1. They planned to meet with UN, Inter-American Development Bank and other officials and to volunteer with several non-profit organizations.

For more and links to photos, see the UNA Southern New York State Division website.

UNA-USA Student Alliance Program

2009-10-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

The very exciting UNA-USA Student Alliance Program is successfully re-launched, with groups starting up at colleges, universities, high schools and middle schools around the country, including in Westchester County and elsewhere in New York State.

The program is designed to meet "the needs of today’s globally minded middle school, high school, and undergraduate college students. UNA-USA Student Alliance is dedicated to educating, inspiring, and mobilizing American students to support the principles and vital work of the United Nations, strengthening the United Nations system, promoting constructive United States leadership in that system, and achieving the goals of the United Nations Charter. With the spirit of change in the air, UNA-USA's Student Alliance seeks to engage students in a nationwide network of motivated individuals, student advocacy groups, international affairs clubs, and Model UN teams who stand poised to collectively sound their voices and make their opinions heard amongst their peers, in their communities, across the nation and around the world! President Obama and his top officials have pledged to strengthen America’s global leadership through a renewed emphasis on international cooperation, diplomacy, and active participation at the United Nations."

The four areas of focus currently are: "Human Rights and International Justice," "Building a Consensus on Climate Change," "Strengthening the United Nations," plus a UNA-USA Student Alliance group can identify a priority interest of their own. Setting up a group is easy, and student leaders can participate in leadership training through periodic telephone calls with UNA-USA leaders and others. For more information, go to: http://www.unausa.org/studentalliance#

Michael Lapsley (South Africa) to Speak in Ossining

2009-10-26T09:34:00.000-07:00

Fr. Michael Lapsley will speak on November 15 at 7:30 pm at St. Paul's-on-the-Hill Episcopal Church, 40 Ganung Drive, Ossining, NY 10562-3936(914) 941-6627 . All are welcome.

I've received a note from Lisa Rosenbloom, who writes:

Bob and I had the privilege to meet Michael Lapsley at the Institute for the Healing of Memories when we were in Cape Town last year. He is truly a remarkable man and an international leader in addressing the "post traumatic" stress of ordinarily people who have survived great injustice - in South Africa, Rwanda and elsewhere. By coincidence, he is living at Maryknoll for awhile and is going to be speaking at St. Paul's, Ossisning, on Nov. 15 at 7:30.

Lapsley is an Episcopal priest whose own road to recovery, from a South African security forces-inspired package bomb, was clearly informed by his own belief system, but his project is a secular one. He is a friend of Bishop Desmond Tutu, has been praised by Nelson Mandela and is linked on Wikipedia to Albie Sax, another leading light of the anti-apartheid movement.

LIsa further writes, "He's very much worth the effort [of coming to hear him.]"

US-UN interactions on Climate Change; also some great resources

2009-10-24T13:49:00.001-07:00

Historic meetings on climate change took place on Monday, September 22 -- one led by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, where national leaders spoke at the United Nations, or addressed the issue through videos available on YouTube -- and a luncheon program with roundtables organized by the UN Global Compact and President Clinton, which brought together business leaders, members of civil society and others to address their commitment to climate change.

On that day President Obama stated, "No nation, however large or small, wealthy or poor, can escape the impact of climate change. Rising sea levels threaten every coastline. More powerful storms and floods threaten every continent. More frequent droughts and crop failures breed hunger and conflict in places where hunger and conflict already thrive. On shrinking islands, families are already being forced to flee their homes as climate refugees. The security and stability of each nation and all peoples -- our prosperity, our health, and our safety -- are in jeopardy. And the time we have to reverse this tide is running out."
More of the President's speech is available on his weblog:
http://obamaweblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/no-nationcan-escape-impact-of-climate.html

I've been impressed by the excellent articles on these topics from UNA-USA. The UNA-USA World Bulletin reports on UN and US relations and important global topics. The October 23 issue includes Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's UN Day message, as well as many other articles. It's worth looking at back issues from September 23 and October 7 which highlight renewed US involvement with the UN, including President Obama's.
Also, Jeff Laurenti of The Century Foundation writes consistently interesting and erudite articles about UN issues and US actions. Read them and entries by others here .

Another excellent resource for UN-related material comes from Dr. Max Stamper, Editor of MaximsNews Network - You can subscribe and get regular updates. MaximsNews is rich with materials by many contributors, many videos, and other resources.

Hillary Rodham Clinton Previews the US Role vis-a-vis the UN

2009-09-19T10:34:00.000-07:00

In preparation for the United States role in the work of the UN General Assembly and the Security Council, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC on Friday, September 18 on US and UN relations, and President Obama's upcoming speech at the United Nations. The US is chairing the Security Council during September. Her commentary on the United Nations is refreshing for those of us who have cringed the past 8 years on the US stance toward the UN. She noted,

"As President Obama leads our U.S. delegation at this year’s General Assembly, I hope we can demonstrate that the United Nations does not have to be just a diplomatic talk shop on First Avenue. At its best, it can be an institution that brings the world’s nations together to solve global problems through adherence to rules and principles set forth in the UN charter. And it is the responsibility of the 192 member nations during the General Assembly and beyond to capitalize on the opportunity for global cooperation and progress that the United Nations affords to each of us."

Secretary Clinton's speech discusses the revamping of the Bush-era missile defense program, to counter any threats from Iran's nuclear program. She broadly discusses human rights, climate change, nuclear nonproliferation, and her leadership of a U.S. delegation to a conference on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

Conserving Energy - Saving Our Planet

2009-09-12T12:53:00.000-07:00

We Americans love big fast cars, big fast highways, bigger and bigger houses, and bigger and fancier kitchens. Our principal population growth areas are in the South, where we expect and demand ready access to air conditioning. And we're always grumbling about the high cost of gas and the high cost of electricity.

Government programs such as Energy Star are helping us start to save on some of our wasteful habits, and new rebates for buying these contribute an economic simulus. The Department of Energy is newly enabled by the Economic Stimulus Act of 2009, which extended renewable energy tax credits, and is focusing on Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. We have a long way to go, and I hope we can persuade our lawmakers at all levels to support work toward the Copenhagen climate conference this December. We need to educate ourselves on the urgency of purpose and to challenge ourselves to meet goals of reducing carbon outputs.

Europe has long been ahead of the U.S. in conserving energy. This came out of coping with relative poverty and finding ways to save money in daily living. When traveling in France many years ago I learned of the hall switches in hotels and apartment buildings that turned on just long enough for a person to reach his or her room. Flash heaters attached to showers and kitchen faucets heated water only when it was needed.

Sergio Trippi, who publishes "Good News Agency," an email on international development, in his 12 September 2009 issue gave information on two programs I think are inspiring for us here in the U.S.:
Two new programs have websites that encourage conservation: the European Union-based website Flick the Switch offers projects and actions children and adults can take, and is available in many languages. The website Topten presents the best products of Europe, and focuses on laws to end use of incandescent bulbs and their newer alternatives. This is the equivalent of a Consumers Report on energy saving appliances, vehicles and other household and office equipment. While these don't transfer directly to the U.S. the concept is welcome. (To subscribe to the Good News Agency emails, write to Mr. Trippi at: s.tripi@tiscali.it )

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UNDP's New Framework for Measuring Democratic Governance

2009-08-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

I have long been interested in policy frameworks and indicators to measure progress related to women. David Stillman's doctoral dissertation on "Population-related Policies in Togo and Ghana: A Framework for Analysis" identified some 70 types of policies that influenced fertility, mortality or migration, whether or not that was their intended consequence. He went on to carry out research at the United Nations on policies relating to the advancement of women. I was a member of a WHO Committee on Family Health Indicators, and also worked on research methodology for quality of care. I was therefore very interested to read about the new UNDP framework for selecting "pro-poor" and "gender sensitive" indicators, to be used at the national and sub-national levels. Sixty-pages long, it is intended to assist policymakers to monitor and evaluate democratic governance at the country level. The full title is:
Measuring Democratic Governance: A Framework for selecting pro-poor and gender sensitive indicators One question is -- How does this framework relate to the MDGs and monitoring of achievement of MDGs #1 on poverty and # 4 on gender equality?

Well laid-out and clearly written, the framework starts with two basic principles of democracy drawn from International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment Framework (the State of Democracy Project), which have been used to identify the democratic values that underlie pro-poor and gender sensitive indicators. The values are: 1. Popular control over public decision making and decision makers and 2. Equality between citizens in the exercise of that control. Mediating values include participation, representation, accountability, transparency, responsiveness, efficiency and equity.

Two definitions are important: Pro-poor monitoring focuses on those living in poverty. The authors note the following governance indicators that might be considered pro-poor: (i) Disaggregated by poverty status (ii) Specific to the poor (iii) Implicitly pro-poor and (iv) Chosen by the poor. Gender sensitive monitoring should track changes in women’s empowerment and in gender equality. The following ndicators might be considered gender sensitive: (i) Disaggregated by sex (ii) Gender specific (iii) Implicitly gendered, and (iv) Chosen separately by men and women.

The framework then gives examples of application to parliamentary development; electoral systems and processes; human rights; justice; decentralised governance for development; and public administration reform and anti-corruption. A final section discusses the process for selecting indicators, including stakeholders to be involved.

UNDP has long experience with its Human Development Index, which results in its annual Human Development Reports, and with country-level sub-reports and the regional Arab Human Development Report (2002). It will be interesting to learn how the new framework for measuring democratic governance stacks up, how it will be used, and by whom.

CEDAW - the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women

2009-08-26T14:01:00.000-07:00

Today I called my Senator's office -- that of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, one of only 17 women in the US Senate. I was stunned to learn that the staffer who answered the phone had never heard of CEDAW - the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women - whether the acronym or the full title. He was sure the Senator would support something having to do with women, and knew that it was Women's Equality Day (must have received phone calls about that???). This made me wonder how many constituents had called the office in support of CEDAW, and whether I had happened to chance upon someone ignorant on the issue.

I explained the Treaty to the staffer, gave him my name, address and email address at his request, and hope to hear from the Senator sometime soon. This underlines how very important it is for all of us to make our voices known where policy is made, as well as among the general public.

A colleague at the Queens Chapter of the United Nations Association of the USA has created a video about CEDAW and uploaded it onto YouTube. (Thanks, Arnold!) You can view it here.

“A New Course in the World, a New Approach at the UN”

2009-08-13T15:02:00.001-07:00

On August 12, US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice gave a major policy speech at New York University on US-UN Relations. In "A New Course in the World, A New Approach at the UN" she offers thoughts about how the United States is changing its course in the world, and particularly and dramatically the US approach to the United Nations. She notes three core premises: (1) "...the global challenges we face cannot be met without U.S. leadership." (2) "While U.S. leadership is necessariy, it's rarely sufficient." and (3) "Others will likely shoulder a greater share of the global burden if the United States leads by example, acknowledges mistakes, corrects course when necessary, forges strategies in partnership and treats others with respect."
These premises are consistent with the mission of the United Nations Association, namely, "educating, inspiring and mobilizing Americans to support the principles and vital work of the United Nations, strengthening the United Nations system, promoting constructive United States leadership in that system and achieving the goals of the United Nations Charter."

Rice goes on to say, "..as President Obama has said time and again, America’s security and wellbeing are inextricably linked to those of people everywhere..." Citing examples in Haiti, Liberia and the Congo, she notes that "Building the capacity of fragile states is a major part of our work every day at the United Nations, since it is the UN that is leading the charge in many of the toughest corners of the world. At its best, the UN helps rebuild shattered societies, lay the foundations of democracy and development, and establish conditions in which people can live in dignity and mutual respect."

She further states, "When the United States joins others to confront these challenges, it’s not charity. It’s not even barter. In today’s world, more than ever, America’s interests and our values converge. What is good for others is often good for us. When we manifest our commitment to tackling the threats that menace so many other nations; when we invest in protecting the lives of others; and when we recognize that national security is no longer a zero-sum game, then we increase other countries’ will to cooperate on the issues most vital to us."

Rice ends her speech with a promise: "We work with passion and resolve, because we know that the change that has come to America can also change the world. The time for action is now. The challenges we face are vast. But the opportunities are even greater. And we will seize them—because the United States is back."

The idea of the United States being "back" is a starting point for all those passionate in supporting the UN. The US is paying its back dues, and there are prospects for timely payment to the UN in future in the month of January, rather than end-of-year payments. That kind of support to the UN shows the world indeed that "the United States is back."

Important steps for the US on the world stage will take place in September, when President Obama will address the UN General Assembly on the morning of September 23 at its opening. In September too the US takes its turn for a month as chair of the Security Council. President Obama will chair a high-level meeting of the Security Council on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament on September 24th.

It is ever more important for those of us who support the UN and a strong, positive role of the US in it, to educate all Americans about the work of the UN and its importance to UN foreign policy and to the world we leave for our children.

Health Care for All

2009-08-10T11:03:00.001-07:00

The World Health Organization, the health arm of the United Nations, came into being when its constitution came into force in 1948. The constitution states, "The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without the distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition." Further, according to the WHO, "The right to health means that governments must generate conditions in which everyone can be as healthy as possible. Such conditions range from ensuring availability of health services, healthy and safe working conditions, adequate housing and nutritious food. The right to health does not mean the right to be healthy."

In September 1978 in the city of Alma Ata, then little known outside the Soviet Union, the global community came together and adopted the Declaration of Alma Ata, at the International Conference on Primary Health Care. The year 2000 was the target date for achievement of many of the goals. The Declaration could be called one of the precursors of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Then, as now, the United States has lacked universally available primary health care affordable by all. Take the example of infant mortality rates, a sensitive indicator of good health and good health care. According to the estimated 2009 figures (CIA World Fact Book), the U.S. has higher infant mortality than not only the Nordic nations--well-known for their health care--, but also than countries including Cuba, Italy, Greece, Canada, Belgium, Austria, the United Kingdom, Australia, the Czech Republic, South Korea, Slovenia, Israel, France, Japan, Hong Kong and a number of others.

Let's consider chronic diseases -- now the major cause of death and disability worldwide. Noncommunicable conditions, including cardiovascular diseases (CVD), diabetes, obesity, cancer and respiratory diseases, now account for 59% of the 57 million deaths annually worldwide and 46% of the global burden of disease.

Here in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Chronic diseases—such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes—are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. Chronic diseases account for 70% of all deaths in the U.S., which is 1.7 million each year. These diseases also cause major limitations in daily living for almost 1 out of 10 Americans or about 25 million people." Further, "Although chronic diseases are among the most common and costly health problems, they are also among the most preventable. Adopting healthy behaviors such as eating nutritious foods, being physically active, and avoiding tobacco use can prevent or control the devastating effects of these diseases."

As reported in a story on Forbes.com, "The conundrum, highlighted earlier this year when the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice released its analysis of Medicare data, is a focus of this summer's health-reform debate. While it's estimated that Americans spent $2.4 trillion on health care last year and spending is expected to comprise 48% of the GDP by 2050, there is scant evidence to show that rising costs have led to improved health." To read more, click on this link.

President Obama's health care initiative seeks to bolster preventive care as well as curative health care. I strongly believe that we as Americans deserve a strong health bill that will curb costs, strengthen use of technology and wasteful duplicative recordkeeping, and offer excellent care to all, with choices for private or public payment. I believe this will increase competitiveness of our workforce and also of our businesses. A healthier population will be able to learn, to study, to challenge itself to a brighter future for our children.

Americans CAN come together for this reform of our health system. It is too important for us not to do! We voted for this in 2008 and now must act.

Hope for Madagascar

2009-08-09T11:50:00.000-07:00

There is new hope for resolving the political crisis in Madagascar. Madagascar may be on its way toward a path to a new government, bringing to a close the drama that unfolded over several months earlier this year, in which President Marc Ravalomanana was ousted in a coup.

Various news agencies have reported on a meeting this weekend (August 8-9) in Maputo, Mozambique, which brought together Ravalomanana and his rival, former mayor of Antananarivo Andy Rajoelina, who led the coup and has been functioning as head of a "High Transition Authority" government. Others in the meeting included former presidents Didier Ratsiraka and Albert Zafy.

Led by the former president of Mozambique and with participation of a United Nations Mediator, the meeting also included the African Union, the Southern African Development Community and the International Organization of French-Speaking Countries.

In the agreement, there will be a political transition government for 15 months, representing all parties, while preparations are made for nationwide elections.

The United States and most European countries stopped all but humanitarian aid months ago because of the illegal coup. Madagascar is a least-developed country. Earlier in this blog I reported an appeal for funds for humanitarian needs, relating to the devastation of several cyclones and continued malnutrition of many children.

Integrated Approaches for Participatory Development

2009-07-27T12:35:00.000-07:00

I'm awestruck by new technologies that can help communities develop and have a voice in their own development. The website http://www.iapad.org/ stands for Integrated Approaches for Participatory Development.

The focus is on using Geographic Information Technologies and Systems (GIT&S) together with Participatory Learning and Action (PLA) methods. The purpose is "to compose peoples’ spatial knowledge in the forms of virtual or physical, 2 or 3 dimensional maps used as interactive vehicles for discussion, information exchange, analysis and as support in advocacy, decision making and action taking. PGIS practice is usually geared towards community empowerment through measured, demand-driven, user-friendly and integrated applications of GIT&S, where maps become a major conduit in the process."

The site has a library of resources, examples, videos, and funding resources for non-profits.

There's also a companion site, www.PPgis.net, the electronic forum on participatory use of geo-spatial information systems and technologies. The forum hosts four distinct discussion lists, the global list which is Anglophone, and its Latin American (Spanish), Lusophone (Brazilian) and Francophone chapters.

The author of both sites is Giacomo Rambaldi, Natural Resource Management and Participation Specialist.

UNA-USA Student Alliances

2009-07-10T10:23:00.000-07:00

There's a great new opportunity for students to become involved with the UN and with the Unitd Nations Association of the USA The UNA-USA Student Alliance program will re-launch in August with a new format. UNA's Membership Department is working with the Council of Chapters and Divisions Steering Committee and others to develop a trial format for the UNA-USA Student Alliance program. The one-year trial, which is scheduled to start in August in time for the 2009-2010 school year, will offer students an opportunity to learn about the UN, to become involved in leadership in important global issues, and to receive benefits from UNA and local chapters and divisions where they exist.

The UNA-USA Student Alliance Program will invite students to form UNA-USA Student Alliance Groups, at the middle school, high school or college levels. Students may also join individually. More information will be posted on the www.unausa.org website soon.

A Lot Going On

2009-07-01T14:53:00.000-07:00

Since I've last written, I've been involved in two major events. One was the United Nations Association of the USA's Biannual Convention. That took place in Washington, DC, from June 12 - 14. Photos are online at the www.unausa.org Flickr account, and I've written an article for the UNA Southern New York State Division's website: www.unasouthernny.org. Anticipated by all was a chance to get to know Ambassador Tom Miller, UNA's new president. Tom plans to work closely with Chapters and Divisions of UNA-USA, a departure from the previous president, and this was welcomed by all.

The other event, on Ethanol and Bioenergy, was organized by the Public-Private Alliance Foundation. It featured aspects of investment in bioenergy, with participants from the financial sector, producers, non-Governmental organizations, and the United Nations. A report on the event will be available soon at www.ppafoundation.org Meanwhile, you can view one of the participants speaking about investment issues on PPAF's YouTube account: www.YouTube.com/ppafoundation

UNA-USA's YouTube Channel

2009-05-17T14:12:00.000-07:00

The United Nations Association of the USA - UNA-USA - is now presenting videos on http://www.youtube.com/unausa01 . These include some videos produced by the United Nations, tapings done by UNA-USA of events such as the UNAUSA Model UN Conference held at the UN in May 2009, and interviews conducted by UNA Board Member Bill Miller, producer and moderator of Global Connections Television. Other materials include interviews with students participating in the UNA HERO project. If you're not familiar with YouTube - it's possible to go to the UNA-USA Channel link above, and sign on to alerts for updates.

The Story of Stuff

2009-05-11T19:13:00.001-07:00

Although it's not directly related to the United Nations, The Story of Stuff, a 20-minute video available online and as a DVD, gives an important global message. The narrator and researcher, Annie Leonard, shows a cartoon-approach to the proliferation of "stuff" and its history. Extraction, production, distribution, consumption and disposal are shown in clear ways, with limited graphics and symbols. The main message is how to aim for sustainability and equity and the role of people in making such decisions. This is worthwhile for anyone from elementary school on up. It relates to finding ways to consume less (raw materials, energy) and thus to help reduce global warming and to leave a more sustainable earth for our children.

The Story of Stuff is available in eleven languages at www.storyofstuff.com/international (Arabic, Dutch, English, French, German, Hebrew, Taiwanese Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Thai. Teasers are available on YouTube. Here's a sample of a teaser about externalizing costs of goods: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dz3tPxUFGbY

UN's New Website!

2009-05-06T08:56:00.000-07:00

What a great surprise to find a pleasant, accessible new website for the United Nations. Worth exploring: http://www.un.org/ . On the home page, just tap on Welcome in the language you want to read.

Losing women's rights

2009-04-24T10:42:00.001-07:00

The Dominican Republic has added a clause to its constitution effectively prohibiting abortion. But Dr. Milton Cordero, according to a DR1 article, notes that approximately 90,000 abortions occur in the Dominican Republic annually, contributing to the third leading cause of maternal death. These are mainly self-induced, or at the hands of an untrained practitioner.

I know from my lifelong work in public health (maternal and child health, family planning and HIV/AIDS) that those abortions which were previously done by a trained physician are now likely to go underground. The Dominican Republic in 2000 already had about 150 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births - higher than many of its peers in the Caribbean and Latin America. One can expect more deaths of pregnant women if clandestine abortion becomes the norm.

According to an article online in Latina, Aldrian Almonte, president of the Dominican Gynecology and Obstetrics Society has warned that the number of maternal deaths will increase considerably once the new laws are enforced and women are no longer able to gain access to safe and medically supervised abortions. Even if the pregnancy endangers a woman’s life, abortion will no longer be a feasible option for physicians. “I would like the honorable legislators to tell me: What are we going to do before the presence of a woman with severe eclampsia, convulsing in any emergency room around the country? What must we do, see her die to protect ourselves from the repercussions this law stipulates?” Almonte asked.

According to Dominican Today (April 29, 2009), the national focal point for the UNDP Human Development Report, Miguel Ceara Hatton, has further said that the new Constitution excludes the women’s right to life and encourages the incidence of clandestine abortions and maternal deaths in the country.

The work of the UN's agencies to educate about and promote safe women's reproductive health must continue in support of women's reproductive rights in the D.R., while the draconian new policies are reviewed by the country's people.

UNESCO Launches World Digital Library

2009-04-21T08:24:00.000-07:00

Bravo to UNESCO which, with 32 partner institutions, under the guidance of James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress, today launched the Bibliothèque Numérique Mondiale (BNM), or World Digital Library (WDL). The library will offer on the website http://www.wdl.org/ the world's accumulated knowledge in seven languages for students everywhere. Adding to the six official languages of the UN (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, Spanish), the site includes materials in Portuguese. It will feature unique cultural materials from libraries and archives from around the world, and will include manuscripts, maps, rare books, films, sound recordings, and prints and photographs. It will provide unrestricted public access, free of charge, to this material.

The library has started with about 1,200 documents and their explanations from scholars. It is designed to accommodate an unlimited number of such texts, charts and illustrations from as many countries and libraries as want to contribute. The digital library's main server is also in Washington, but officials said plans are underway for regional servers around the world.

According to the UNESCO website, the WDL was developed by a team at the Library of Congress. Technical assistance was provided by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina of Alexandria, Egypt. Institutions contributing content and expertise to the WDL include national libraries and cultural and educational institutions in Brazil, Egypt, China, France, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Mali, Mexico, Morocco, the Netherlands, Qatar, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, Sweden, Uganda, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The digital library's main server is in Washington, but plans are underway for regional servers around the world.

Current offerings include rubbings of oracle bones from the National Library of China, delicate drawings of court life from the National Diet Library of Japan and a 13th-century "Devil's Bible" from the National Library of Sweden. Each is accompanied by a brief explanation of its content and significance. The documents have been scanned onto the site directly, in their original languages, but the explanations appear in all seven of the site's official languages.

Users can sort through the information in several ways. They can ask what was going on anywhere in the world in, say, science or literature during the 4th century B.C., for instance. They can look up the history of a certain topic over the centuries in China alone, or in China and North America. By cross-referencing, a user can see how one area of the world compared with another at any given time. Materials also can be viewed by Place, Time, Topic, Type of Item and Institution.

This phenomenal site adds to work being done through Google and several universities to make books available online, and to the collaborative effort by Wikipedia in producing an encyclopedia of the world's knowledge.

Reflections

2009-04-19T17:12:00.000-07:00

2009 is a real year of change for America and US-UN relations and also now for UNA-USA. Dr. Thomas J. Miller, recently named UNA-USA's new president, will take his position on May 11. He's a former U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia & Herzegovina and to Greece, taught at George Mason University, and, most recently, was CEO of Plan International (formerly Foster Parents Plan), a large non-profit with headquarters in the UK which works with children and their families. Tom is an advocate of the Model UN Program, having established one in Washington, DC, and another in Bosnia & Herzegovina.

The National Convention, scheduled for June 12-14 in Washington, DC, will give an opportunity for UNA members, Council of Organization members, and others from throughout the country to meet and get to know him. Chapter / National Relations will be an important topic for discussion, and I am especially interested in the development of outreach to students through the Student Alliance program, which is being revamped. I understand that Tom is a strong advocate for Chapters, and plans to visit many in the coming months. In June I'll be stepping down from four years as a Middle Atlantic Representative to the Council of Chapters and Divisions Steering Committee, but will remain active with the Southern New York State Division of UNA. For more, see http://www.unausa.org/ and http://www.unasouthernny.org/

UNA-USA, like most non-profits, is experiencing shortfalls in fundraising. How to take advantage of the new national spirit toward working multilaterally is bound to be a major focus of discussions at the Convention.

Meanwhile, the Public-Private Alliance Foundation is planning an event on ethanol, especially sugar-cane based ethanol, that will take place at the UN on May 7. This will be PPAF's third annual Partners Against Poverty event, which will bring together people from the business world, UN agencies, non-profits, academic institutions and foundations and others. The purpose is to develop new business models that will contribute to reaching the Millennium Developmen Goals and help people lift themselves out of poverty. The website is: http://www.ppafoundation.org/ Focusing on a small, high-level group of participants, PPAF expects the event to result in practical actions toward sustainable development that will benefit local economies and boost peoples' incomes as well as improving availability of biofuel.

PPAF's Executive Director, David Stillman, will speak at a UNA Council of Organizations event at the Church Center for the UN on April 23. The panel's topic is The Changing Nature of Corporate-Civil Society Partnerships in the Global Economic Downturn. Olajobi Makinwa, Civil Society Coordinator, UN Global Compact will also speak. The third speaker is Tom Kadala, President of ResearchPAYS, which is partnering with PPAF on the Ethanol event.

It is fascinating to be involved in work that can directly affect the top universal issue of climate change through promoting sustainable development, and at the same time improve lives of families. Corporate social responsibility, research-based decision-making, ecology, globalism, technology, family economics, the global financial crisis, social and cultural preservation, two billion people living in poverty, international flow of capital and goods are all relevant topics. Passions run high around all these issues and their political and economic ramifications, and the resulting debates and actions are vital to our future.

UN Consolidated Appeal for Funding for Madagascar

2009-04-07T07:57:00.000-07:00

The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has issued a Consolidated Appeal Process for Madagascar - Flash Appeal , in the wake of the ongoing poverty of this "least developed" country and the political turmoil of the past several months. Drought in some areas, cyclones in others contribute to the need for significant food aid. The Appeal indicates:

"The current delays and/or the suspension of government programmes, combined with the reduced capacity of the administration due to the sudden change in leadership and the suspension of some international assistance, has severely curtailed the current Government’s capacity to meet the basic needs of the population. To prevent the deterioration of the humanitarian situation, the Madagascar Humanitarian Country Team is seeking US$ 35,732,550 to save lives, bolster social safety nets and, should the political situation allow, support time-critical recovery. This appeal will be revised as the situation evolves and further assessment and surveillance data becomes available."

What can an individual do? (1) Look at the list of organizations that form the common appeal, and if you have a connection with any, make your voice heard. (2) Track the political situation in Madagascar by signing into Google Tracker and keep informed. (3) Contribute to any of these organizations, or to the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, which works with Madagascar as one of its focus countries (http://www.ppafoundation.org/ ) Only through being informed can we make a difference. I took the photos above in Madagascar in 2004. Some of these children were old enough to be in school, but school wasn't available to them.

Asia Society Hosts International Education Prizes

2009-04-05T15:44:00.000-07:00

I am very happy to report on the March 25 awards luncheon at the Asia Society's New York office which celebrated the final winners of the Goldman Sachs Foundation Prizes for Excellence in International Education. It is exciting to learn about such wonderful efforts around the country, which can and do serve as models for others. The Asia Society is a leading force in developing materials, programs and curricula to bring world education to America. (See this blog's posting for November 12, 2008 for more.)

Vivian Stewart, Asia Society Vice President, discussed the impact the prizes have been having since their inception in 2003. A video provided highlights of the John Stanford International School in Seattle, which was also represented on a panel by Karen Kodama, Founding Principal. (Watch this brief video and you can see more on edutopia.com ) There students learn Math and Science in Japanese or Spanish, depending on the track they choose.

Vishakha N. Desia, Asia Society President, moderated the panel, which also included Lynette Cletson, Managing Editor of The Root, Washington Post; Robert D. Harmats, Vice Chairman, Goldman Sachs International, and Gene Wilson, Executive Director of the Council of Chief state School Officers.
Award winners by category were:
Elementary/Middle School: The Independence Charter School, Philadelphia. This is an urban public charter school which combines "two second language acquisition programs with an interdisciplinary curriculum, integrating traditions, literature, geography, economics and history."
High School: Bergen County Academies is a public, county-wide magnet technical school which is also certified as an International Baccalaureate program. Students take three or more years of a world language: French, Spanish, Latin or Mandarin.
District/State: The winner, the State of New Jersey, is involved in across-the-board curriculum redesign to "develop a world-class workforce by assisting the state's students to obtain the skills and education needed in a competitive global economy." This includes all nine areas of the curriculum: Visual and Performing Arts; Comprehensive Health and Physical Education; Language Arts Literacy; Mathematics; Science, Social Studies; World Languages; Technological Literacty; and Career Education and Consumer, Family and Life Skills.
Media / Technology: Co-recipients:
Google Lit Trips marries the written word with Google Earth imagery with nuggets of information about destinations or paths along the way. It's divided by grade level (K-5, 6-8, 9-12, HiEd). Having learned about this, I had to tour the site. I lived in Pakistan and worked with Afghan refugees, and was particularly intrigued by The Kite Runner and the sites that popped up in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Then I looked at The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and at Voltaire's Candide. What a way to learn!

The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting has won for its Global Gateway , which provides teens and young adults with interactive information about important issues around the world. It tackles difficult subjects, such as "the water wars", and HIV/AIDS, as well as informing about conflicts and progress in various countries. My personal congratulations to Jon Sawyer, Executive Director of the Center and formerly the Washington correspondent for the St. Louis Post Dispatch. Jon was traveling in Ethiopia (doubtless with a video crew) and could not attend the lunch. Many of the Center's videos are shown on Foreign Exchange with Daljit Dhaliwal (a Public Television show started by Fareed Zakaria), which I also recommend.

Thank you to the Asia Society and the Goldman Sachs Foundation for your important work on promoting global education. I found this event not only celebratory of good work (which led me to think -- why aren't many, many more schools and educators doing more?) but also a great opportunity to network.

For those who asked for The Journal News Newspaper in Education supplements on global issues which go to about 55,000 students, teachers and administrators in Westchester, Putnam and Rockland Counties, NY, or for the video series "Going Global with the UN," which now has 69 of its 70 videos on line, here are the links:
SUPPLEMENTS:
Peace Makes the World a Better Place (December 2006)
Shaping Global Citizens -- The United Nations Millennium Development Goals in Action: Targeting Hunger (October 2007)
Shaping Global Citizens -- The Power of Partnerships (February 2009)
VIDEOS:
Going Global with the UN Video Series

YPIC's Haiti Expedition Project Launched

2009-04-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

Those of you who read the UNA Southern NY Division website will see a longer article about the Young Professionals for International Cooperation (YPIC) recent fundraiser to launch their Haiti Project. Congratulations to YPIC and all who were involved. On March 25, YPIC brought together over 140 members and friends for this launch, a cocktail party held at the 92Y Tribeca center. Please take a little time to read about YPIC's Flagship Program: The Haïti Expedition Project , which is worth supporting.

David Stillman and I greatly enjoyed the event (though we don't fit in the 21-40 age group). The slide show was both inviting and poignant. The program was just long enough to invigorate an audience to become involved. Conor Bohan spoke about HELP, the program he started, which gives scholarships to help some of the poorest Haitian students to attend college. Martina Bruno, a Haitian-American singer, treated the audience with "Summertime" and with a lively call-and-reponse piece.

On a personal note, I worked in Haiti in public health, most recently about 15 years ago; David has traveled there twice in the past three years, and is currently developing two projects related to Haiti. We were the lucky winners of two of the four pieces of artwork that were part of the silent auction -- both by Richard Rapoport, a peace artist whose website is http://www.peacefreedom.com/ The art pictured above I purchased at a street market in Port-au-Prince.

YPIC Chair Patricia Sacristan, VP Michele Chaplin, Kevin Jamison, director of YPIC's European Affairs Committee and members of several other committees were responsible for the excellent planning and implementation of the event. Brava and Bravo!

John Carey's United Nations Week blog

2009-03-24T11:40:00.000-07:00

John Carey, a member of the United Nations Association Westchester Chapter, is now posting on his blog his weekly notes on the TV program he hosts on Rye TV (NY) and Greenwich CT TV. He is former Vice President, American Society of International Law; Board of Editors, American Journal of International Law; Alternate U.S. Member, UN Human Rights Sub-Commission; TV producer, United Nations Week: News and Views. He is also a former Judge and former Mayor of the city of Rye, NY.

His contact information is:

UNITED NATIONS WEEK
News and Views
Rye NY Channels 76 and 33
Greenwich CT Channel 79
John Carey, Editor
J_PCarey@verizon.net
http://unweek.blogspot.com

To give an example, his posting for 3/29/09 starts with an analysis of the upcoming Durban Conference on Race (full title below). He writes:

"Durban Review next month: should we participate?

Next month many nations will gather for a look back to the 2001 Durban Declaration and pronounce themselves again on the subject of racism. Up to now, Washington has not said we will attend. In 2001, we and Israel walked out, and I have been trying to figure out why.

An “outcome document” for next month’s meeting has been under discussion for quite some time. In the latest draft, dated March 17th, there are certain provisions that bear examination, such as #10 referring to “Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Christianophobia[1] and anti-Arabism.” Paragraph 11 raises free speech issues since it states that certain advocacy shall be prohibited by law. On the other hand, paragraph 64 “Recalls that the Holocaust must never be forgotten, . . .”

The outcome document speaks in favor of the rights of indigenous peoples, for instance in paragraphs 42 and 43.

But the real problem for those who are reluctant to have anything to do with the Review Conference may be found in the very first paragraph of the outcome document. It reads: “Reaffirms the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (DDPA) as it was adopted at the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance (WCAR) in 2001.” This reaffirmation means one must study the DDPA, as I have done. Is there anything in the DDPA that poisons the outcome document?"

He goes on to analyze the related issues. To read more, visit his blog.

Good going, John!!!

The Century Foundation Posts Mid-Atlantic Conference Video

2009-03-10T13:58:00.000-07:00

You can view the video feed from the February 6th "Year of Change" UNA Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference on The Century Foundation website at http://www.tcf.org/list.asp?type=EV&pubid=246. Also look for a 5-minute "highlight moments" video from the morning session, as well as the results of the survey questionnaire about foreign policy priorities that participants have recommended to President Obama.

Thomas Friedman on the US Economy and Global Warming

2009-03-08T14:53:00.000-07:00

Thomas Friedman's column in the New York Times on March 8, 2009, depicts 2008 as the beginning of "The Great Disruption" -- a momentus era which reforms the global economy and particularly that of the United States. It's worth reading - the article is called "The Great Inflection". It seems that historians may view 2008 as the antithesis to Aldous Huxley's "year of our Ford 632".

Blogs to Watch

2009-03-01T18:09:00.000-08:00

I was wondering who out there is blogging about UNA, and was happy to find a number of brave souls. Look to the right and below the UN headlines those I've been able to find. UNA Michigan is maintaining a blog, as is Sultana Ali of the UNA Greater Orlando Chapter, who started one for the Young Professionals for International Cooperation (YPIC) group. Sultana's is called "a single flame". The United Nations Association Eastbay Chapter (Berkeley, California) is maintaining an interesting, substantive blog. UNA Iowa has also started a blog. The UNA Midpeninsula (California) Board also has an impressive blog. Just found another blog, from UNA Columbus (Ohio). I look forward to reading more from colleagues around the country.

I was delighted and surprised to find a blog by Bono and Bobby Shriver, on the Red campaign. A recent article notes that UNA-USA honored the Red campaign in October 2008.

If you know of other UNA bloggers, let me know! Also - I've just added Nasa's Earth Observatory Image of the day (as a gadget, below right), to help us focus on the critical issue of climate.

Commission on the Status of Women, March 2-13, 2009

2009-02-27T15:54:00.000-08:00

Over 4,000 women and men are expected to converge on the United Nations in the coming days. The 53rd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women will take place from March 2 to 13, 2009, in New York. A few related events start on February 28. The main theme will be “The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS” The session will be attended by representatives of Member States, UN entities and of ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from all regions of the world. A "Backgrounder" is available.

This is a Complete List of the NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) Parallel events to the official UN meetings. Over 200 events are scheduled. Many take place in the Church Center for the UN, while others will take place in the UN General Assembly building.

Here is the Official Documentation of the conference. It includes statements of the UN Secretary-General, which summarize the status and thinking across the UN System with regard to the main topic and related topics, and also statements by selected NGOs in Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council, including, for example, Zonta International, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, the World Association of Girl Guides and Scouts, the International Federation of University Women and others.

Philanthropy and Global Public Health

2009-02-24T11:26:00.001-08:00

Yesterday (February 23) I attended a Preparatory meeting for the 2009 High-level Segment of the UN Economic and Social Council on the theme of Philanthropy and Global Public Health. The meeting explored collaborative opportunities in advancing progress in maternal and girls' health and neglected tropical diseases. The aim was to share best practices and lessons learned and to build new innovative partnerships and alliances to address the Millennium Development Goals. Links to websites of co-convenors of the meeting are available.

It was brought out that half a million women die annually of consequences of childbirth, many from postpartum hemorrhage. That number hasn't changed in a decade or two (but denotes some progress, as the global population has increased). Another 300 million are debilitated by childbirth. The statistics are horrifying; young women, aged 19 and below, are particularly vulnerable.

Excellent papers were prepared before the event, and are available on the UN ECOSOC Website:
Background note:
Leadership for Health: Harnessing Business Skills with Social Needs

Issues note on Improving the Health Outcomes of Women and Girls

and
Issue note on Raising the Profile of Neglected Tropical Diseases

A UN webcast of the event is available. Look for the February 23 Special Event.

President Bill Clinton synthesized the meeting, giving a well-received keynote closing address in which he offered his ideas about the direction of philanthropy in the current tough economic situation globally. His remarks start at about 2 hours 48 minutes and I encourage you to watch.

Academic Earth goes Online

2009-02-19T21:00:00.000-08:00

Norman Jacknis, a long-time leader in the Westchester Alliance for Telecommunications and Public Access (WATPA), has shared another great resource.

Academic Earth is an organization founded with the goal of giving everyone on earth access to a world class education. www.academicearth.org It features thousands of video lectures from the world's top scholars and other notable lecturers. Subjects include: Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Economics,
Engineering, English, Entrepreneurship, History, Law, Mathematics, Medicine, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology and Religion.

In the area of political science, for example, you can watch Bill Bradley, former U.S. Senator from New Jersey, lecture on "Russia: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow," and Thomas Friedman give a lecture at MIT on "The World is Flat 3.0" Princeton offers a series of five lectures on the global financial crisis, and Yale another six lectures.

What a great way to go back to school, or for high school students to get a preview of college!

Year of Change: New Prospects for America at the UN

2009-02-19T20:54:00.000-08:00

The United Nations Association Mid-Atlantic Conference, held on February 6 at the UN, was a great success, with over 600 registered, including from 20 colleges and universities. You can find the Conference program, photos and other details at: www.unasouthernny.org . From the evaluations received it is very likely another conference will be planned for next spring. Click on the photos above to see close-ups.

Glowing words for Going Global with the UN

2009-01-25T13:41:00.001-08:00

A UNA colleague in Fort Collins, Colorado has sent a lovely note, mentioning an event held on the MDGs, with over 150 in attendance. They used the DVD "The MDG's: Dream or Reality?" She remarked that "The 'Going Global' series is a treasure. We'll be recommending it to others."

Going Global videos have been shown at UNA events in California, Texas, North Carolina, Illinois and Colorado. For information email me at: jbs@stratdev.com, or telephone 914-478-3450.

Mid-Atlantic Conference set for February 6

2009-01-03T10:26:00.001-08:00

You can now register to attend the United Nations Association Mid-Atlantic Conference Year of Change: New Prospects for America at the United Nations. In addition to keynote speakers, panels will focus on peace and security, human rights and climate change.

The Conference will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Conference Room 3 at the United Nations. Registration begins at 9 a.m., and you should arrive early to go through UN Security at the white tent at 46th St. and First Avenue.

You must register by February 2, so that your name can be placed on the United Nations security list.

The final program will be available soon. You can link to on-line registration at www.unasouthernny.org (Click on the red "register" in the article on the conference.)

Dr. Susan Rice named US Ambassador to the UN

2008-12-01T15:52:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Dr. Susan Rice, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and the rest of the Foreign Policy and security team of the incoming Obama Administration.

President-Elect Barack Obama has named Dr. Susan Rice, one-time Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs in the 1990s, to the post of Permanent Representative of the U.S. to the UN. Until joining the Obama Presidential team as senior foreign policy adviser, Dr. Rice served as a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution. She received the BA degree from Stanford University, and the M.Phil and D.Phil from Oxford University, where she was a Rhodes Scholar.

Dr. Rice has been known to express regret about the handling of the Rwanda Crisis, and can be expected to put Darfur high on her agenda at the UN, while working on a broad range of issues.

The UN Association of the USA has issued its endorsement of the appointment. The text appears below:

UNA-USA STRONGLY SUPPORTS NOMINATION OF SUSAN E. RICE AS US-UN AMBASSADOR; SHE EXEMPLIFIES QUALITIES NEEDED TO WORK EFFECTIVELY WITH UN SECRETARIAT AND MEMBER STATES

December 1, 2008. Ambassador William H. Luers, president of the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA), issued the following statement today concerning President-elect Barack Obama’s nomination of Susan E. Rice to become United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

UNA-USA strongly supports the nomination of Susan E. Rice to become United States permanent representative to the United Nations. In selecting Dr. Rice for this key foreign-policy position, President-elect Barack Obama is appointing one of his closest advisers to one of the world’s most important and demanding diplomatic posts. The president-elect’s decision to include the incoming ambassador in his cabinet is also important, signaling the key role that the United Nations will play in the incoming administration’s foreign policy.

Susan Rice exemplifies many of the qualities that UNA-USA believes are critical to achieving successful outcomes in the UN post. She has strong diplomatic experience, a demonstrated willingness to listen to others and an abiding interest in and concern for developments in Africa, where some of the most important UN responsibilities rest. At the same time, Dr. Rice has developed a keen knowledge and understanding of the UN’s operational capabilities during the years that she worked both in and out of government.

The Rice nomination adds further to the anticipation at the United Nations that the incoming Obama administration, including Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton, will be cooperating closely with UN member states to manage and resolve many issues that the United States cannot address on its own. Virtually every major foreign-policy issue facing the United States must be dealt with under the umbrella of the UN — climate change, nuclear non-proliferation, global pandemics, achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, the prevention of genocide, as well as regional challenges, particularly in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Africa.

As the new US Permanent Representative to the UN, Susan Rice will be looked to for cooperation and leadership in strengthening the United Nations. The UN is poised to undertake an energetic renewal effort, including a broader UN Security Council more representative of today’s global distribution of power. A sympathetic US role can help move this core shift in how the UN addresses global security issues. A positive and yet not commanding US role in renewing the United Nations in many aspects is greatly needed to help the UN become far more effective in dealing with its ever-growing responsibilities. We look toward a new era of American cooperation at the United Nations to address the global issues that threaten the future of our planet.

The leadership and members of UNA-USA throughout the United States look forward to working closely with the incoming administration and its team to support a robust and effective US presence at the United Nations.

Horrific Attacks on Mumbai

2008-11-29T19:04:00.000-08:00

Once again the few have attacked the many. No matter the underlying feelings of self-justification, terror is not the answer to cure perceived ills.

My sympathies go to the people of Mumbai, the people of India, and the people of the world, who have come under attack while leading their peaceful lives. It is vital that good people and governments of the world come together to work toward peace and to root out those who would create havoc and destabilize nations. It is important for the United Nations truly to unite toward the betterment of humanity and for nations, including the United States, to use multilateral cooperation and coordination to improve the lives of the billions who live in poverty. Unless there is hope for better futures the world is at the mercy of terrorists.

President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and US Ambassador to the UN Dr. Susan Rice will have their work cut out for them as the new American administration sets out to reinterpret America to the world and to build coalitions that foster peace.

World Maps for Today's World

2008-11-18T09:23:00.000-08:00

A picture is worth a thousand words. And a map using today's data and asking pertinent questions gives us a whole new picture of the world. See the website http://www.worldmapper.org/

Look at the Map Categories or the A-Z Map Index to view how our world really looks in numbers. For example, you can see the numbers of elderly in the world, or midwives working, or hospital beds, or forest loss, or ecological footprint. A new software has enabled production of cartograms that let us see how whole continents or regions can bulge (Africa's malaria deaths), or disappear (dentists working in sub-Saharan Africa) or surprise (science research).

This is a wonderful resource for teaching about the world, and for understanding debates and positions taken by countries at the United Nations.

Going Global: Preparing U.S. Students for an Interconnected World

2008-11-12T13:09:00.000-08:00

The Asia Society has published an excellent book "Going Global: Preparing U.S. Students for an Interconnected World." It can be used by teachers, administrators and parents to understand the changes that must take place to bring the American educational system to a competitive level internationally. Excerpts and case studies are available at http://asiasociety.org/education/pgl/publications.htm Going Global is a guidebook to assist secondary schools in developing students’ international knowledge and skills, and covers the areas:

Creating a global vision and culture
Finding and preparing teachers
Transforming curriculum and instruction
Expanding world languages
Internationalizing student learning experiences - including technology, travel, internships, and service learning
Identifying resources and forging partnerships

A presentation on the challenges of preparing students is available at: http://www.fi.ncsu.edu/USChina/stewart.pdf

Barack Obama wins Presidency!

2008-11-05T09:49:00.001-08:00

Congratulations to President-Elect Barack Obama, who will take office on January 20, 2009 after an historic campaign and winning a sizeable margin of electoral college votes and the popular vote. See below for his response to questions about the United Nations, which herald stronger ties to the UN and to multilateralism.

Year of Change, Year of Choice: America and the UN

2008-10-17T09:25:00.001-07:00

The UNA Mid-Atlantic Conference, will take place on Friday, February 6, 2009. Feel free to contact Catherine D. White (CatherineDWhite@aol.com) or George Garland (GAGarland@gmail.com) with any questions. As details become available they will be posted in this blog and also at www.unasouthernny.org

Barack Obama responds to UNA-USA questionnaire

2008-10-15T16:08:00.000-07:00

UNA-USA has released a letter from Senator Barack Obama concerning his views on UN-US relations. http://www.unausa.org/site/pp.asp?c=fvKRI8MPJpF&b=3879851 He notes, "Despite its evident flaws and failings, the UN remains essential to advancing U.S. interests, to enhancing global security, spurring development and providing food, medicine and life-saving assistance to the world's most needy everyday."

Senator John McCain did not reply to the questionnaire.

Obama embraces MDGs

2008-10-05T19:02:00.000-07:00

I believe that it is vital for America to have a positive voice in the world, and that working with the United Nations and entire UN System can facilitate important international achievements. The global economic crisis, climate change, the increasing need for renewable energy and sustainable development, nuclear proliferation, worldwide poverty where a billion still live on less than $1 a day -- can only be solved with worldwide cooperation. With good political leadership and through partnership, we can make a major difference in the world we leave to our children. We can set important goals, and work together to meet them. Good scientific and technological research, strengthened education of our children, conservation, investment in the future and imagination will be stimulated by such leadership.

During the High-Level Segment of the UN General Assembly, Senator John McCain and his running mate visited the UN to meet world leaders. Despite this high-profile visit, McCain's policies seem to side-step the United Nations itself, and focus instead on bringing together only "democracies." Now, just a month before the presidential election, I am asking our readers to write to Senator McCain to ask him to support the United Nations, the UN MDGs, and to set forth a coherent policy that will give voters an understanding of his position and his global vision.

By contrast, in a speech to the Clinton Global Initiative on September 25, 2008, Senator Barack Obama embraced the UN Millennium Development Goals with the following statement:

"We all have a stake in reducing poverty. There is suffering across the globe that doesn’t need to be tolerated in the 21st century. And it leads to pockets of instability that provide fertile breeding grounds for threats like terror and the smuggling of deadly weapons that cannot be contained by the drawing of a border or the distance of an ocean. These aren’t simply disconnected corners of an interconnected world. That is why the second commitment that I will make is embracing the Millennium Development Goals, which aim to cut extreme poverty in half by 2015."

That said, I heard Senator Obama in a televised speech state that his plans for foreign assistance may need to be spread out over several years, because of the current economic crisis.

It is important to stay informed about the candidates' attitudes and policies toward global issues and their vision of the role of the UN. Sen. Obama has answered questions submitted to him by UNA-USA and the Better World Fund; you can see his replies here: http://www.unausa.org/site/pp.asp?c=fvKRI8MPJpF&b=3879851

Sen. McCain has not responded, but perhaps with encouragement from the public, he, or perhaps his running mate, would reply. It's time to press for this and to help American citizens understand the candidate's views related to the UN in this important election.

Going Global with the UN Videos

2008-10-02T07:58:00.000-07:00

You can now watch Bill Miller's interviews with UN and related notables on your computer! Bill (Global Connections, UNA Frankfort, UNA-USA Board member and Rotary International) creates his programs at UN Headquarters, working with UNTV. These 30-minute programs are great for anyone who wants to learn about the UN through the eyes of those involved, or for students active in Model UN. Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro, UN historian Stephen Schlesinger, Ambassador Francis Lorenzo of the Dominican Republic, David Stillman of the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, Bettina Luescher of the World Food Program and Pera Wells of the World Federation of United Nations Associations are just a few of those Bill has interviewed.

The Dallas Chapter of UNA and Richland Community College, with the Lecroy Center for Educational Communication, have just uploaded videos 53to 70 of Going Global with the UN. I want to thank Noeli Biggs and all others involved. You can watch the videos at http://www.rlc.dcccd.edu/modelun/videos.htm

I want to thank the UNA Southern New York State Division for its financial support for the series. The videos are again being shown in fall 2008 in Westchester County, New York on many cable TV networks, sponsored by the UNA Westchester Education Committee, whose chair is Marcia Wallace.

I also want to thank, again, the people involved in production of the series: Dan Hamilton, who is responsible for all of the technical work, making many disparate videos into seamless 30-minute productions. Dan also created the "bumpers" - the front and end pieces of the series, and Gregory Stillman's voice is heard in these. Nicoletta Barolini generously created the lovely Going Global with the UN logo.
Several interns, starting with Julianna Koch, have worked the series, sifting through many hours of potential source material, and obtaining permissions. Vanessa Van Arendonk, Ebi Spahiu, Declan Galvin, Samantha Young, Charlotte Ambrozek, Kristyn Kadala and others have supported the project.

If there is demand in future, we'll create more videos for "Going Global with the UN". Bill Miller interviews several notable UN-related people each month, so that content is available, and after a year's hiatus from looking at other source materials, I'm sure we can find many excellent new videos from throughout the UN System.

Special thanks go to David Stillman, who was president of the UNA of Westchester when the project started, and who has lived with hundreds of videos and dvds in our home and office!

Now the job is to market these across the country. I'll be glad to answer questions, and to ensure that any order you may place is quickly filled (with Dan's help, of course). DVD's are $10 each plus shipping and handling. Contact me at jbs@stratdev.com, or phone 914-478-3450. For a full list of all 70 videos, see a related article earlier in this blog, or look at the Richland Community College Model UN website.

"Ginger" Stillman

Year of Change, Year of Choice: America and the United Nations

2008-09-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

As I write on September 11, 2008, seven years after the World Trade Center disaster, I feel sorrow for all affected by the event. Over 3,000 people, including from 80 countries, lost their lives at the World Trade Center, and others on American Flight 93 and at the Pentagon. They deserve mourning and our respect. I regret that the United States squandered much of the good will the world poured out toward America just after that date.

The US and the UN have had a rocky relation since the advent of the US war on Iraq, undertaken without UN concurrence and based on erroneous information. This has colored US-UN relations in many other ways, although the US continues to support a significant piece of the UN budget and that of its agencies.

Many important treaties and conventions are awaiting US ratification or signature: Law of the Sea, Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and others. Others have been abrogated by the current administration. Beyond this,the administration has vetoed Congressionally-mandated funding for the UN Population Fund. It has also overridden the Geneva Conventions on Treatment of Prisoners of War and has challenged the existence and authority of the International Criminal Court.

On November 4 we will elect our new president, congress, and one-third of the Senate. And on November 8, with those results in hand, the conference "Year of Change, Year of Choice: America and the UN" will take stock of the potential direction for US-UN relations for the upcoming years.

This First United Nations Association Mid-Atlantic Conference will be held at the UN on Saturday, November 8, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. YPIC and the Council of Organizations are co-sponsors with the UNA Southern NY State Division and the New Jersey Division.

Ramu Damodoram, Deputy Director of Outreach of the Department of Public Information, will give the welcoming address. Opening plenary invited speakers are New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez and U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad. The Conference will focus on three topics: Human Rights, Peace and Security, and Climate Change. A Youth Speaker will be invited to participate in each panel.

Updates on the program and information on registration will be posted at www.unasouthernny.org

Going Global with the UN reaches 70 videos

2008-06-05T15:12:00.000-07:00

For information about purchasing these videos (DVD/VHS), contact Jeanne Betsock Stillman, jbs@stratdev.com or 914-478-3450.

SEE VIDEO TITLES BELOW NEWS UPDATES.

NEWS UPDATES: Going Global with the UN has received some nice publicity from the Stanley Foundation, regarding its availability online through cooperation of UNA Westchester and Dallas, and Richland Community College. 51 of the series are now available at the website. http://www.rlc.dcccd.edu/modelun/videos.htm

We expect that the rest of the series -- Videos 53 to 70 -- will shortly go online. Those 18 are interviews by Bill Miller (UNA, Frankfort, KY), who hosts a Global Connections TV series produced together with UNTV.
http://www.stanleyfoundation.org/think/2008think8.html

ALSO: The UNA Westchester Chapter will resume showing Going Global on ten public access stations in Westchester County, NY beginning October 2008. Offerings will include Episodes 1 - 8 plus 53-70.

OVERVIEW OF THE UN AND UNA

Episode 1. The UN Working for Us All – United Nations, 2004, An overview of the various areas of work of the UN including relief, peacekeeping, human rights, development, education, health, and security. Narrated by Michael Douglas. with The UN Security Council: Keeping the Peace- UN, 2004, An overview of the history, present, and future of the Security Council & its crucial place in the UN.

Episode 2 . UN-UNA: Partners for a Better World- UNA, 2002. Traces the development of the UN and the United Nations Association from 1945 to the important work being done today by both.

Episode 3. For Everyone Everywhere: The Making of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights- UN, 1998. Outlines the drafting and passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the early days of the UN, as well present day instances concerning human rights.

Episode 4. A Place to Stand, UN, 1995. Discusses the importance of the UN as a voice for all the peoples of the world, as well as crucial UN involvement in areas we don’t often realize, including telecommunication standards, air and sea craft regulations, and weather service. with UN in Action #968-972, UN, 2005. A compilation of short pieces on UN work including AIDS in Mozambique, UNICEF in Colombia, UNODC Brazil, ILO and forced labor, and gender violence in Burundi.

EDUCATION

Episode 5. Peace Makes the World a Better Place, UNA Westchester, 2005. A film documenting UNA-USA West-chester’s work on an art contest in Yonkers’ schools and interviews with children on the subject of peace. with Children’s Rights Cartoons, UNICEF, 2004. Ten Cartoons illustrate Children’s Rights.

Episode 6. Education for All: Bangladesh, World Bank Institute & UN Film Festival. Discusses successful campaigns and programs in Bangladesh to combat a large population and widespread poverty and provide education for both boys and girls.

Episode 7. Education for All: The Ugandan Experience, WBI & UN Film Festival, 2004. Documents Uganda’s efforts since 1979 to provide education for all and one teacher’s efforts to convince families to send their children to school.

Episode 8. I Want to Go to School, UNICEF, 2002. Three girls from three different countries struggle to get an education when tradition and poverty often outweigh girls’ education.
HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Episode 9. Knowledge and the Environment, World Bank Institute. Illustrates the importance of knowledge, people and communities in protecting the environment.

Episode 10. A World of Biodiversity, Food & Agricultural Organization. The importance of biodiversity and resource preservation in Ethiopia, Cambodia, Lake Tchad, and Peru.

Episode 11. Water Drop of Life, UN. Discusses the importance of clean water, the scarcity of this valuable resource, and the problems than can occur if it is not conserved. with A Message from Secretary General Kofi Annan, UN. A brief speech from the S-G on the International Decade for Water. and “Splish-Splash”, UN. A video on the importance of water conservation directed at children.

Episode 12. A School on the Lake, FAO. Teaching children the importance of environmental preservation in “Floating Schools”. with Seeds of Diversity, FAO. The diversification of seeds in Ethiopia for maximizing farming without harm to the environment.

Episode 13. The Broken Flight, UN. Explores the compatibility between economic and ecological concerns in Senegal, Venezuela, and others.

Episode 14. Blue Algae of the Desert, FAO. Nutrition and health from the natural environment in Tchad. with Nomads of the Island – The needs of nomads lead them to islands for resources. and Fish and Rice – The dangers of over-fishing and the importance of environmental protection.

Episode 15. No Place to Run, World Bank Institute, UN Film Festival. Reveals the global connection between environmental changes and global epidemics.

POVERTY AND DEVELOPMENT

Episode 16. Hear Our Voices, World Bank Institute, UN Film Festival. Examines the complex problem of poverty from the viewpoint of poor people and the ways they work and organize to gain a voice of their own.

Episode 17. Toil and Trouble, UN, 1995. Focuses on disadvantaged groups in several societies, their experiences and views, and what can be done to reduce poverty.

Episode 18. They Call Me Dog- UNICEF, 1995. Documents the dangerous and exhausting tasks taken on by children in order to survive.

Episode 19. Mauritius: Island of Ingenuity, World Bank Institute, 1998. An overview of the steps taken by the island of Mauritius to become an important player in world trade and to stimulate economic development.

Episode 20. Peru: Road to Recovery, World Bank Institute, 1998. Chronicles Peru’s economic growth and increased stability since problems with terrorism, overcrowding, and inflation in the 1970s.

WAR AND PEACE

Episode 21. 3551: Demobilization of Child Soldiers in Southern Sudan, UNICEF, 2001. Follows the work of the UN in the demobilization of 3551 child soldiers and process of reuniting the children with families or villages.

Episode 22. Our Bodies…Their Battleground, UN Film Festival & IRIN News. Reveals the gender based violence and rape facing women and girls during times of conflict, and the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Liberia in particular. with UN in Action #973 & 974, UN, 2005. Two short pieces on the work of the UN worldwide. (Episode 22)

Episode 23. Secrets in the Sand, UN, 1997. UN inspectors tackle the problem of biological weapons, one of the more difficult to detect and eliminate forms of warfare, yet one of the easiest to create.

Episode 24. Small Targets, UNICEF, 1997. Exposes the issue of landmines left behind from conflict and international efforts to de-mine and provide prosthetic limbs for injured children.

GENDER AND AGEING

Episode 25. Defying the Odds, UN, 1995. Follows the lives of four women for the Beijing Women’s Conference who are adopting new roles in society, including a lawyer in Pakistan, a factory worker who forms a worker’s union in Guatemala, a Latvian theater director juggling family and work, and an immigrant to Canada who wins a local election.

Episode 26. Portraits of Age, UN, 1994. Discusses the important role of the elderly in their respective societies and the problems they face as the fastest growing segment of the population.

US-UN RELATIONS

Episode 27: Secretary of State Madeleine Albright speaks at the Power and Superpower Conference, June 6, 2006. Also: Building a world fit for children (UNICEF)

Episode 28: UN Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown speaks at the Power and Superpower Conference, June 6, 2006. Also: The First Mile, on access to markets in Tanzania and how technology can help.

Episode 29: Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Gillian Sorensen speaks at UNA’s April 5 event. If you missed the event, be sure to catch her excellent presentation.

UN REPORTS

Episode 30: UN Year in Review: 2005; UNICEF State of the World’s Children Report 2006; UN Development Program, Human Development Report.

THE UN MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDGS) -- INTRODUCTION

Episode 31: Introduction: The MDGs: Dream or Reality? Also: UNDP MDGs.

Episode 32: MDGs: – Albania: Roadmap to 2015. Also: Too Brief a Child: Voices of Married Adolescents

MDG Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

Episode 33: Helping Ourselves. The program looks at two projects that are helping Indian communities move out of poverty. Also: Feeding Schoolchildren in Rwanda.

Episode 34: Yemeni Futures. The program asks what is being done to address the fundamental needs of the Yemeni people, and achievements since the unification in 1990 to raise the quality of their lives. Also: Millennium Village in Malawi

Episode 35: Central African Republic: Silent Crisis. The country is on the verge of complete collapse. It is one of the least developed countries in the world and one of the poorest. 13 per cent of children die in infancy and only a third of the population has access to safe drinking water.

Episode 36: The Angle of Hunger. The documentary features FAO’s field work in the Peruvian Andes and the Ethiopian Highlands and explores why a disproportionate number of mountain dwellers experience periods of hunger and food insecurity.

MDG Goal 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education

Episode 37: Achieve Universal Primary Education. Two approaches to improving the lives of poor people -- one through education, as in the Shilmundi project in Bangladesh, the other through "community-driven development" in Indonesia. Also: Colombia - Medellin Girls; and Nepal - Welcome to School.

Episode 38: Educating Yaprak. Education for children, especially girls, in Turkey. Also: 10 Ways to change the world with children.

MDG Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women

Episode 39: Las Borregeras. An IFAD-supported project in Mexico helps a women’s group set up a sheep farm. Also: Agents of change 2005: The 1995 Beijing Women’s Conference and progress until now; and Fighting Poverty with Roses in Rwanda.

Episode 40: Women on the Run. The famous Kenyan marathon runner Tegla Loroupe starts a peace race to help end armed conflicts in her poverty-stricken home area. The Kenyan politician Linah Kilimo, who herself ran from the knife, strives for the goal of putting an end to female genital mutilation.

MDG Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health

Episode 41: Fight for Life: Making Pregnancy Safer. This episode describes the attempt to improve maternal health in Moldova.

Episode 42: Fight for Life: Making Pregnancy Safer. This episode describes the attempt to improve maternal health in Bolivia.

MDG Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

Episode 43: Malaria, Killer Number One. Africa’s Malaria Crisis. Ethiopia is among the places hardest hit by the disease. New cures, preventive action and massive intervention by the international community bring a glimmer of hope. Also: Fistula Advocacy Video. UNFPA brings awareness to this childbirth problem.

Episode 44: Research Capacity and Self-reliance in Developing Countries. The video explores needs and solutions to public health problems caused by neglected infectious diseases. Also: The Road Towards Universal Access. Reaching the MDG on HIV/AIDS requires far greater access to prevention, treatment, care and support than is currently available. Also: AIDS: For a Social Vaccine (ILO).

MDG Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Stability

Episode 45: Global Focus: The New Environmentalists. Features intimate portraits of seven dedicated individuals who have put themselves between government powers, corporate interests and other rivals on behalf of the Earth's well-being. Each compelling story takes place on a different continent.

Episode 46: Weather, Climate, Water in the Information Age About the World Meteorological Organization
Also: The other side of Paradise. About the December 2004 Tsunami and its impact; Grenada hurricane and impact; Sea Turtles in Barbados; Environmental Changes and impacts on islands.

Episode 47: Tomorrow's Catch. The video highlights FAO’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries
Also: The First Mile. This IFAD video looks an innovative two-year pilot project underway in Tanzania. Also, Inner Mongolia leads China in Wind Power Generation.

MDG Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

Episode 48: Breaking Through. This film gives a glimpse of what microfinance means for millions throughout Africa, Asia, the Americas and the Middle East, through the Grameen Foundation. Also: World Community Grid: IBM works with many partners to create the largest public computing grid benefiting humanity. Also, ITU backs ICTs to Aid Development. The International Telecommunications Union and information communications technology.

Episode 49: The EU and the UN: The Natural Partnership. Talks about the partnerships and achievements of the European Commission with the United Nations. Also: Millions Saved. Improvements in Global Health in Africa, the Americas and Asia which result from partnerships.

Peace & Security

Episode 50: In the Wake of War After. 10 years of civil war, Burundians are ready for lasting peace This documentary follows the stories of three people who are attempting to rebuild their lives. Also: Grass Roots Justice in Rwanda.

Episode 51: Kbiit (Courage) East Timor Nation Building: Documentary on peacekeeping and peace-building in Timor-Leste, highlighting the partnership between the United Nations system and the Timorese to build the first nation of the millennium.

Episode 52: Between 2 Stones: Nepal’s Decade of Conflict. Since the 1996 beginning of Nepal’s civil war, more than 12,000 people have lost their lives as the ruling monarchy battles with Maoist rebels. The civilian population is trapped in the middle. Also: Extra-Judicial Killings in Colombia. A 40-year armed conflict has claimed the lives of many indigenous people. Complaints from residents to the Human Rights Office will help to convict those responsible for these crimes and bring justice to the victims and their families.

2006 State of the UNEpisode 53: The first half of this episode reviews United Nations progress, successes as well as issues that were addressed in 2006. The second half focuses on four different stories: (a) highlighting issues Bahraini women face in seeking political positions; (b) China Population Report 2007, with a focus on urbanization; (c) how the impact of global warming in polar regions affects the rest of the world; and (d) how the Alliance of Civilizations came about and its goals and strategies for reducing tensions among different societies.

Global Connections Interviews by host Bill Miller, UNA Kentucky, filmed at the UN in cooperation with UN TV (Episodes 54-69, except #59)

Episode 54: Public-Private Alliance Foundation and the Dominican Republic, including MDGs. Global Connections host Bill Miller speaks with the Executive Director of the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, Dr. David Stillman and Ambassador Francis Lorenzo from the Permanent Mission of the Dominican Republic to the United Nations about the United Nation Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), highlighting the examples of progress made in the Dominican Republic. Ambassador Lorenzo and Dr. Stillman speak to the importance of cooperation between the UN and host countries. Stillman speaks on the work of the Public-Private Alliance in encouraging partnerships for development and its focus countries of Madagascar and the Dominican Republic.

Episode 55: UN’s Role in dealing with Avian Influenza In an interview with Global Connections host Bill Miller, Dr. David Nabarro, the UN System Senior Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza addresses issues surrounding the possibility of an avian influenza outbreak both in a local and global contexts, and the relationships with human influenza. Dr. Nabarro speaks about the potential for an outbreak to occur, and what sort of precautionary plans the UN has for dealing with such an occurrence, such as with issues of livestock and animal rearing. He also talks about how the UN plans to get control of the situation if an outbreak were to transpire.

Episode 56: UNA-USA, Model UN and Global Classrooms Dr. Lucia Rodriguez, the Vice President for Education at the United Nations Association – USA, and Elizabeth Scarinci, intern at UNA – USA speak with Global Connections host Bill Miller about the Model UN and Global Classroom program from an organizational and a student perspective. Dr. Rodriguez discusses the Model UN program and how it helps students become more aware of world issues and become global citizens. Ms. Scarinci speaks about what it is like to participate in such a program, what she has learned, and how it has helped give her a clear focus for her college and career goals.

Episode 57: Sport for Development and Peace Global Connections host Bill Miller interviews Dr. Djibril Diallo, the Director of the United Nations New York Office of Sport for Development and Peace about this unique approach the UN is taking to help combat issues of illiteracy, poverty and hunger. Dr. Diallo comments on the role sports have in development and how communities can use sports and physical education to help further their economic development and to tackle issues of gender inequality. In addition, Dr. Diallo speaks about how important partnerships between the UN, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector are to the success of this innovative approach to development.

Episode 58: UN Fund for International Partnerships (UNFIP) (now the UN Office for Partnerships) Amir Dossal, the Executive Director of the UN Fund for International Partnerships speaks with Global Connections host Bill Miller about his work in promoting partnerships in development work between the public and private sector. Mr. Dossal stresses the importance of these relationships and how it positively benefits countries as well as how collaboration between groups focuses attention on dealing with issues affecting US citizens and others around the world.

Episode 59: UNICEF State of the World’s Children This episode profiles the UNICEF Report on the State of the World’s Children in ten different countries; Iran, Romania, Chad, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Brazil, USA, Djibouti and Madagascar. It gives viewers snapshots from each country into how the health of children is inextricably linked to that of their mothers and others in the community, thereby showing how important it is to consider these issues in development.

Episode 60: What does the UN Deputy Secretary-General Do? An interview with Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations. Dr. Migiro talks about her role as Deputy S-G, in relation to the UN Millennium Development goals, management issues within the UN, climate change, and other timely topics.

Episode 61: The Founding of the United Nations Professor Stephen Schlesinger, author, Act of Creation: The Founding of the United Nations

Episode 62: Informing the Public about the United Nations Kiyotaka Akasaka, Under-Secretary-General, UN Department of Public Information. See: http://www.un.org/news/

Episode 63: Children and Armed Conflict Radhika Coomaraswamy, UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict. http://www.un.org/children/conflict/english/index.html

Episode 64: George and Nick Clooney in Darfur Nick Clooney, Media Celebrity See:http://www.clooneystudio.com/charities.html or http://www.notonourwatchproject.org/

Episode 65: Feeding the Hungry in Crisis – the World Food Program Bettina Luescher, North American Spokesperson for the UN World Food Program http://www.wfp.org/english/

Episode 66: The UN Democracy Fund: Roland Rich, Executive Head, UN Democracy Fund.
See: http://www.un.org/democracyfund/XWhatIsUNDEF.htm

Episode 67: The UN Global Compact Georg Kell, Executive Director, the UN Global Compact. See:
http://www.unglobalcompact.org/

Episode 68: The United Nations and Disarmament Affairs Ambassador Sergio Duarte, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs. http://disarmament.un.org/

Episode 69: Dealing with Climate Change and Counter-Terrorism Dr. Robert C. Orr, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Strategic Planning in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General
For information about the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, see: http://unfccc.int/
For information about the UN and Counter-Terrorism, see:
http://www.un.org/terrorism/

Episode 70: The World Federation of UN Associations Pera Wells, Secretary-General of WFUNA, speaks with host Bill Miller about the work of the Federation, which has over 100 members.
For information: www.wfuna.org

Lehman College Honors UN

2008-05-09T15:50:00.000-07:00

Lehman College is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its founding as an independent Unit of the City University of New York.
On May 21, the college presented "The United Nations at Lehman College: a Homecoming." To see photographs of the event (taken by David Stillman), see:http://www.flickr.com/photos/unasouthernny

President Ricardo Fernandez introduced a panel, which included Sir Brian Urquehart, former UN Under-Secretary-General for Special Affairs and Mrs. Margaret Bruce (Molly), whose work for human rights and women's rights began at Lehman. Professor Duane Tanenbaum, of the History Department, moderated the panel and also read the remarks of Ms. Betty Teslenko, who could not attend. She had begun her UN work at the founding Conference of the UN in San Francisco in 1945, as an interpreter. After the Symposium, Molly was interviewed by Channel 12 News of The Bronx.

Activities began in the "Old Gymnasium," site of the meetings of the UN Security Council in spring 1946. About 100 people attended, including UNA Southern NYS Division Officers and Board Members Catherine White, David Stillman, Phil Reynolds, Peg Shannon, Jackie Fisher, Sohrab Kheradi, and David Cockroft as well as members of the Bronx Chapter. Former ASG Lila Das also attended, as did Andres Castellanos, George Saddler and other AFICS members (Association of Former International Civil Servants). Brad Kaufman, who collects memorabilia about the UN in Queens also attended.

President Fernandez then led the re-dedication of a Peace Grove of trees, originally dedicated in 1996 on the 50th anniversary of the UN. Photos were taken of some of the crowd as well as of the Mohicans. The paragraphs below about the Mohicans are reprinted from the Summer 2006 newsletter of the United Nations Association of Maine. They appeared in a larger article by R. Bruce Stedman, retired Assistant Secretary-General of the UN and a member of the Mohicans. He was sorry he couldn't attend the Lehman College event.

"The first temporary headquarters of the United Nations was established at Hunter College in the Bronx in March 1946. The girls’ dormitories became offices, staff lounges were converted into meeting rooms, the girls’ swimming pool became the temporary home of the Security Council. The organization transferred into more appropriate headquarters in Lake Success in July of that year. Staff members who were on board at Hunter College established an organization to commemorate their pioneer status, called “The UN Society of the Mohicans”. I reported for duty at Hunter College in May of 1946 and thereby became a “Mohican”. We were a happy band, proud of our status as workers in the world’s best hope for peace — the United Nations.

It has been the custom of the Mohicans over a great many years to hold an annual luncheon at UN headquarters. I attended such a luncheon on June 15th, 2006, the organization’s 60th birthday. I’m told that there were about 500 of us at Hunter College. About 90 are still alive; eighteen attended the luncheon and decided that it would be our final formal affair. That makes me one of the Last of the Mohicans! These are old folks (in their eighties & nineties) — many quite frail — but all still filled with the spirit of the international civil service, deeply enjoying reminiscences of shared experiences over the years."

Better World Campaign

2008-04-19T16:28:00.000-07:00

For great, up-to-date information about taking action with the UN, visit the Better World Campaign website.

The Impact of Gender Inequality on Global Poverty and AIDS

2008-04-04T11:55:00.000-07:00

The Westchester Coalition on Global Poverty and AIDS will present a talk with Letty Chiwara, Director of Global Programs at the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). She will speak on Monday, April 28th, at 7pm at the Thomas H. Slater Center – 2 Fisher Court, White Plains - NY.

Ms. Chiwara is a native of Zimbabwe and was a founding member of the Positive Women’s Network of Southern Africa, a non-profit organization providing support to women living with HIV/AIDS in 8 southern Africa countries. She also leads an inter-agency team of the United Nations, World Bank, and European Union which ensures that the development aid that is given to developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America will benefit women equally.

This event is sponsored by the Westchester Coalition on Global Poverty and AIDS. The Slater Center is located in downtown White Plains, across from the County Courthouse building near the intersection of Quarropas and Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. (914 948-6211). Local parking is available.

For more information contact: Ron Mitchell — hapny@hotmail.com / 914 576-8473

2008 Members Day at the UN

2008-02-28T09:36:00.001-08:00

Riley McMahon, of UNA-USA HQ, has announced that 2008 Members’ Day at the United Nations will take place on Saturday, April 5, 2008 from 1:00–5:30 pm.
Members must register by March 21, 2008.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has set ambitious goals for the UN in 2008 to tackle some of the world’s most pressing issues, both new and old. This year brings two significant milestones for the UN: 2008 is the midway point for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the sixty year anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. While the UN will use these milestones to direct much of its work, a range of ongoing issues have to be addressed.

The United Nations Association of the USA invites its members from around the country to United Nations headquarters in New York for a members-only event. This FREE annual event is a unique opportunity for our members to learn more about the work of the UN from those who carry out the organization’s unique mission to confront the global challenges facing the world today.

Discussion Topics
The UN’s Goals for 2008
Climate Change
Human Rights
The Millennium Development Goals

Register online at www.unausa.org/MembersDay2008 by March 21, 2008.

UNA-USA Announces the Earl Eames Award for Communications, the Arnold Goodman Award and the Global Young Advocate Award

2008-02-11T12:45:00.000-08:00

The Council of Chapters and Divisions Steering Committee invites chapters for their nominations for three awards to be given at the CCD-SC Annual Meeting in Washington in June. The deadline for nominations is April 1. These are the Earl Eames Award for Communications, the Arnold S. Goodman Award for leadership, and the Global Young Advocate Award. Forms and criteria for the awards may be obtained from Riley McMahon riley@unausa.org, and the completed forms should be returned to him.

The Earl Eames Award is a memorial to the late Earl W. Eames, Jr., of Minnesota, the former chair of the Council of Chapters and Divisions (CCD) and President of the UNA of Minnesota from 1980 -1986. The winner receives a check for $500. Jeanne Betsock Stillman of the Westchester Chapter is chair of the CCD-SC Subcommittee on Communications, which supports the Earl Eames Award.

The Arnold Goodman Award is presented by the UNA-USA Council of Chapters and Divisions to recognize and encourage outstanding leadership among the chapters and divisions of UNA-USA. The Award is a tribute to the late Arnold Goodman of Wisconsin who, by his example and service as chair of the then Council of Chapter and Division Presidents and in other capacities, set a standard of excellence and commitment to the work of UNA-USA. The winner receives a check for $500.

Young people around the nation show their commitment to the goals and ideals of the United Nations on a daily basis. UNA-USA is proud to recognize young professionals whose accomplishments demonstrate personal initiative and commitment to the United Nations through the Global Young Advocate Award.

UNA Events in the New York Area

2008-01-30T10:29:00.001-08:00

Upcoming United Nations Association events in the New York area include:

http://www.unawestchester.org/ (UNA Westchester)

Climate Change: Too Hot to Handle?
Mar 15 2008 4 - 6 pm
Greenburgh Nature Center
See Philip Reynolds - philreynolds60@aol.com
An Insider's Guide to the UN
May 4 2008 2 - 4 pm
Scarsdale Library
See Philip Reynolds - philreynolds60@aol.com

http://www.unasouthernny.org/ (UNA Southern NY State Division)
Board Meeting
March 10, 2008, 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Arthur G. Ross Conference Room, UNA-USA, 801 Second Ave., NYC
See Catherine White - catherinedwhite@aol.com

UPCOMING: Mid-Atlantic Conference -- Date and venue to be determined
The Southern NYS Division and the New Jersey Division will hold a one-day conference open to all.

www.unasouthernny.org/ypic (Southern NY Young Professionals for International Cooperation)
"The Heart of the World Lies in the Amazon"
February 10, 2008
7 pm - midnight
Nikki Beach East
Register: www.unausa.org/projectemerge
Online: $15 Door: $20

http://www.unanyc.org/events/nycevents.html (UNA New York (Manhattan) Chapter)

http://www.unaqueens.org/about.html (UNA Queens Chapter)

George Clooney named UN Messenger of Peace

2008-01-22T09:34:00.000-08:00

Adding to a long list of prominent people affiliated with the UN, on January 18, 2008, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has named American actor George Clooney a United Nations Messenger of Peace. He will work mainly on Peacekeeping issues, stemming from his work on the Darfur crisis. UN spokeswoman Michele Montas said Clooney was recognized "for focusing public attention on crucial international political and social issues." Only the Secretary-General names UN Messengers of Peace.

United Nations Messengers of Peace

George Clooney
Michael Douglas
Jane Goodall
Elie Wiesel
Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein
Daniel Barenboim
Paulo Coelho
Midori Goto
Yo Yo Ma

Many UN agencies have their own Goodwill Ambassadors. These give of their time, energy and often funding and other resources to the various areas of work of the United Nations. These include:

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

Roger Federer (Swiss; world tennis champion), 2006
Amitabh Bachchan (Indian film star), 2005
David Beckham (English football star), 2005
Lucy Liu (actress), 2005
Lang Lang (pianist), 2004
Ricky Martin (pop singer). 2004
Jackie Chan (actor), 2004
Danny Glover (actor), 2004
Clay Aiken (singer), 2004
India Arie (singer), 2004
Whoopi Goldberg (comedian/actress), 2003
Angela Basset (actress), 2003
Alyssa Milano (actress), 2003
Jessica Lange (actress), 2003
Isabella Rossellini (actress), 2003
Liv Tyler (actress), 2003
Shakira Mebarak (singer and songwriter), 2003
Femi Anikulapo-Kuti (Nigerian musician), 2002
Angélique Kidjo (West African singer), 2002
Annette Roque Lauer (model), 2002
Sebastião Salgado (Brazilian journalist), 2001
Téa Leoni (actress), 2001
Mia Farrow (actress), 2000
Susan Sarandon (actress), 1999
Sarah Jessica Parker (actress), 1998
Summer Sanders (swimmer), 1998
Claudia Schiffer (model), 1997
Maxim Vengerov (Siberian violin virtuoso), 1997
Vendela Thommessen (model and actress), 1996
Laurence Fishburne (actor), 1996
Vanessa Redgrave (actress), 1995
Johann Olav Koss (Norwegian Olympic speed-skating champion), 1994
Judy Collins (singer and songwriter), 1995
James Kiberd (actor), 1995
Leon Lai (singer and actor), 1994
Nana Mouskouri (singer), 1993
Katie Couric (TV host), 1993
Youssou N’Dour (Senegalese performer and bandleader), 1991
Sir Roger Moore (British actor), 1991
Jane Curtin (actress), 1991
Lord Richard Attenborough (actor, director), 1987
Harry Belafonte (concert singer, actor), 1987
http://www.unicef.org/

United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)

Nicole Kidman (actress), 2006
http://www.unifem.org/

United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime

Tetsuya Komuro (Japanese musician), 2000
Eduardo Najera (NBA)
Vlade Divac (NBA)
Khodadad Azizi (Iranian soccer player)
Hidetoshi Nakata (Japanese soccer player)
Nene Hilario (NBA)
http://www.unodc.org/

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Didier Drogba (African soccer star), 2007
Misako Konno (Japanese actress), 1998
Ronaldo de Lima (soccer star), 2000
Maria Sharapova (tennis star), 2007
Zinédine Zidane (French soccer star), 2001
Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway, 2004
Dikembe Mutombo (NBA)
Lurdes Mutola (athlete)
http://www.undp.org/

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

José Antonio Abreu (Venezuelan musician), 1998
Adamkus Valdas (President of Lithuania), 2003
Mehriban Aliyeva (First Lady of Azerbaijan), 2004
Alicia Alonso (Cuban ballerina), 2002
Patrick Baudry (French astronaut), 1999
Pierre Bergé (French entrepreneur and co-founder of the Yves Saint Laurent), 1993
Montserrat Caballé (opera diva), 1994
Pierre Cardin (French fashion industry icon), 1991
Claudia Cardinale (Italian cinema actress), 2000
Catherine Deneuve, (French actress), 1998
Princess of Hanover, 2003
Nelson Mandela, 2005
Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, 2005
Ivry Gitlis (Israeli violinist), 1990
H.E. Sheikh Ghassan I. Shaker, 1989
Her Royal Highness Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, 1997
H.R.H. Princess Firyal, 1992
Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem, 2001
Rigoberta Menchú Tum (Nobel Peace Price Laureate), 1996
Kitín Muñoz (Spanish navigator, sociological explorer), 1997
Kim Phuc Phan Thi (peace activist), 1994
Susana Rinaldi (Argentinean tango singer and actress), 1992
Mstislav Rostropovich (cellist), 1998
Giancarlo Elia Valori (Italian economist and businessman), 2001
http://www.unesco.org/

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Office of the (UNHCR)

George Dalaras (Greek musician), 2006
Muazzez Ersoy (singer and musician), 2006
Osvaldo Laport (Argentinean soap star), 2006
Giorgio Armani (Italian designer), 2002
Julien Clerc (singer-songwriter), 2002
Adel Imam (Egyptian actor), 2000
Angelina Jolie (actress), 2001
Barbara Hendricks (American opera soprano), 1986
http://www.unhcr.org/

World Food Programme (WFP)

Drew Barrymore, 2007
Lauren Bush (American model) 2005
Ronaldhino (Brazilian soccer player), 2005
Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, 2005
Kaka (Brazilian soccer player), 2004
Paul Tergat (Kenyan marathon runner), 2004
Princess Sirindhorn of Thailand, 2004
Mahmoud Yassin (Egyptian actor), 2004
George McGovern, 2001
http://www.wfp.org/english/

World Health Organization (WHO)

Yohei Sasakawa, 2005
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, 2005
Liya Kebede (model), 2005
Sylvie Vartan (singer), 2005
http://www.who.int/en/

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Chucho Valdés (pianist and composer), 2006
Ronan Keating (Irish singer), 2005
Beatrice Faumuina (athlete), 2005
Raúl González (Spain's leading soccer goalscorer), 2004
Carla Fracci (Italian dancer), 2004
Khaled, rai musician (Algerian singer), 2003
Maná (Latin American / Mexican rock band), 2003
Achinoam Nini Barak, a.k.a Noa (singer), 2003
Oumou Sangaré (singer), 2003
Roberto Baggio (Soccer player), 2002
Debbie Ferguson (Olympic athlete), 2002
Justine Pasek (former Miss Universe), 2002
Massimo Rainieri (Italian actor and singer), 2002
Dionne Warwick (singer), 2002
Magid Al Roumi (singer), 2001
Al Bano Carrisi (singer), 2001
Gilberto Gil (singer), 2001
Mory Kanté (singer), 2001
Youssou N’Dour (Senegalese singer), 2000
Gong Li (actress), 2000
Dee Dee Bridgewater (singer), 1999
Gina Lollobrigida (actress), 1999
Miriam Makeba (singer), 1999
Prof. Rita Levi Montalcini (Nobel Prize winner for Medicine in 1986), 1999
http://www.fao.org/

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

Princess Basma Bint Talal, 2001
Alfred Biolek, for Germany, 2001
Lara Dutta, for India, 2001
Chea Samnang, for Cambodia, 2000
Mpule Kwelagobe, for Southern Africa, 2000
Mary Banotti, for Ireland, 1999
Bartrand Piccard, for Switzerland, 1999
Geri Halliwell, for the United Kingdom, 1998
Mikko Kuustonen, for Finland, 1998
Yuko Arimori, for Japan
Ctaraina Furtado, for Portugal
Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck, for Bhutan
Kari Jaquesson (Fitness professional)
http://www.unfpa.org/

United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)

Maxim Mirny (Tennis player from Belarus)
Jackie Chan (actor/martial artist, from Hong Kong)
Salma Ahmad (Pakistani actor)
Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lankan Cricketeer)
Bill Roedy (President of MTV Int’l)
http://unaids.org/en/

The UN and Elections

2008-01-07T08:31:00.000-08:00

UN Photo - Haiti

In a NY Times Op Ed of January 7, 2008, Edward P. Joseph, a visiting fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, points to the great need for further development and action by the UN Department of Political Affairs Electoral Assistance Division in preventing and in assisting with national elections in global trouble spots. He takes the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan and the turmoil after the Kenyan elections as cases in point for strengthening and using this UN institution in its preventive capacity, and not just in election monitoring.

His full article can be read at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/07/opinion/07joseph.html?th&emc=th

Information about the Electoral Assistance Division can be found at http://www.un.org/Depts/dpa/ead/overview.html

The most recent biennial report by the Division available online is from October 2005, General Assembly document A/60/431. This excerpt shows the complexity of the Division's work, and what is needed going forward.

"2. During the period under review, the involvement of the United Nations in assisting the democratic processes of its Member States was highly visible. The images of voters in Afghanistan in October 2004 and a few months later in Iraq, in January 2005, were vivid reminders of the promise of democracy and of the power of the ballot box to transform subjects of dictatorship or victims of civil war into citizens able to exercise their political rights. United Nations involvement in both of these processes was critical to their success. While these highly visible processes were taking place, the United Nations was also supporting post-conflict elections in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti and Liberia. At the same
time, technical assistance was being provided in numerous countries to improve their electoral processes — work that is less visible but no less important.

3. Despite manifest successes, the capacity of the United Nations in providing electoral assistance remains overstretched. As noted in the previous report under this agenda item, we continue to risk becoming the victims of our own success. Effectiveness increases demand, but the latter is not followed by a concomitant increase in resources to maintain that effectiveness.

4. The complexity, variety and quantity of the electoral assistance being requested of the United Nations are such that we must look beyond the simple consolidation and coordination of existing assets. Additional assets must be provided and more creative synergies must be found within the United Nations system to unlock existing potential. There are increasing demands for
democratization characterized by: (a) the holding of elections in places where credible elections have not generally been held; (b) a recognition among “mature” democracies that reforms are required to solve problems unaddressed for too long and to take advantage of new technologies; and (c) a strengthening of the consensus at an international level that democracy is a key means to preserving the dignity and fundamental rights of individuals, to advancing the Millennium Development Goals and to fostering a geopolitical climate that is favourable to international peace.

5. The United Nations, along with several key international partners, has developed a set of practices over the years that have proved to be effective. The consistent defence of these practices in implementing successful electoral projects has given the United Nations a high degree of credibility on elections. Begun amid some scepticism that electoral assistance might encroach on national sovereignty or impose a single model of democracy, United Nations electoral assistance now serves as a recognized arbiter of norms in a period when an increasing number of actors — international, regional and subregional, governmental and non-governmental, profit and non-profit — are providing electoral assistance. The United Nations is thus in a logical position, by mandate and experience, to lead the promotion of the principle of genuine and periodic elections at a time when it is high in the international agenda."

UNA's Mission in 2008

2007-12-30T11:01:00.000-08:00

The UN and the world are facing immense challenges, including the recent tragic assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan. Conflicts in Darfur, Iraq, the Middle East, Eastern Congo and other areas of the world persist. Global warming and the enormous growing gaps between the super rich and the middle class and the poor challenge everyone, especially ordinary citizens. Poverty and hunger diminish whenever funds diverted to war and arms decrease, and decreasing small arms as well as nuclear stockpiles is vital. The UN Millennium Development Goals remain laudable, and with adequate sense of purpose by the international community and ordinary citizens, can yet be achieved.

The United Nations Association of the USA and the Southern NY State Division and the chapters it serves have roles to play in educating the American people about these issues, and about the importance of the United Nations in facing them. It is important to focus on membership, on outreach, on publicity and on an "each one bring one" attitude. Development and building of partnerships with NGOs, organizations and businesses are one way to proceed. The generation represented by YPIC, and those involved in Model UNs and Student Alliances are essential to building a broad understanding of the United Nations in this country.

As UNA-USA members we need to support the United Nations as an important home and a tool for building international consensus. We need to ask political candidates who are running for office in the US in 2008 to explain their attitudes and positions toward the UN. Bhutto's assassination highlighted the need for leadership by the President of the US on global issues and revealed the presidential candidates' strengths and weaknesses in this sphere.

There is much to do during 2008, and we need to build coalitions, write editorials, and otherwise reach out to publicize the value of the UN to the American public and the world.

Best wishes to all for a productive and peace-building New Year.

Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

2007-12-29T12:56:00.001-08:00

Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's assassination is a blow to good governance in Pakistan by forward-thinking people. It is a blow to all women as well. We will never know what changes she might have made in her country if elected in the planned January elections. What we do know is that political turmoil is likely, for some time to come.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council have condemned the assassination as a blow to stability in Pakistan and its democratic processes.

Bhutto's assassination is akin to those of Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi in neighboring India. Fortunately India has gone on to continue a tradition of democracy, and its current path to greater prosperity coincides with this. Pakistan can be set back for decades if extremism is allowed to take over, with great consequences for neighboring countries and the world.

Kofi Annan receives MacArthur Prize

2007-12-19T11:12:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Kofi Annan, recipient of MacArthur Foundation's first Award for International Justice! The award gives Mr. Annan $100,000 for his own work, with another $500,000 to be given to the international justice organization of his choice.

As cited on the website of the MacArthur Foundation, “Kofi Annan’s life work embodies the values of justice and human rights and the eternal hope for a humane, peaceful world that justice makes possible,” said Fanton. “It was under his leadership as Secretary General at the United Nations that the International Criminal Court was established and the Responsibility to Protect became an accepted principle for international action in the face of the worst human suffering. These critical building blocks of an effective international justice system form a legacy that will benefit the world for generations to come.” Jonathan Fanton is president of the Foundation.

UNA-USA Human Rights Day Event

2007-12-17T08:51:00.000-08:00

On December 10 UNA-USA held the Inaugural Leo Nevas Human Rights Award luncheon, in association with its December Board meeting. This is named in honor of Leo Nevas, 95, the longest serving Board Member of UNA-USA and a champion of human rights around the world. Paul Newman and his Newman's Own Foundation support the effort.

The theme of the meeting was the UN's role in Darfur. Panelists included Sir Brian Urquehart, former UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs; Donald Steinberg, Director of the New York Office of the international Crisis Group; John Prendergast, co-chair of the ENOUGH PRoject; and Ruth Messinger, president of American Jewish World Service. Thomas J. Pickering moderated. Despite the efforts of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and special envoy Jan Eliasson, peace talks have been faltering and humanitarian needs are greater than ever. Aid is estimated at $1 billion a year for the refugees. Minimally 26 helicopters are needed, but no country is willing to supply them. Activism is required by NGOs and others to promote the needed policies and funding.

The Westchester Chapter was well represented, with Phil Reynolds, Molly Bruce and David and Ginger Stillman attending.

December 10 is Human Rights Day

2007-11-24T14:02:00.000-08:00

International Human Rights Day is marked every year on December 10, with activities led by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva and in New York and in the field by United Nations . All States and interested organizations were invited by the General Assembly in 1950 to observe 10 December as Human Rights Day (resolution 423 (V)). The Day marks the anniversary of the Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

For information about the activities of the UN High Commission for Human Rights, see: http://www.ohchr.org/english/

A new commemoration will be launched on December 10 to observe the 60th Anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights -- a year-long celebration in 2008. http://www.knowyourrights2008.org/ This gives an opportunity to post activities your organization is doing to celebrate this anniversary.

The following is the Simplified Version of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:

Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(Simplified version)

1. All Human beings are free and equal in dignity and rights.

2. All people are entitled to rights without distinction based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, opinion, origin, property, birth or residency.

3. Right to life liberty and security of person

4. Freedom from slavery.

5. Freedom from torture.

6. Right to be treated equally by the law.

7. Right to equal protection by the law.

8. Right for all to effective remedy by competent tribunal.

9. Freedom from arbitrary arrest.

10. Right to fair public hearing by Independent tribunal.

11. Right to presumption of innocence until proven guilty at public trial with all guarantees necessary for defence.

12. Right to privacy in home, family and correspondence.

13. Freedom of movement in your own country and the right to leave and return to any countries.

14. Right to political asylum in other countries.

15. Right to nationality.

16. Right to marriage and family and to equal right of men and women during and after marriage.

17. Right to own property.

18. Freedom of thought and conscience and religion.

19. Freedom of opinion and expression and to seek, receive and impart information.

20. Freedom of Association and assembly.

21. Right to take part in and select government.

22. Right to social security and realisation of economic, social and cultural rights.

23. Right to work, to equal pay for equal work and to form and join trade unions.

24. Right to reasonable hours of work and paid holidays.

25. Right to adequate living standard for self and family, including food, housing, clothing,

medical care and social security.

26. Right to education.

27. Right to participate in cultural life and to protect intellectual property rights.

28. Right to social and international order permitting these freedoms to be realized.

29. Each person has responsibilities to the community and others as essential for a democratic

society.

30. Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms ser forth herein.

Disclaimer: Your rights made simple is given only as a guide. For an exact rendering of each principle please refer to www.unric.org. Due to difficulties in Translation, the original Article 30 was used in all simplified versions.

UNA Westchester December 9 event

2007-11-24T13:44:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, December 9, from 2 to 4 pm, UNA Westchester will host a short presentation about the United Nations, with questions and answers to follow. Bronxville Public Library, 310 Pondfield Road at Midland Avenue, will be the venue for the event.

Afterward, the Youth Philharmonic for United Nations, led by conductor George Mathew, will present a short performance. The group is a program of Friendship Ambassadors Foundation. It is made up of middle and high school students from the Westchester and Fairfield County areas.

A reception with refreshments will follow the concert.

World AIDS Day - December 1 - Westchester County Event

2007-11-24T13:30:00.000-08:00

The concept of a World AIDS Day originated at the 1988 World Summit of Ministers of Health on Programmes for AIDS Prevention. Since then, it has been taken up by governments, international organizations and charities around the world.

From 1 pm until 4 pm on Saturday, December 1, the performing artist and survivor of the Rwandan genocide, Marie Claudine Mukamabano, will be featured at a Westchester County World AIDS Day gathering at Good Counsel in White Plains. This free program will also include table exhibits by both local and national organizations involved in the fight against global poverty and AIDS, other cultural and musical performances, and a short march down North Broadway to highlight global AIDS. The event is sponsored by the Westchester Coalition on Global Poverty and AIDS in support of the http://www.one.org/ campaign and the growing worldwide campaign to make poverty history.

The Good Counsel gymnasium is located at 52 North Broadway in White Plains (Call 914 798-1300 for directions). For more info: HAPNY@hotmail.com.

NBC's Coverage of the Ends of the Earth

2007-11-07T08:54:00.000-08:00

I commend NBC for its Green series, and particularly enjoy the Today Show's coverage of the Ends of the Earth.

The series hasn't mentioned it, but their work fits very well with achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, especially number 7. -- Environmental Sustainability. This Goal has three targets -- No. 9: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs and reverse the loss of environmental resources. No. 10: Halve by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation; No. 11: By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers.

The first target deals with the broad issues of environmental sustainability -- and all the policies our governments and international accords need to achieve to ensure that we mitigate the negative effects human beings have had and continue to have on the environment.

Google and Cisco have helped the UN Development Programme to create an MDG Monitor website. Partners are the Statistics Division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), Relief Web of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). .

The MDG Monitor is designed as a tool for policymakers, development practitioners, journalists, students and others to: TRACK progress through interactive maps and country-specific profiles; LEARN about countries' challenges and achievements and get the latest news; and SUPPORT organizations working on the MDGs around the world See http://www.mdgmonitor.org/

The MDG Awards Committee is planning an MDG Awards Festival and Telecast, to be held at the United Nations on June 5, 2008. See the website http://www.un-mdgawards.org/.

All who are contributing to achieving the MDGs (corporations, non-governmental organizations, schools, academic, business associations, etc.) are invited to apply and to publicize their efforts. Grammy Awards Producer Nile Rodgers will produce the event. Come on, Come all! Show the world what you're doing.

Teaching About the United Nations

2007-10-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

A wonderful resource on teaching published in 2006 about the UN is available for purchase at:

http://catalog.socialstudies.com/c/product.html?record@TF39783+s@4FZRUzkJdLGZI

This was prepared by Jenna Arnold of the UN Works Unit of the Department of Public Information. It includes a teacher's guide, student handouts and a PowerPoint presentation with extensive slides about the UN, historical through 2006.

Teachers may incorporate slides into other presentations and use this in a very flexible way. Great too for Model UN preparation!

UNITED NATIONS CURRICULUM BUNDLE: PowerPoint^® Presentation and Activity Book

Introduce students to the foundation and facets of the United Nations while helping them develop critical thinking skills. The PowerPoint^® presentation features documentary photographs and film clips and informative text on 50 animated slides accompanied by a script, a 20-question multiple-choice quiz, discussion questions, extension activities, and related Web sites with annotations. The reproducible unit directs students to online primary sources, spurring analysis, interpretation, opinions, and well-shaped arguments. Topics include the League of Nations, Dumbarton Oaks, the UN's charter and organization, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the UN's agencies and their roles in the world today. The PowerPoint is contained on a single CD-ROM. Grades 7–12. Social Studies School Service. ©2004–06.

Globalization, Education and Us

2007-10-22T13:38:00.000-07:00

I urge everyone to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMcfrLYDm2U -- a most dramatic rendering of the world in which today's children are growing up, created for a school district in Denver and now spreading around the world.

New Video in Going Global Season Three

2007-10-16T17:47:00.000-07:00

We've substituted another of Bill Miller's excellent interviews for the episode originally planned.

Season Three's Episode 60 is a new interview with Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations. Dr. Migiro talks about her role as Deputy S-G, in relation to the UN Millennium Development Goals, management issues within the UN, climate change, and other timely topics. She is a Tanzanian.

For more information, see her biography, speeches and responsibilities at: http://www.un.org/sg/deputysg.shtml

2007-10-16T17:45:00.000-07:00

UN Millennium Development Goals Awards

2007-10-07T10:02:00.000-07:00

A September 12, 2007 press conference and luncheon launched the MDG Awards Festival and Telecast event at the UN. Grammy Awards producer Nile Rodgers presented a special crystal statue symbolizing the Awards to Her Excellency, Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa of Bahrain, the President of the 61st UN General Assembly, in view of her work to promote achievement of the MDGs.

The Permanent Missions of Madagascar, the Dominican Republic and other UN Member States, Offices and Agencies of the UN, and the Public-Private Alliance Foundation are supporting this event. An Awards Selection Panel of Experts and a Distinguished Panel of Judges will determine winners.

Winners will be selected for their actions toward promoting the eight MDGs, with a special category for programs that work with more than a single MDG. Corporations, governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, schools, higher-education institutions, intergovernmental organizations, business and professional associations and individuals are all encouraged to apply. For the application form and more information, see: http://www.un-mdgawards.org/

We encourage Westchester County individuals, organizations, schools, colleges, corporations, NGOs to apply!

UNA Southern NY State Division website is Live!

2007-10-01T17:23:00.000-07:00

UNA Southern NY State Division's new website is live, at http://www.unasouthernny.org/ .

The site will soon carry information about the Young Professionals for International Cooperation (YPIC) group and its many activities.

Highlights of the Southern NY State Division include an upcoming Middle Atlantic Conference, now in planning stages, a kiosk shared at the UN with WFUNA -- the World Federation of UN Associations -- and a new course for business leaders on world affairs.

For information, email Catherine White, President of the division. CatherineDWhite@AOL.com

High Schools help distribute Going Global

2007-10-01T06:32:00.000-07:00

A big thank you from the UNA Westchester Chapter

Westchester Teachers Janet O'Toole, one of the leaders of the UNA Student Alliance at Walter Panas High School, and Demetrios Mihailidis (Mr. M.), social studies teacher working with the 9th Grade Academy at Mt. Vernon High School, are delivering Going Global with the UN videos to their local stations (Yorktown Cablevision and Mt. Vernon). This saves the Chapter extra miles, and puts videos not being shown in a given time period to use in the classroom.

The first eight videos of Going Global Season III are new, with the first one covering the UN in 2006, and some short spots. The next five are interviews with the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic, Executive Director of the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, the UN focal point of Human Influenza and Avian Flu, the Executive Director of the UN Fund for International Partnerships, the Vice President for Education of UNA-USA and an intern working on Model UN and Global Classrooms, and the Director of the New York Office of Sport for Peace and Development. These are followed by a 2007 UNICEF report on the State of the World's Children, and excerpts from The Century Foundation's February 2007 conference on Weapons Threats and International Security.

The next 17 videos depict the UN Millennium Development Goals, with stories from around the world. These are repeated from last year's Season II, to give widest possible coverage to the importance of work toward meeting the MDGs.

GOING GLOBAL VIDEOS SEASON THREE

2007-09-17T12:37:00.000-07:00

A “Must See”
Season Three – Schedule and Content
October 2007 through March 2008
produced by the United Nations Association of the USA Westchester Chapter.
For further information: e-mail: unausa@stratdev.com or visit: www.stratdev.com/UNA-USA/
Or www.unawestchester (after October 1) or call: 914-478-3450.

2006 STATE OF THE UN, AND VIDEOS FROM GLOBAL CONNECTIONS

Week 1 - Episode 53: The first half of this episode reviews United Nations progress, successes as well as issues that were addressed in 2006. The second half focuses on four different stories: (a) highlighting issues Bahraini women face in seeking political positions; (b) China Population Report 2007, with a focus on urbanization; (c) how the impact of global warming in polar regions affects the rest of the world; and (d) how the Alliance of Civilizations came about and its goals and strategies for reducing tensions among different societies.

The next five videos in this season of Going Global with the UN are interviews conducted by Bill Miller from the United Nations Association of Kentucky, on the series "Global Connections," which is filmed at the United Nations in cooperation with UN TV.

Week 2 - Episode 54: Global Connections host Bill Miller speaks with the Executive Director of the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, Dr. David Stillman and Ambassador Francis Lorenzo from the Permanent Mission of the Dominican Republic to the United Nations about the United Nation Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), highlighting the examples of progress made in the Dominican Republic. Ambassador Lorenzo and Dr. Stillman speak to the importance of cooperation between the UN and host countries. Stillman speaks on the work of the Public-Private Alliance in encouraging partnerships for development and its focus countries of Madagascar and the Dominican Republic.

Week 3 - Episode 55: In an interview with Global Connections host Bill Miller, Dr. David Nabarro, the UN System Senior Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza addresses issues surrounding the possibility of an avian influenza outbreak both in a local and global contexts, and the relationships with human influenza. Dr. Nabarro speaks about the potential for an outbreak to occur, and what sort of precautionary plans the UN has for dealing with such an occurrence, such as with issues of livestock and animal rearing. He also talks about how the UN plans to get control of the situation if an outbreak were to transpire.

Week 4 - Episode 56: Dr. Lucia Rodriguez, the Vice President for Education at the United Nations Association – USA, and Elizabeth Scarinci, intern at UNA – USA speak with Global Connections host Bill Miller about the Model UN and Global Classroom program from an organizational and a student perspective. Dr. Rodriguez discusses the Model UN program and how it helps students become more aware of world issues and become global citizens. Ms. Scarinci speaks about what it is like to participate in such a program, what she has learned, and how it has helped give her a clear focus for her college and career goals.

Week 5 - Episode 57: Global Connections host Bill Miller interviews Dr. Djibril Diallo, the Director of the United Nations New York Office of Sport for Development and Peace about this unique approach the UN is taking to help combat issues of illiteracy, poverty and hunger. Dr. Diallo comments on the role sports have in development and how communities can use sports and physical education to help further their economic development and to tackle issues of gender inequality. In addition, Dr. Diallo speaks about how important partnerships between the UN, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector are to the success of this innovative approach to development.

Week 6 - Episode 58: Amir Dossal, the Executive Director of the UN Fund for International Partnerships speaks with Global Connections host Bill Miller about his work in promoting partnerships in development work between the public and private sector. Mr. Dossal stresses the importance of these relationships and how it positively benefits countries as well as how collaboration between groups focuses attention on dealing with issues affecting US citizens and others around the world.

Week 7 - Episode 59: This episode profiles the UNICEF Report on the State of the World’s Children in ten different countries; Iran, Romania, Chad, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Brazil, USA. Djibouti and Madagascar. It gives viewers snapshots from each country into how the health of children is inextricably linked to that of their mothers and others in the community, thereby showing how important it is to consider these issues in development.

Week 8 - Episode 60: The program analyzes the key countries with nuclear weapons and focuses on how we can reach a global disarmament without repeating any past atrocities.

THE UN MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDGS) -- INTRODUCTION

Week 9 - Introduction: The MDGs: Dream or Reality? Also: UNDP MDGs. (Episode 31)

Week 10: MDGs: – Albania: Roadmap to 2015. Also: Too Brief a Child: Voices of Married Adolescents (Episode 32)

MDG Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

Week 11: Helping Ourselves. The program looks at two projects that are helping Indian communities move out of poverty. Also: Feeding Schoolchildren in Rwanda. (Episode 33)

Week 12: Yemeni Futures. The program asks what is being done to address the fundamental needs of the Yemeni people, and achievements since the unification in 1990 to raise the quality of their lives. Also: Millennium Village in Malawi (Episode 34)

Week 13: Central African Republic: Silent Crisis. The country is on the verge of complete collapse. It is one of the least developed countries in the world and one of the poorest. 13 per cent of children die in infancy and only a third of the population has access to safe drinking water. (Episode 35)

Week 14: The Angle of Hunger. The documentary features FAO’s field work in the Peruvian Andes and the Ethiopian Highlands and explores why a disproportionate number of mountain dwellers experience periods of hunger and food insecurity. (Episode 36)

MDG Goal 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education

Week 15: Achieve Universal Primary Education. Two approaches to improving the lives of poor people -- one through education, as in the Shilmundi project in Bangladesh, the other through "community-driven development" in Indonesia. Also: Colombia - Medellin Girls; and Nepal - Welcome to School. (Episode 37)

Week 16: Educating Yaprak. Education for children, especially girls, in Turkey. Also: 10 Ways to change the world with children. (Episode 38)

MDG Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women

Week 17: Las Borregeras. An IFAD-supported project in Mexico helps a women’s group set up a sheep farm. Also: Agents of change 2005: The 1995 Beijing Women’s Conference and progress until now; and Fighting Poverty with Roses in Rwanda. (Episode 39)

Week 18: Women on the Run. The famous Kenyan marathon runner Tegla Loroupe starts a peace race to help end armed conflicts in her poverty-stricken home area. The Kenyan politician Linah Kilimo, who herself ran from the knife, strives for the goal of putting an end to female genital mutilation. (Episode 40)

MDG Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health

Week 19: Fight for Life: Making Pregnancy Safer. This episode describes the attempt to improve maternal health in Moldova. (Episode 41)

Week 20: Fight for Life: Making Pregnancy Safer. This episode describes the attempt to improve maternal health in Bolivia. (Episode 42)

MDG Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

Week 21: Malaria, Killer Number One. Africa’s Malaria Crisis. Ethiopia is among the places hardest hit by the disease. New cures, preventive action and massive intervention by the international community bring a glimmer of hope. Also: Fistula Advocacy Video. UNFPA brings awareness to this childbirth problem. (Episode 43)

Week 22: Research Capacity and Self-reliance in Developing Countries. The video explores needs and solutions to public health problems caused by neglected infectious diseases. Also: The Road Towards Universal Access. Reaching the MDG on HIV/AIDS requires far greater access to prevention, treatment, care and support than is currently available. Also: AIDS: For a Social Vaccine (ILO). (Episode 44)

MDG Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Stability

Week 23: Global Focus: The New Environmentalists. Features intimate portraits of seven dedicated individuals who have put themselves between government powers, corporate interests and other rivals on behalf of the Earth's well-being. Each compelling story takes place on a different continent. (Episode 45)

Week 24: Weather, Climate, Water in the Information Age About the World Meteorological Organization
Also: The other side of Paradise. About the December 2004 Tsunami and its impact; Grenada hurricane and impact; Sea Turtles in Barbados; Environmental Changes and impacts on islands. (Episode 46)

Week 25: Tomorrow's Catch. The video highlights FAO’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries
Also: The First Mile. This IFAD video looks an innovative two-year pilot project underway in Tanzania. Also, Inner Mongolia leads China in Wind Power Generation. (Episode 47)

MDG Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

Week 26: Breaking Through. This film gives a glimpse of what microfinance means for millions throughout Africa, Asia, the Americas and the Middle East, through the Grameen Foundation. Also: World Community Grid: IBM works with many partners to create the largest public computing grid benefiting humanity. Also, ITU backs ICTs to Aid Development. The International Telecommunications Union and information communications technology. (Episode 48)

Going Global with the UN Videos available online

2007-08-28T11:20:00.000-07:00

Going Global with the UN

The first season of our Going Global with the UN video series is up on streaming video, thanks to cooperation among UNA Westchester, the UNA Dallas Chapter and Richland Community College, part of the Dallas Community College system. Noeli Biggs (part of UNA Dallas and on staff at Richland Community College) plans to put up the second season starting in October. See http://www.rlc.dcccd.edu/modelun/videos.htm

This effort is made possible in part through a gift from an anonymous donor, which has enabled us to get permission from Smithsonian for use of their music, and from all collaborators who have permitted us to put their work on streaming video.

Going Global currently has 52 videos, with another eight in preparation in time for October's season on cable TV stations Westchester. Of the eight, five are from Bill Miller's excellent Global Connections series. Bill, with the UNA Kentucky Division, films these at the United Nations.

We would welcome your feedback on these videos as an educational and awareness tool. I hope you will take a little time to view some of them.

The videos are can be purchased from UNA Westchester. For information write to jinka.stillman@gmail.com.

Yonkers and Mount Vernon Projects Successful

2007-06-05T18:11:00.000-07:00

YONKERS CHILDREN'S PEACE ART PROJECT

The UNA Westchester chapter's Yonkers Children's Peace Art Project this year reached 45 classrooms in 18 schools, and more than 1,200 3rd grade students. After a presentation by Chapter members, working in pairs in each classroom, children used crayons and paper to draw their vision of peace. These drawings were then hung at the Yonkers Riverfront Library, the YMCA of Yonkers, 20 South Broadway, and the Grinton I. Will Library. This was a wonderful experience for the Chapter's volunteers, and we think for the children. Volunteers work from a script, but bring many of their own experiences into the discussion. Children and their parents come from many different countries, and many speak languages other than English at home, so they understand quite well the idea of the need for different countries to come together for peace.

Many teachers and principals commented on how much they like this project, which is now in its third year. Again, the School Board offered its support through a letter from the Superintendent of Schools. Karen Rockwell El Badry coordinated the effort for the chapter.

MT. VERNON GLOBAL AWARENESS PROJECT

For the 2nd year, UNA Westchester has worked with Mt. Vernon Schools to offer a Global Awareness Project. This year 9th grade students learned about the United Nations and about the 8 Millennium Development Goals. Recognizing the potential of the initiative for the City’s students, the Verizon Foundation has provided a generous grant of $5,190 to help support and expand this year’s project.

With the guidance of their teachers, Mr. Demetrios Mihailidis and Mr. Sean Capiello, the students wrote essays exploring three MDGs: gender equality, poverty and HIV and disease, and the very important areas of security and access to higher education. They then embarked on a "Day of Diplomacy," beginning with a ceremony at City Hall with Mayor Ernest Davis and with Superintendent of Schools Brenda Smith. They then traveled to Manhattan for an interactive presentation at UNICEF, to the German consulate for a discussion comparing student experiences in Germany and the U.S., and then to the UN for a guided tour.

Mr. John Butler presented the Verizon Foundation’s grant to the United Nations Association Westchester Chapter at the kick-off event for the project at City Hall on May 8. Ms. Charlene Morisseau, Esq., a UNA-USA Westchester Board member and Mount Vernon native who founded the program, says, “The news tells us that adolescents today around the world confront unique challenges. Our students have taken the lead in proposing concrete solutions.” Students’ ideas for U.S. public schools included providing three school meals a day for peers with undernourished families, financial aid programs at the high school level similar to universities, and specialized screening, training and technology for school security guards.

The local community has embraced the students and their mission. Mr. Lowes L. Moore, Executive Director of the Mt. Vernon Boys and Girl’s Club, one of the cosponsoring organizations, says, “This project will expose our young people to issues in the global community and will help improve their future.” Other community cosponsors include the City’s Superintendent of Schools, Youth Bureau, Mt. Vernon Federation of Teachers, Junior Achievement of the Hudson Valley, Inc., and the African-American Men of Westchester, Inc.

Israel-Palestine - Our View

2007-05-09T16:03:00.000-07:00

Israel - Palestine Peace and United Nations Involvement

For the past two years, the Westchester Chapter of UNA has offered to UNA’s Annual Meeting and National Convention a resolution on the Israeli-Palistinian Conflict, which the convention has passed. The following resolution was passed at the annual Convention in March 2007, and was drafted in fall 2006. The operative paragraphs read as follows:

UNA-USA Affirms that the ultimate goal of a comprehensive and peaceful settlement must be the security of the State of Israel within internationally recognized borders, and agreement on a viable, secure, and independent sovereign state for the Palestinian people,

Urges all concerned: 1. To encourage on-going discussions between the Israeli and Palestinian leadership, members of the Quartet, the Arab League, and key countries in the region, aimed at enhancing mutual security and supporting the revival of the Palestinian economy, and 2. To consider the convening of an international conference of all interested parties as soon as feasible, preferably under the auspices of the Quartet.

Expresses its support for the new Secretary General who will assume office in January 2007 at a critical time in the future of the UN and a particular need to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

In 2007, 33 countries face hunger crisis

2007-04-04T16:09:00.000-07:00

The UN Millennium Development Goals include cutting in half poverty and hunger by the year 2015. Despite projected increases in grain crops, which should help, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, 33 countries will not have enough food to feed their people this year. Women, children, the sick and the elderly are most at risk.

From the FAO website, it appears that in 2007 33 countries will require external assistance:

Exceptional shortfall in food production/supplies:
Iraq, Lesotho, Philippines, Swaziland, Zimbabwe

Widespread lack of access to food:
Afghanistan, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Haiti, Liberia, Mauritania, Nepal, Niger, Sierra Leone

Severe localized food insecurity:
Bolivia, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Madagascar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Sudan, Timor-Leste, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania

Countries with unfavourable prospects for current crops

Bolivia - Adverse weather conditions (floods in lowlands; drought, hail and frost in highlands)
Iraq - Conflict, displacement
Lesotho - Dry weather
Namibia - Dry spells
South Africa - Dry, hot weather in maize growing areas
Swaziland - Dry weather
Timor-Leste - Drought
Zimbabwe - Dry spells in southern parts of the country

What action is needed: pressing our government to respond to calls for assistance when these are made. The US is a generous donor in food assistance, but it is important for Americans who care to keep this on the front burner among our elected officials.

Shaping Our Future: The U.S. and UN Treaties

2007-04-03T19:46:00.000-07:00

Why should the people of Westchester care about the U.S. and international treaties? The simple answer is, U.S. participation in the world affects us all. The U.S. is often in the lead in pressing for international agreements. However, we have also learned that strong differences exist in some matters, as seen in the debate over the past four years over the Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War and the UN Convention Against Torture.

International treaties and conventions are essential to the development of an international community based on law and justice. Any “loss of sovereignty” by the United States is more than compensated by the benefits of these treaties, and by the dialogue that is necessary to develop an international community.

The United States Senate has passed, and the President has signed, many many treaties over the years. But the US has NOT ratified a number of important ones, including the Convention of the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. (Only the U.S. and Somalia haven’t ratified the Rights of the Child convention.) Such a failure is inexcusable. Moreover, the United States, as well as other countries that have ratified these conventions, is allowed sign while stating any reservations.

Great global issues are currently the subject of negotiations and treaty-making – nuclear testing, law of the sea, landmines, environment, climate change, and International Criminal Court. The U.S. needs to take a strong, positive role in shaping what remains under discussion and in ratifying the outcome of international consensus. Our country has more to lose than to gain by remaining slow in committing ourselves to the advancement of international norms.

The place of the United States in the twenty-first century will reflect in no small measure our willingness to “internationalize” the democratic values we have developed since 1776 and to engage with other countries to develop a law-based and just, international community.

In 2004, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, under Richard G. Lugar (R – Indiana), voted 19-0 to ratify the Law of the Sea Treaty, which relates to policies on navigation, commerce and the environment. However, despite wide support for the treaty from many groups—industry, green and other— the majority leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn) declined to bring the treaty to the floor for a vote.

In a recent article “Memo to America: Rejoin the World,” Strobe Talbott calls for ratification by the US Senate of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), re-signing of the Rome Treaty for the International Criminal Court (which President Bush “un-signed”), introducing legislation on greenhouse admissions in line with the Kyoto Treaty and in general rejoining the world in policies that will ensure America’s leadership, not demonstrate its recalcitrance. Talbott is President of the Brooking Institution and US Deputy Secretary of State from 1994 to 2001. His full essay appears online at www.theinterdependent.org. The Interdependent is the quarterly magazine of the United Nations Association of the USA.

On April 11, at the New York Judicial Institute in White Plains, the United Nations Association of the USA Westchester Chapter and Pace Law School will co-sponsor “UN Treaties: A Threat to U.S. Sovereignty?” Columbia Law School Professor Jose E. Alvarez, a county resident and authority on international treaties, will speak, and Prof. Gayl S. Westerman of Pace Law School, who specializes on the Law of the Sea Treaty, will moderate. The event will take place at 6 pm and is free and open to the public. This is an opportunity also to learn how citizens can promote action by our lawmakers on issues important to us all. For further information, call 914-478-3450 or email unausa@stratdev.com

Jeanne Betsock Stillman

Allen Weintraub, Esq.

Stillman is the Executive Director of the UN Association Westchester Chapter; Weintraub is a member of its Government Relations and Advocacy Committee.

UNA Convention a Great Success

2007-03-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

The UNA-USA convention, held at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan from March 1 - 4, was a great success. Hundreds attended -- and close to 1,000 members joined in Members Day at the UN on the afternoon of the 3rd.

In addition to many Westchester board and chapter members, Westchester groups represented included 24 members from Kendal-on-Hudson, in Tarrytown. Peter Davies's organizational skills brought this group together. Many Kendal residents are long-time supporters of the United Nations, but many have just joined UNA since our chapter offered a trip to Hyde Park to hear Gillian Sorensen, Steven Schlesinger and others for UN Day in 2005.

Sleepy Hollow High School in Tarrytown registered eleven students for Members Day -- another great group.

On behalf of the chapter I presented information about our Going Global with the UN series, and about the Peace Makes the World a Better Place supplement published by The Journal News. That's now online, and you can view it at:

http://www.lohud.com/graphics/pdf/nie/unitednations.pdf

Starting 2007 by supporting the UN

2007-01-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

The United Nations and its work bring you into the exciting real world, with all its complexities and the desires and aims of its 6 1/2 billion people. This is too exciting, too important, to sit on the sidelines.

Did you know that the United Nations System includes agencies devoted to human rights? refugees? children? women's development, reproductive rights, and promotion of the advancement of women? the environment? housing/habitat? meteorological events? aviation? funding for development? and many more?

How can you support the work of the United Nations? By telling others about the UN and its programs. By keeping up-to-date on UN activities. By encouraging your school system to teach about the UN. If you're a student, by joining Model UN or forming a UNA Student Alliance.

To learn more about the UN, visit:

www.UNWire.org Sign up for a daily briefing on UN-related activities. Produced by the UN Foundation.

and www.un.org

To learn about how you can be involved with the United Nations, through the United Nations Association at the national and chapter levels, visit:

www.unausa.org and, for the Westchester Chapter,
www.stratdev.com/UNA-USA/

UN Millennium Development Goals

2007-01-03T20:17:00.000-08:00

What can Westchester County do to help the UN and the world meet the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)?

These goals represent real people -- a hungry old man living in a shack, a child who has to work rather than go to school, a little girl who wants to learn to read but whose family can't afford school clothes and books, a baby dying of malnutrition, a mother of four who dies in childbirth, a teenager who has suffered from malaria all his life--and now has contracted HIV and tuberculosis. A community where the water supply has dried up, a rainforest, whose biodiversity is being sacrified for ranching. Over one billion people live on less than $1 a day and barely survive.

1. Learn about the goals:
Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education
Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
Goal 4: Reduce child mortality
Goal 5: Improve maternal health
Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

For more information about targets and indicators -- and how we know whether we're meeting these goals, visit:
http://www.undp.org/mdg/basics.shtml

2. Interact with your Congressional representative and Senators and their staff members to bring the MDGs to their attention. Urge them to support funding for the United Nations to work on the MDGs. Congressional representatives who serve Westchester include Nita Lowey, Eliot Engel and John Hall. NY Senators are Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton. SEE THEIR CONTACT INFORMATION AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POSTING.

3. Contribute to www.one.org; to UNICEF at www.unicefusa.org ; to the HERO project of UNA-USA (www.heroaction.org), which works to help educate children affected by HIV/AIDS in South Africa and several other African countries; to www.savedarfur.org to urge immediate U.S. support for UN involvement in Darfur.

4. Post a comment to tell others what YOU are doing to help.

CONTACTING OFFICIALS:
http://www.house.gov/lowey/contact.htm
http://johnhall.house.gov/contact.shtml
http://engel.house.gov/index.cfm?SectionID=3&ParentID=0&SectionTypeID=5&SectionTree=3
http://clinton.senate.gov/contact/
http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/contact/contact.html

UN Secretary General's remarks

2007-01-02T13:59:00.000-08:00

The new UN Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, met today with the UN Press Corps. He highlighted the current challenges he and the UN Face. For a full record, see the link below.

"SG: Happy New Year to you all.
I am very much delighted to see you out in full force, and I thank you very much for welcoming me most warmly.
I think I have met most of you during the last several months, either during the campaign process or the transition period. But only today, taking office as Secretary-General, I can see the full power of the UN press corps. I am very much overwhelmed by all this warm welcome and much attention you have shown to me. In fact, I am meeting all of you even before I meet my own staff.
I was just in the Meditation Room to pay my tribute to those colleagues fallen in the line of service to the United Nations.
Your presence this morning is very good proof that the United Nations is much alive, in the front lines, addressing all the challenges and issues, and trying to give hope to all the people around the world. It is a force to be reckoned with among governments and people everywhere.
I start my day as Secretary-General of the United Nations with much expectation and hope and promise. I need your strong support. I start my duties at a daunting time in international affairs, starting from Darfur to Middle East, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, North Korea - many other crises that trouble our world - from defending human rights and to the need to step up our efforts to reach the target by 2015 the Millennium Development Goals.
These challenges and issues need to be addressed collectively, with collective wisdom and collective efforts. Not a single person, including the Secretary-General of the United Nations; not a single country, however strong, powerful, resourceful, maybe, cannot address this. We need to have some common effort, therefore I need your support. In that regard, I think I am privileged to be able to draw upon the experience and expertise of many distinguished colleagues of the United Nations family; many distinguished predecessors, Secretaries-General, and throughout the wider community I have come to know while serving as Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea.
My first priority today will be to meet my own staff. I am going to have my first staff meeting today. During the transition period, I have been very much impressed by the high level of professionalism, exemplary professionalism and dedication of my Secretariat staff. At the same time, I am determined to help my staff to serve even more and better for the international organization, by persevering in our efforts to change the United Nations, this Organization, and by building a staff equipped to address all the challenges in the 21st century, and also by trying to bridge the gap and divide and mistrust which have been plaguing too much the United Nations.
I am very much eager to get down to my work today, and I regard you as a very important, essential asset and persons who will connect the important works of our United Nations to all the people around the world, and I need your strong support and I promise you that I will try to have, as often as possible, contacts and discussions and dialogue with press corps members, and I wish you again all the best and Happy New Year, and I count on your continued support and friendship. Thank you very much, Ladies and Gentlemen."

http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp

Welcome to the United Nations Association - Westchester Chapter

2006-12-27T09:44:00.001-08:00

Welcome to the United Nations Association - Westchester Chapter
Welcome to the blog of the Westchester Chapter of the United Nations Association of the USA!Post your activities on how you're involved in international issues, and ideas you would like to see discussed.