4 June – a Bad Day for Freedom of Speech
Fear of the truth is characteristic of all authoritarian regimes. 4 June is the day when this fear is exemplified in both China and Russia. It may be no coincidence that the governments of both countries have ambitions to take … Continue reading →
UN response to UK Illegal Migration Bill
The Illegal Migration Bill will change the law to make it unambiguously clear that, if you enter the UK illegally, you should not be able to remain here. Instead, you will be detained and promptly removed either to your home country … Continue reading →
House of Lords Special Committee on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Weapon Systems
Origin of the Committee On 7 December 2022, following increasing parliamentary interest and the work of a group of committed parliamentarians, the House of Lords Liaison Committee recommended the creation of a Special Committee on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in … Continue reading →
Artificial Intelligence could generate Weather Warnings
The power of Artificial Intelligence and the private sector could be harnessed to ensure that everyone on Earth is protected from hazardous weather, water, or climate events through life-saving early warning systems. That is the conclusion of two special dialogues, … Continue reading →
Global mean temperature likely to exceed 1.5C limit before 2027
Under the 2015 Paris climate agreement, countries pledged to try to hold global temperatures to no higher than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. They did this because scientists warned that multiple tipping points would probably be crossed if that level were … Continue reading →
International Day of UN Peacekeepers Conference – video
The video below shows the Peacekeepers Day Conference organised by UNA-UK, RUSI and UNA Westminster on 23 May, as near as possible to the official International Day of UN Peacekeepers on 29 May. The panel featured peacekeeping experts and practitioners, … Continue reading →
UN Peacekeeping Campaign – Peace Begins With Me
Around the world, millions of people are suffering immense harm from conflict. Their lives are torn apart by death, destruction, and displacement. Since 1948 United Nations peacekeepers have worked to save and change lives in the world’s most fragile political and … Continue reading →
UN requested to reject controversial definition of antisemitism
Wikipedia says that the working definition of antisemitism (also called the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism or IHRA definition) is a non-legally binding statement on what antisemitism is which was adopted by the IHRA Plenary (consisting of representatives … Continue reading →
Russia chairs UN Security Council debate on Multilateralism
On 24 April the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, UN Security Council President for April, chaired a debate on effective multilateralism. Speaking in his national capacity, Sergey Lavrov said that the United Nations-centred global system is now “enduring a profound … Continue reading →
Podcast on UNESCO – the UN’s most fascinating Agency
https://unacov.uk/audio/UNESCO-talk-David-Wardrop.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: RSSOn 15 April 2023 Mr David Wardrop MBE addressed a meeting of UNA Warwick District on the topic: UNESCO – the UN’s most fascinating Agency UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and … Continue reading →
2023 Global Water Security Assessment Video
The video below shows a press briefing on the 2023 Global Water Security Assessment by members of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment, and Health (UNU-INWEH) in Canada and others. It was held concurrently with the UN Water … Continue reading →
Seeds in Space – UN Youth Comic Book Competition
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have launched a comic book competition inviting 14 to 18 year olds to submit artwork that tells the story of ‘seeds in space’. The … Continue reading →
United Nations Podcasts
The UN produces various podcasts including News in Brief, The Lid is On (in-depth human stories behind the UN’s work and the way that it touches and impacts ordinary lives around the world), No Denying it (voices of young climate … Continue reading →
Results of UN Water Conference
In 2022 more than 40,000 people died from drought in Somalia. A third of Pakistan was inundated after catastrophic floods. Droughts have caused agricultural yields to fall sharply in parts of Europe and China. According to the IPCC, half the … Continue reading →
IPCC Assessment Report March 2023
The following was first published on the Coventry Climate Action Network website. A summary for policymakers of the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was published on 20 March and in 36 pages summarises … Continue reading →
Israel and Palestine talk as violence escalates
Following the latest wave of violence between Israelis and Palestinians, at the end of February UN Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland appealed for both sides to take action towards addressing core issues fuelling their conflict. Tension and violence between Israel … Continue reading →
UNA-UK Newsletter on UN Elections & Appointments
This newsletter, supported by the Open Society Foundations, is a resource for anyone interested in the timeline and dynamics of UN appointments and elections and will be published in partnership with Passblue. Sign up to the newsletter At present, it … Continue reading →
Muslim Mental Health Project Plan
The Mental Health within Muslim Communities Project is led by Shagufta Hamid-Khan, Chair of United Nations Association Coventry Branch. See this page for more information. Project Plan A project team has been created which has the following main aims: Raising … Continue reading →
I Feel Depressed – Sermon by Mufti Usman Qureshi
On 3 August 2022, Mufti Usman Qureshi delivered this sermon on depression. He is helping with the Muslim Mental Health Project.
Continue reading →UN calls on Taliban to end discrimination against women and girls
On 20 January, the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed and other UN women on a fact-finding mission in Afghanistan called upon Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership to put the good of the country first and end recent policies towards women and girls … Continue reading →