United Nations

A Three-Day Event in Italy to Set the Stage for UN Food Systems Summit

By Jaya Ramachandran

ROME (IDN) — Under the leadership of UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi, the Pre-Summit of the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit from July 19 to July 21 will bring together worldwide efforts and contributions aiming at transforming global food systems.

Youth, smallholder farmers, indigenous peoples, researchers, the private sector, policy leaders and ministers of agriculture, environment, health, and finance among others will deliver the latest evidence-based and scientific approach from around the world.

: Europe Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Food security, nutrition & sustainable agriculture; 18 March 2021

UN Keen to Achieve Gender Equality Far Ahead of 2150

By Caroline Mwanga

NEW YORK (IDN) — The international community has set the goal of achieving gender equality by 2030. But UN Women, a United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women, maintains that "at the current rate of progress, gender equality will not be reached among Heads of Government until 2150, another 130 years".

This projection is based on the new data published ahead of the ten-day 65th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW65).

: UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 14 March 2021

The Future Is Better with Women in Every Decision-Making

By Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women Executive Director

[Also available in: ar |es | fr | ru | zh]

NEW YORK (IDN) — International Women's Day (March 8) this year comes at a difficult time for the world and for gender equality, but at a perfect moment to fight for transformative action and to salute women and young people for their relentless drive for gender equality and human rights.

Our focus is on women's leadership and on ramping up representation in all the areas where decisions are made—currently mainly by men—about the issues that affect women's lives. The universal and catastrophic lack of representation of women’s interests has gone on too long.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 07 March 2021

A Woman, a Latin American and a Future Force of Change

By Isabella Duque Muñoz

This article first appeared as one of Youth Community's Spotlight Stories on February 26, 2021, as a part of UNODA's #Youth4Disarmament Initiative.

BOGOTA (IDN) — As a Colombian, I grew up in a nation marked by violence and armed conflict. These matters seized my interest from a very young age; learning about them felt vital to understanding my country and the factors that drive conflicts around the world.

In 2016, Colombia signed a historic peace agreement and began a process of laying down arms. Witnessing these developments confirmed my passion for issues of peace, security and disarmament, as well as development in emerging countries. I wanted to get involved and make my own contribution.

: UN Bureau; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 02 March 2021

From Moments to Movements: Solidarity for Sustainability

By Ramu Damodaran

The writer is Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) hosted in the Department of Global Communications. This OpEd first appeared in the latest #WhyWeCare, @ImpactUN.

NEW YORK (IDN | UNAI) — "STOP" said the imperious red sign (actually two red signs) as I ventured to the frostily frigid February frontline of the Atlantic coast, an injunction reminiscent of an earlier time when the United States chose to inhibit its interests within an isolated domain, a time that the Second World War brought to a definitive end when, in 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston Churchill concluded the Charter named for that ocean, one of whose clauses spoke of a peace that "should enable all men to transverse the high seas and oceans without hindrance", "voyages as metaphorical as literal, the nascent nautical navigations that we speak of today" as "global engagement", in the phrase of the title of the annual summit convened by the United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA) and the United Nations Foundation (UNF).

: UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 27 February 2021

Photo: Global temperature rise could lead to more frequent and more intense extreme weather events, such as prolonged droughts or devastating floods. Credit: WFP/Matteo Cosorich

UN Issues 'Red Alert' In A Climate Action Report

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — A UN climate action report warns that nations are “nowhere close” to the level of action needed to fight global warming. It urges countries to adopt stronger and more ambitious plans to reach the Paris Agreement goals, and limit the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, by the end of the century.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)’s Initial NDC Synthesis Report measures the progress of national climate action plans, known as Nationally Determined Contributions or NDCs, ahead of the 26th session of the Conference of its Parties (COP26) this November in Glasgow.

: Radwan Jakeem; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 26 February 2021

Photo: A seven-month-old baby displaced with his mother due to conflict in Tigray eats a high energy biscuit to boost his nutrition levels. Credit: UNICEF/Esiey Leul Kinfu

Children Experiencing Severe Harm in Ethiopia's Tigray Region

By Reinhard Jacobsen

BRUSSELS | NEW YORK (IDN) — A United Nations agency had drawn attention to the dire situation of children in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, where fighting continues between Government troops and regional forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

As more supplies and emergency personnel reach the area, “an incomplete but troubling picture” is emerging which reveals children are experiencing severe and ongoing harm, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported on February 12.

: Reinhard Jacobsen; THE WORLD; Horn of Africa; 14 February 2021

Gender Bias Against Women Career Scientists Upsets UNESCO

By Jaya Ramachandran

PARIS (IDN) — "Even today, in the 21st century, women and girls are being sidelined in science-related fields due to their gender," warns the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Director-General Audrey Azoulay.

Women need to know that they have a place in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and that they have a right to share in scientific progress, adds the UNESCO chief.

: Jaya Ramachandran; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 14 February 2021

Photo: Employees prepare bananas to be distributed in Mogadishu. Allan Atulinda/UN

Youth Movement Leads for Food Systems Transformation

By Ronald Joshua

ROME (IDN) – A wave of self-organised youth-led groups across the world has joined the growing momentum behind the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, which will peak in September.

The UN Food Systems Summit was announced by the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, on World Food Day last October as a part of the Decade of Action for delivery on the SDGs by 2030. The aim of the Summit is to deliver progress on all 17 of the SDGs through a food systems approach, leveraging the interconnectedness of food systems to global challenges such as hunger, climate change, poverty and inequality.

: Ronald Joshua; SUSTAINABILITY; Food security, nutrition & sustainable agriculture; 12 February 2021

Space Junk Poses Exponential Risks for Near-Earth Collisions

By Reinhard Jacobsen

VIENNA (IDN) – Space debris is an issue of global concern that threatens our continued use of near-Earth space for the benefit of humankind. The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have joined forces to create a series of infographics and podcasts that tell the story of space debris, explain the risks and illustrate the solutions available to ensure future space exploration remains sustainable.