United Nations Association of Northern Colorado

2012-11-14T15:46:00.001-07:00

New UN partnership aims to reduce emissions of ozone-damaging gas used to treat pests

Tomatoes may be treated with meythl bromide.
Photo: World Bank/Simone D. McCourtie

14 November 2012 – The United Nations today signed a new partnership with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPCC) to improve management of methyl bromide (MeBr), a gas used to prevent the spread of pests and diseases which damages the ozone layer.

In a new memorandum of understanding, the IPCC, which is based at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) headquarters in Rome, and the UN Environmental Programme’s (UNEP) Ozone Secretariat commit to work closely to promote existing recommendations on the use of MeBr, as well as support efforts to develop alternative treatments to replace it where possible, FAO stated in a news release.A colourless gas at room temperature, methyl bromide both occurs naturally and is manufactured. Marine organisms are estimated to produce 1-2 billion kilograms of it each year, while it is also released in small quantities by some terrestrial plants. For agricultural and industrial use, the gas is manufactured by reacting methanol with hydrogen bromide.For decades, MeBr offered a potent tool in combating the spread of plant pests and diseases. However, in 1991 it was added to the list of substances controlled under the Montreal Protocol, an international agreement set up to phase out the use of ozone-depleting technologies.The Protocol discourages the use of MeBr to combat pests and disease for non-quarantine purposes during production, but does make an exception for its utilization as a quarantine treatment, given its effectiveness in stopping pests and diseases. The Protocol also calls for alternative practices, which requires plant protection authorities to have information on and access to other treatments that are affordable and effective according to their needs, FAO said in a news release.According to FAO, the new partnership aims to facilitate this transition to alternative treatments by improving regional and international coordination regarding MeBr management, fostering information exchanges and cooperative research on alternative treatments, and promoting best fumigation practices to minimize MeBr emission, among other measures.

2012-07-10T13:38:00.001-06:00

Defiant Egypt parliament meets amid legal crisis

CAIRO: Egypt’s dissolved parliament convened on Tuesday in defiance of the powerful military and the judiciary as a constitutional crisis raged over a presidential decree reinstating the Islamist-led assembly.

>>> Read More.......http://dawn.com/2012/07/10/defiant-egypt-parliament-meets-amid-legal-crisis/

Presidents' quotes about United Nations

2012-02-21T13:47:00.002-07:00

Picture taken from Google images.

In honor of Presidents' Day, the Oklahoma City of the UNA-USA has produced a webpage featuring quotes from "12 American Presidents." Here is a sampling of what these 12 American presidents, from Truman to Obama, have had to say about the UN:

"The overwhelming majority of the American people, regardless of party, support the United Nations. They are resolved that the United States, to the full limit of its strength, shall contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a just and lasting peace among the nations of the world."
--Harry S Truman

"...Already the United Nations has become both the measure and the vehicle of man's most generous impulses. Already it has provided... a means of holding man's violence within bounds."
--John F. Kennedy

"The changes in the world since World War II have made more compelling than ever the central idea behind the United Nations: that individual nations must be ready at last to take a farsighted and a generous view."
--Richard M. Nixon

"The United Nations is dedicated to world peace, and its charter clearly prohibits the international use of force. Yet the tide of belligerence continues to rise.... We must not only condemn aggression; we must enforce the dictates of our charter and resume the struggle for peace...."
--Ronald Reagan

"The United States is committed to playing its part, helping to maintain global security, promoting democracy and prosperity. And my administration is fully committed to supporting the United Nations and to paying what we are obliged to pay by our commitment to the Charter."
--George H.W. Bush

"So at the dawn of a new century so full of promise, yet plagued by peril, we still need the United Nations. And so, for another 50 years and beyond, you can count the United States in."
--Bill Clinton

You can read the remarks of all twelve presidents at UNA Oklahoma chapter website:

www.una-okc.org/12_Presidents

Happy Presidents' Day!

UN nuclear inspectors arrive in Iran

2012-02-20T10:48:00.003-07:00

TEHRAN: A delegation from the UN nuclear watchdog arrived in Tehran on early Monday for a two-day visit aimed at seeking a solution to a dispute over Iran’s nuclear program, the ISNA news agency said.

The visit is the second to Iran in three weeks and is seen as a key test of Iran’s willingness to hold substantive talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency about suspicious activities outlined by the agency in a November report.

The team is headed by chief UN nuclear inspector Herman Nackaerts, who before boarding the plane for Tehran in Vienna expressed hope that “concrete results” would emerge from the trip, but cautioned that progress “may take a while.”

“We hope to have a couple of good and constructive days in Tehran,” Nackaerts told reporters at Vienna airport.

“Importantly we hope for some concrete results from this trip. The highest priority remains of course the possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear program, but we want to tackle all outstanding issues,” he said.

“This is of course a very complex issue that may take a while. But we hope it can be constructive.”

Complete story at >> http://www.dawn.com/2012/02/20/un-nuclear-team-arrives-in-iran-seeks-concrete-results.html

UN asks donors for $7.7 billion.

2011-12-14T13:05:00.000-07:00

GENEVA — The United Nations on Wednesday asked donor nations to give $7.7 billion to pay for humanitarian emergencies from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe next year, significantly less than the global body has requested for 2011.
Somalia, Sudan and Kenya — where tens of thousands of Somalis have sought shelter from war and famine — top the U.N.’s projections for the costliest emergencies.
>>Read More:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/un-asks-donors-for-77-billion-to-meet-humanitarian-emergencies-in-2012/2011/12/14/gIQAT2GftO_story.html

UN warns against force in Iran nuclear standoff.

2011-11-11T10:14:00.001-07:00

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Thursday for a diplomatic solution to the nuclear standoff with Tehran in an apparent reaction to media speculation that Israel might attack Iran’s atomic facilities. Reuters.

>> Read More: http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/10/un-warns-against-force-in-iran-nuclear-standoff.html

New signs of Syria-Pakistan nuke tie: AP

2011-11-01T10:22:00.000-06:00

WASHINGTON: UN investigators have identified a previously unknown complex in Syria that bolsters suspicions that the Syrian government worked with Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, to acquire technology that could make nuclear arms.

The buildings in northwest Syria closely match the design of a uranium enrichment plant provided to Libya when Muammar Qadhafi was trying to build nuclear weapons under Khan’s guidance, officials told The Associated Press.

The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency also has obtained correspondence between Khan and a Syrian government official, Muhidin Issa, who proposed scientific cooperation and a visit to Khan’s laboratories following Pakistan’s successful nuclear test in 1998.

Pakistan’s nuclear-bomb maker says North Korea paid bribes for know-how.

2011-07-07T11:04:00.000-06:00

A.Q. Khan in an undated photo.

The founder of Pakistan’s nuclear bomb program asserts that the government of North Korea bribed top military officials in Islamabad to obtain access to sensitive nuclear technology in the late 1990s.

Abdul Qadeer Khan has made available documents that he says support his claim that he personally transferred more than $3 million in payments by North Korea to senior officers in the Pakistani military, which he says subsequently approved his sharing of technical know-how and equipment with North Korean scientists.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pakistans-nuclear-bomb-maker-says-north-korea-paid-bribes-for-know-how/2010/11/12/gIQAZ1kH1H_story.html?hpid=z1

ICC orders arrest of Qaddafi, son and close aides

2011-06-27T12:12:00.001-06:00

Judges Sanji Mmasenono Monageng (C), Sylvia Steiner (L) and Cuno Tarfusser (R) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) attend a meeting about Libya in The Hague on June 27, 2011. – Photo by AFP

THE HAGUE: International judges ordered the arrest of Moammar Qadhafi on Monday for murdering Libyan civilians who rose up against him, as Nato warplanes pounded his Tripoli compound and world leaders stepped up calls for the Libyan leader to resign.

The International Criminal Court said Qadhafi, his son Seif al-Islam Qadhafi and his intelligence chief Abdullah al-Sanoussi are wanted for orchestrating the killing, injuring, arrest and imprisonment of hundreds of civilians during the first 12 days of an uprising to topple Qadhafi from power, and for trying to cover up their alleged crimes.

The warrants from The Hague court turn the three men into internationally wanted suspects, potentially complicating efforts to mediate an end to more than four months of intense fighting in the North African nation. The warrants will be sent to Libya, where Qadhafi remains defiantly entrenched.

Full story can be found at:

http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/27/intl-court-orders-arrest-of-qadhafi-son-key-aide.html

Sudanese army arrests UN staff

2011-06-23T13:39:00.000-06:00

Internally displaced people gather in Turalei, in the south's Twic county, about 130 km (80 miles) from Abyei town, May 27, 2011. REUTERS/Jeremy Clarke

The U.N. Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) said six of its national staff members had been arrested by the Sudanese military at Kadugli airport on Wednesday, which it called a violation of an agreement that guarantees its staff immunity.

"The parties to the conflict must uphold their commitment to protect civilians and ensure freedom of movement for U.N. staff regardless of their religious, ethnic, or political affiliations," spokesman Kouider Zerrouk said.

Read the full story at:

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-says-73000-flee-sudan-border-state-fighting/

Nuclear watchdog wants new safety checks after Fukushima

2011-06-21T11:08:00.001-06:00

The head of the UN nuclear watchdog has called for strengthened international safety checks to help prevent a repeat of Japan's nuclear crisis at Fukushima.

Yukiya Amano said UN experts should be able to carry out random reviews of nuclear power stations.

He has also called for countries to carry out risk assessments on their reactors within 18 months.

The watchdog, the IAEA, is holding a meeting in Vienna aimed at improving nuclear safety.

Officials from 150 nations are meeting at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) offices in Vienna.

Click below for the complete news item:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13835554

UN chief Ban Ki-moon calls on Syria’s president to stop the bloodshed

2011-06-17T11:52:00.002-06:00

UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon, left, shakes hands with Brazil’s Foreign Minister Antonio de Aguiar Patriota during his arrival at the Itamaraty palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Thursday, June 16, 2011. Ban Ki-moon is on a two-day visit to Brazil.

Speaking to journalists in Brazil, his last stop in a South America tour that included Colombia, Argentina and Uruguay, Ban called on Syria’s president to “stop killing people” and told reporters that he’d urged Assad to “engage in inclusive dialogue and to take bold measures before it’s too late.”

Read the whole story at:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/americas/un-chief-ban-ki-moon-calls-on-syrias-president-to-stop-the-bloodshed/2011/06/16/AG3cnmXH_story.html

U.S. official warns against cuts to UN funding

2011-06-16T11:30:00.000-06:00

A U.S. State Department official told American lawmakers that proposed cuts in UN funding would lead to setbacks in the country's interests at the world body, specifically concerning human rights and efforts to normalize Israel's status. "If we cede ground, if our engagement in the UN system is restricted, these bodies likely would be dominated by our adversaries," said Esther Brimmer, an assistant secretary of state.

To get the full story, click on the link below:
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/06/15/state_department_human_rights_council_progress_is_undeniable

The world's most dangerous border

2011-06-15T09:49:00.004-06:00

To reduce the risk of terror, the West must help defuse tension between India and Pakistan. "The Economist."

Click on the link below to read the full story.

http://www.economist.com/node/18712525

"Polio could be wiped out completely."

2011-06-14T14:12:00.002-06:00

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates speaks during an interview at the

Australian High Commission in London Photo: REUTERS

Source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/8571773/Polio-could-be-wiped-out-completely.html

Polio could be wiped out completely within as little as two years, Bill Gates has claimed as he urged world leaders to help protect thousands of children from the debilitating disease.

Mr Gates held an open phone call with the British public yesterday to discuss the importance of pledging more money for vaccines.

He said: "This is my life's work."

Mr Gates and Prime Minister David Cameron are to lead the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (Gavi) conference, which will see political leaders discuss how to generate sufficient funds to ensure children in the world's poorest countries receive the vaccines they need.

Gavi is facing a shortfall of £2.3 billion for its work over the next five years, charities have warned.

In the phone call, hosted by broadcaster and Save the Children ambassador Natasha Kaplinksy, Mr Gates said a malaria vaccine could be just a few years away, while polio could follow smallpox in being eradicated thanks to the success of its vaccine.

He said the conference "would create incredible momentum, I know that the whole image of aid can be saved if people know it's about saving lives."

Vaccines were "magic", he said.

"They are very inexpensive, they can protect you for your entire life, so diseases like smallpox that used to kill millions are completely gone because of the vaccine. It's the greatest thing that ever happened in human health. We need to get them out to people and invent some more."

A malaria vaccine is a few years away, he said. A trial was taking place of one. "We have a very good chance that by 2015 that trial will have a successful completion, then we will have to raise even more money to make sure all the kids get it."

It was also important to work on an Aids vaccine, and one for tuberculosis was also needed.

Mr Gates said the success of the conference would be measured by how many children's lives were saved.

"The simplest measure is avoiding children dying. Just under nine million died last year, but the number would be reduced a lot by getting these new vaccines out, to get the coverage.

"It's millions of lives at stake, four million would be saved by 2015 if pledges come out successfully."

Asked about people's suspicions over whether money pledged went where it should, Mr Gates said: "You can follow it by buying the vaccine, going into the country, going into the village, and see if the coverage is achieved.

"Vaccines have moved up the priority list - with care, you can keep the corruption to a very low level."

One great vaccine story was polio, "which in two to four years could become the second disease after smallpox that we've eradicated", he said.

The UK had been taking a lead on the issue of funding distribution of vaccines, and Norway had always been a generous giver, as had Sweden and Australia, he said.

Justin Forsyth, Save the Children chief executive, said in the same phone call: "We are looking for a little bit more from France and Germany, and leadership from the EU, to pledge money, while we're not sure what the US will pledge. It looks like it's lining up."

Britons had been asked to submit questions for Mr Gates on why so many of the poorest children still die because they cannot get the life-saving vaccines taken for granted in rich countries - and what needs to be done to save their lives.

Gavi's global immunisation programme includes the roll out of new vaccines against two of the biggest child killers, pneumonia and diarrhoea.

Save the Children's new report, Vaccines for All, reveals that there are still around 24 million children - the world's poorest, and those most vulnerable to disease - that have no access to vaccines.

This could be changed if Gavi gets the resources it needs, it says

Cooking shouldn't kill

2011-06-13T09:33:00.004-06:00

Academy Award-winning actor Julia Roberts announced she is adding her voice to the international effort to reduce deaths from toxic cookstove smoke. She will serve as "Global Ambassador" for the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, an initiative led by the UN Foundation, to help bring attention to one of the most urgent health problems facing women and families around the world.

"Nearly 2 million people around the world -- mostly women and children -- die each year from an activity that many of us take for granted: cooking for our families," Roberts said. "I am proud to stand with Secretary of State Clinton to work to reduce the senseless and preventable deaths from unsafe cooking conditions in developing countries."

From:http://www.globalproblems-globalsolutions-files.org/gpgs_files/unfoundation_enews/may2011.html

Celebrities, students and leaders against Malaria

2011-06-13T09:31:00.002-06:00

http://www.nothingbutnets.net/media/press-releases/celebrities-students-and.html

Champions in the fight against malaria include George W. Bush, Mandy Moore and Ted Turner

New York, New York (April 25, 2011) -

Today, The United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign is marking World Malaria Day with a series of activities in New York to highlight a few of the thousands of Champions in the fight against malaria.

Actress Mandy Moore and NBA Legend Dikembe Mutombo will join fellow Champions to kick off the day by launching a dynamic public service announcement to bring the issue of malaria to the famous Toshiba Vision screen in Times Square. The PSA will air in the crossroads of New York City through May 21 to deliver the message that anyone can become a Champion to help end malaria.

“You don't have to be a celebrity or a world leader to make an impact. Anyone can be a Champion by helping Nothing But Nets to send life-saving bed nets to families in Africa,” said Elizabeth Gore, Executive Director of Global Partnerships for the UN Foundation.

The high-impact PSA features portraits from the Champions to End Malaria Exhibit, to open this evening during a reception with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The exhibit, hosted by the UN Foundation and the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, depicts the many, diverse individuals and partners who Champion the fight against malaria by raising funds and awareness to combat the disease. This larger-than-life, interactive exhibit honors Ted Turner, George Bush, Tony Blair, Awa Coll-Seck, grassroots supporters, and UN Special Envoy on Malaria, named among TIME’s 100 most influential, Ray Chambers, as captured by world-renowned photographer Platon.

Malaria is a leading killer of refugees and children in Africa, where a child dies every 45 seconds from the preventable and treatable disease. Every day, however, individuals all over the world are sharing their time, skills, and platform to raise awareness and resources to help reach the UN goal to end malaria deaths by 2015.

Right now, supporters across the country are helping Nothing But Nets and the UN Refugee Agency send life-saving bed nets to the more than 70,000 people who have fled ongoing violence in Cote d’Ivoire to seek shelter in Liberia. In honor of World Malaria Day, anyone can be a champion by sending a net to save a life in Liberia, before the rainy season hits in May.

According to The World Health Organization, enough bed nets have been delivered to cover 76 percent of the 765 million people at risk for malaria, and in three years, 11 African countries have cut malaria rates in half. Log on to www.NothingButNets.net to learn more.

‘We Believe in You,’ Ambassador Rice Tells Students

2011-06-12T17:51:00.003-06:00

Over 3000 students took part in this year's global classroom international model UN conference.

Source: http://www.unausa.org/Page.aspx?pid=2263

The General Assembly hall felt a lot younger when 2,400 leaders convened one recent evening to represent 24 countries at the United Nations.

As Susan E. Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, remarked to the group in her speech, the usual sea of gray hairs was missing from the hall, “but I like the way this looks.” Indeed, the high-ceilinged assembly teemed with serious, curious and enthusiastic youths sharing a single goal: to save the world.

“And I hope some of you are thinking,” Rice added (no gray hairs evident on her, either), “ ‘I could get used to this. I intend to come back!’”

The occasion was UNA-USA’s 12th annual Global Classroom conference, the largest high-school Model UN in the world, drawing not only thousands of students but also hundreds of teachers for a three-day program, from May 12-14, of passionate debates over such issues as education, maternal health, natural disasters and the Millennium Development Goals.

Timothy E. Wirth, United Nations Foundation president, presided over the evening gathering, which started punctually, an achievement in itself given the demanding schedules of the speakers, who also included Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Wirth, who is a former U.S. Senator from Colorado, reminded the audience that this was a “wonderful, wonderful experience for all of you” and that the students’ energy and idealism would instill the hall and the entire UN, a sensation that the participants could take back to their communities and use to carry them forward into the future.

Wirth then introduced Patrick Madden, UNA’s executive director, and Samuel Lichtenstein, the conference’s other “secretary-general” and a student at Johns Hopkins University, who bounded up to the dais like a true politician, urging the audience, in Kennedyesque terms to “not do better but be better.”

Ban, who first came to the UN fresh from university in South Korea decades earlier, exuded his persistent love for his job and the UN in his speech, reminding everyone that he occupied his post “temporarily.” And that someday, “one of you may be standing here” and that people would refer to the secretary-general as “she” or “her.”

After a fast-paced video showing Ban at work, arriving by Mercedes-Benz before dawn at headquarters and on the move long after sunset, the students’ energy level soared in the General Assembly, as if they were V.I.P.s in the video too.

But the road to becoming secretary-general is not about cool videos but about leadership, which, Ban emphasized, “begins with what you are doing this minute.”

“So I want you to prepare for your future even as you sit in these chairs,” he continued. “Say what you mean; always try to live in truth; be true to yourself; know who you are.

“Be true to your principles. Be careful what you think, because what you think shapes what you say, and what you say shapes your actions. Your actions shape your character, and your character defines your destiny.

“Living in truth takes courage, so you have to be brave. Being brave means more than being cool in dangerous circumstances; it means being willing to take a stand for beliefs – even when those beliefs might expose you to disagreement, controversy or sometimes even persecution. Be brave. Be bold. And finally, embrace a vision larger than yourself.”

Rice kept the momentum going, telling the students that “just by being here today, you’re doing something already important.” And that is studying the issues, understanding the “wider world,” grappling with the “challenges facing your nations and your generation.”

So, she added: “We need you now to get in the game. And we need you to stay in the game. And that’s because as you heard the Secretary-General say, We’ve got very real problems to solve.”

Not letting the students off the hook, Rice, who has two young children of her own, spelled out the students’ missions as diplomats now and ahead: that dreams are attainable, even if the paths to them are not immediately clear; that perseverance works and naysayers should be dismissed.

“We believe in you,” she said. “We’re counting on you. So show us what you’ve got.”

To read Rice’s speech in full, go to http://usun.state.gov/briefing/statements/2011/163295.htm
To read Ban’s speech in full, go to http://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/sgspeeches/statments_full.asp?statID=1183\