On 5th May 2022, QUNO Geneva’s Representative for Peace and Disarmament, Florence Foster, was an expert speaker at the virtual launch of UNIDIR’s Arms-Related Risk Analysis Toolkit. The Toolkit is designed to guide efforts to integrate conventional arms and ammunition-related risks into conflict analysis and conflict prevention, management, and resolution efforts.

Dear Friends,

Like us, you have undoubtedly been watching in horror the unfolding events in Ukraine. When we accepted responsibilities as the Directors of the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) in Geneva and New York this past November, the possibility of such a war was little imagined by us or by the millions of people in Ukraine and Russia. We pray for Friends in Ukraine and Russia, and all impacted by this conflict. We are deeply grateful to hear of the efforts being carried out by Friends in Poland, Estonia and Georgia to provide much needed humanitarian relief.

Florence Foster, Representative for Peace and Disarmament, delivered a statement at the 49th Session of the Human Rights Council to welcome the OHCHR report 49/68 on [...] technical assistance and capacity-building that support the implementation by States of their international human rights obligations and commitments’ pursuant to the so called ‘prevention’ resolution 45/31.

Florence Foster, Representative for Peace & Disarmament at QUNO Geneva, had the pleasure of speaking to the Council on Christian Approaches to Defence and Disarmament (CCADD) over a lunch time event on ‘Small Arms Exports, Leadership and Accountability: A Human Rights Perspective’.

At the 49th Session of the Human Rights Council, Florence Foster, QUNO’s Representative for Peace and Disarmament delivered a statement to welcome OHCHR report 49/88 on the contribution of [...] all human rights [...] to achieving the purposes and upholding the principles of the UN Charter. 

As part of QUNO Geneva’s long-term work on environmental peacebuilding, we have been engaging in a multi-stakeholder process hosted by the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform to define a vision for environmental peacebuilding.

QUNO's December 2021 issue of the Geneva Reporter newsletter is available below. This issue includes reflections and updates from QUNO staff who attended COP 26 in Glasgow on November 2021. This issue also provides updates on our programs, Peace and Disarmament (P&D) and Human Rights and Refugees. We also welcome QUNO's new incoming director, Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, and say farewell to our outgoing director, Jonathan Woolley who will retire on 31 December 2021.You can read more about Nozizwe and her vision for QUNO in the Q&A section. 

Eleven leaders from seven international Quaker organisations met at Friends House London and online for three days in early December. They included our incoming and outgoing Directors in New York (Sarah Clarke and Andrew Tomlinson) and in Geneva (Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge and Jonathan Woolley).

QUNO was present throughout the entire COP26 in Glasgow, focusing on climate justice concerns, and strengthening ambitious, effective and fair international climate efforts.  Please see ‘read more’ for an overview of QUNO work and links to presentations, publications and statements, and an analysis of the COP26, ‘Two steps forward, one step back’, by Representative for Climate Change, Lindsey Fielder Cook.