The international community has expressed grave concern regarding the escalation of violence in Palestine and Israel.

QUNO New York is now accepting Programme Assistant (PA) applications for the 2024-2025 year. QUNO New York works in close partnership with UN diplomats and officials to increase the global commitment to the UN’s role in building lasting peace. We believe that the UN will only fulfill this aspect of its mandate when its peace initiatives truly respond to community needs, and we seek to build bridges between the UN in New York and voices from the ground.

Status: Full - Time, Specific Term (12 months) Beginning September 1, 2024

Location: New York, NY

On January 30th, Quaker UN Representative Kavita Desai delivered a statement at the annual Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Partnership Forum. In her remarks, Kavita highlighted the essential role of civil society organisations as partners in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those that work on the frontlines of SDG implementation.

 On 5 March 2024, Members of the Temporary Committee for the Indigenous Coordinating Body for Enhanced Participation, the Canadian Friends Service Committee (CFSC), and the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) hosted an informal “Ask Anything” discussion with United Nations (UN) diplomats inviting them to ask questions and learn about to enhanced participation of Indigenous Peoples at the UN.  

On Monday 1 April, QUNO New York partnered with The Asia Foundation to host a workshop on Engaging with the United Nations (UN) System for the inaugural cohort of The Asia Foundation’s Pacific Women Climate Leaders, a program which aims to empower Pacific women to drive climate action in their communities. 

The Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) in New York seeks a committed and motivated person with considerable knowledge and experience to carry forward QUNO’s efforts to expand support for the UN’s role in building lasting peace. 

This Representative position functions as a senior member of the QUNO team, sharing program responsibilities while taking particular care of QUNO’s Program Assistant program. 

Working at the UN, it’s easy to feel discouraged. Over recent years, staff of the Quaker UN Offices in Geneva and New York have had front-row seats watching repeated instances when powerful countries have ignored basic tenets of international law and not lived up to their commitments under the UN Charter. At a recent meeting of the Quaker UN Committee in Geneva, Switzerland, we were asked to reflect on the current state of the UN, including the challenges and opportunities facing the institution. 

On 16 July 2024 QUNO NY partnered with the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPACC) to host an interactive event during the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF, see more about the Forum below), which simulated building political will for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

On 17 September, the UN General Assembly convened for an emergency session to consider a resolution calling for the implementation of this summer’s opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, which focused on Israeli settlements and called for their withdrawal.