Timeline

May 2015

Negotiations on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration

QUNO Geneva have produced a new publication that focuses on the potential of environmental rights agreements to prevent destructive conflict around natural resources. “Building Peace through Principle 10, Access rights and the prevention of environmental conflict”, is a contribution to the ongoing negotiations to conclude a regional agreement for Latin America and the Caribbean on the right to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice, in environmental matters.

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May 2015

QUNO supports peace and reconciliation in Burundi

QUNO New York, along with nine other Quaker organisations, have jointly issued a statement on Burundi entitled "Standing for Peace and Reconciliation." This statement draws attention to the current crisis in the country, highlights the important work of Friends in Burundi on trauma healing, reconciliation, and violence prevention, and lifts up the views of Burundian Friends on the need for a political resolution to the crisis, on the importance of dialogue, and that true peacebuilding is a process that needs support in the long-term. 

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May 2015

QUNO co-hosts side event at the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Vienna

QUNO, together with Friends World Committee for Consultation and Penal Reform International, hosted a side event at the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Vienna on Friday, 22 May 2015. The event presented an opportunity for further discussion following the presentation to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice​ (CCPCJ) of the ninth quinquennial report of the UN Secretary-General on "Capital punishment and implementation of the safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty." Further details are available in the fly

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May 2015

UNITAR Seminar: "The Nexus of Reconciliation and Peacebuilding"

In May, QUNO New York Director, Andrew Tomlinson, spoke during a UNITAR Seminar for mid-level UN Diplomats, on the subject of "The Nexus of Reconciliation and Peacebuilding." The Seminar which aimed to familiarize the participants with the principles of reconciliation as a process for peacebuilding, was well attended by representatives from many member state missions. 

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April 2015

QUNO hosts third expert consultation on trade and investment in agriculture

From 1-2 April 2015, QUNO held its third Expert Consultation on a New Framework for Trade and Investment in Agriculture (NFTIA) at the Château de Bossey (pictured), near Geneva. QUNO hosted 17 participants, representing academics, trade delegates, civil society representatives, small-scale farmers and UN officials, from a total of 11 different countries.

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April 2015

QUNO speaks on peace education and trauma healing at Commemoration event on the Genocide in Rwanda

On 8 April QUNO was invited to be part of a  commemoration event organised by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Rwanda in Geneva on “The legacy of the genocide against the Tutsi: from hate speech to fighting denial and fostering harmony“ at the Palais des Nations. Diane Hendrick spoke on recent peace education initiatives at both NGO and government level in Rwanda and underlined the necessity for peace education to be supported by trauma healing in order to be effective,  illustrating this by the work of Quaker Peace House in Rwanda. 

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April 2015

Peace and Post-2015: Into the Home Stretch

As the post-2015 inter-governmental negotiations continue to move towards finalising a new development agenda, we are pleased to bring you an Author's Original Manuscript version of the article "Peace and Post-2015: Into the Home Stretch," that was recently published in the Journal for Peacebuilding and Development. Written by QUNO New York Director and UN Representative, Andrew Tomlinson, the piece reflects on the current state of play of the inclusion of peace issues in the soon to be agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

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April 2015

QUNO hosts event on children of incarcerated parents at the 13th UN Congress of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice

QUNO's Laurel Townhead and Rachel Brett presented the findings of the COPING project, a transnational research project looking at the impact of parental incarceration on the mental health and well being of children at the Thirteenth UN Congress of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Doha, Qatar.

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March 2015

Launch of GPP White Paper in New York March 2015

QUNO’s Diane Hendrick was one of the presenters, together with Achim Wennman, of the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform’s (GPP) White Paper on Peacebuilding at the Swiss Mission in New York in March 2015. (The Swiss government contributed to the financing of the paper). The views of a wide range of peacebuilding professional’s at all levels provides input into the ongoing reviews of the UN peacebuilding architecture and peace operations.

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March 2015

Palestinian Youth Organizers: Breaking Barriers - Building Movements

QUNO, in collaboration with the American Friends Service Committee, facilitated an Israel-Palestine NGO Working Group event “Palestinian Youth Organizers: Breaking Barriers - Building Movements.” The talk featured three young Palestinian women from Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem who had previously traveled to select U.S. cities to discuss and address issues of Palestinian fragmentation, freedom of movement, their personal experiences and day-to-day realities of living and studying in Gaza, the West Bank and more.

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March 2015

Bringing the Voices of Local Peacebuilders to the UN

The New York Peacebuilding Group, a gathering of organisations (the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, the International Peace Institute, Interpeace, PAX, Peace Direct, the Quaker United Nations Office, and World Vision) engaged on various peace-related issues at the UN and in country hosted local civil society representatives from Burundi, the Central African Republic, Guatemala, Liberia, Mali, South Africa, and Timor Leste in New York.

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March 2015

Emerging Issues in Peacebuilding & Prevention Reception

The Quaker United Nations Office in New York, in association with Ambassador Sofia Borges, Timor Leste, and Ambassador Vandi Minah, Sierra Leone, co-hosted a reception at Quaker House on 10 March for member state delegates and senior representatives of peacebuilding policy organizations from around the world. 

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March 2015

QUNO co-hosts side event on children of incarcerated parents at the Human Rights Council

QUNO, along with the Permanent Delegation of the African Union to the UN in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Uruguay and Child Rights Connect Working Group on Children of Incarcerated Parents hosted a panel discussion and good practice exchange on policy and practice developments related to children of incarcerated parents.

The event is being held during the 28th session of the Human Rights Council, on 11 March in Geneva. Further details are available in the flyer below.

 

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March 2015

QUNO particpates in a side event on strengthening death penalty standards at the Human Rights Council

On Monday, 9 March, QUNO participated in a side event on strengthening death penalty standards, organized by Penal Reform International and the Permanent Representations of Switzerland and Mexico. QUNO Representative Laurel Townhead spoke at the event on the impact of death penalty on children of parents sentenced to death. Further details about the event can be found in the flyer below.

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March 2015

QUNO co-hosts Climate Change side event at the Human Rights Council

The Geneva Climate Change Concertation Group (GeCCco), the Geneva Interfaith Forum on Climate Change and Human Rights (GIF), QUNO and other NGOs concerned about the impact of climate change on human rights, co-hosted CLIMATE CHANGE AND HUMAN RIGHTS: THE WAY FORWARD IN THE HRC, a side event to the 28th session of the Human Rights Council. The side event was held on Friday, 6 March, from 1-3pm in Room XXVII at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. 

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February 2015

"Tilting the UN Toward Peace & Justice" - Northern Spirit Radio Interview

In February, QUNO New York Director and UN Representative, Andrew Tomlinson, was interviewed by the Northern Spirit Radio, to talk about the work of the Quaker United Nations Office and share some insights on current UN processes and focus. Titled: "Tilting the UN Toward Peace & Justice" - the full interview can be found here

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February 2015

Launch of the White Paper on Peacebuilding

On the 27th of February 2015, QUNO, alongside its partners at the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform, launched the White Paper on Peacebuilding. Published in anticipation of the 10-year review of the UN Peacebuilding Architecture, this collaborative publication aims to account for a diverse range of perspectives in discussing the challenges, opportunities, and future of peacebuilding, as well the ways in which societies may work towards a sustainable peace, with the support of the UN and other international actors.

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February 2015

QUNO particpates in Fifth Meeting of the Aarhus Task Force on Public Participation in Decision Making on Environmental Matters

Fifth Meeting of the Aarhus Task Force on Public Participation credit:Noah Berger Photography

QUNO participated in the fifth meeting of the Aarhus Convention Task Force on Public Participation in Decision-Making on Environmental Matters from 23 to 24 February 2015. Entering into force in December 2001, the Aarhus Convention provides the publics of signatory states with a number of procedural rights with respect to the environment, including the right to access information, the right of participation, and the right to justice.

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