Diplomacy Goes Digital: 8 Takeaways about Public Diplomacy in a Social Media Era

Last Friday, the United Nations Foundation and the Digital Diplomacy Coalition hosted “Digital Diplomacy +Social Good,” a half-day conference focused on the transformative power of technology in the evolving conversations about Public Diplomacy in the 21st-century.   Dynamic speakers from embassies in Washington, D.C. and international organizations like the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, the U.S. Department of State, and the British Council talked about the challenges and opportunities for the tradecrafts of diplomacy […]

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10 things to know about adolescent pregnancy

Every girl should have the opportunity to choose her future. All too often though, early and unintended pregnancies alter the course of a girl’s life. In many communities, girls are forced to marry young, without access to voluntary family planning services. This means they often have children as children themselves. They’re unable to go to school and are at a high risk of medical complications from pregnancy. Today, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) launched

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3 good things that happened in the fight against malaria

Elizabeth Ivanovich, Senior Officer for Global Health at the UN Foundation This month, three big scientific advances were announced at the MIM Pan-African Malaria Conference. All of them are bad news for malaria. Each of these advances has the potential to strengthen the fight against malaria over the next decade and help us to eliminate this disease. Here’s the rundown: 1. A malaria vaccine success in Stage 3 trails After more than 20 years in

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Polio in Syria: An Urgent Reminder To End Polio At Its Source

I was saddened to learn yesterday of a tragic development in the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria. The World Health Organization reports that polio, a crippling and often deadly virus, has resurfaced 14 years after being driven from the country.Thankfully, the Syrian Ministry of Health and its regional counterparts appear to grasp the threat posed by the outbreak and have sprung into action. A vaccination campaign is already underway in the affected area, the first of many

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Stark reality of maternal mortality shown on NBC’s Revolution

The post-apocalyptic hit NBC series Revolution takes place 15 years after the lights have gone out around the world. The global blackout has plunged the US into warring factions and a primitive existence. This guest post written by Whitney Showler, who heads Music for Relief, the non-profit established by Sustainable Energy for All supporter Linkin Park, touches on some of the issues covered in this week’s episode. Although we may consider childbirth routine, without electricity it can be very dangerous. Women give birth

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Three mHealth Innovations Changing Health Care Delivery

Mobile phones are more than just communications devices; they are also powerful tools to improve health care. Since 2012, TechChange and the mHealth Alliance have offered a four-week online certificate course in mHealth: Mobile Phones for Public Health. Our mHealth course has brought together an incredible group of roughly 100 doctors, community health workers, academic researchers, IT administrators, and government officials from over 35 countries to share knowledge. Each time we do the course, we’ve

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The Senate to Debate UN Disability Treaty Again

Jordie Hannum, Director, Better World Campaign I want to be sure this is on your radar: The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will take up the United Nations Disability Treaty again today, Tuesday, November 5, and we need to rally in a big way if we have a shot at getting it ratified. In case you need a refresher, the UN Disability Treaty is an international treaty that provides a framework for countries to embrace the rights and dignity of all people with disabilities. Sounds non-controversial, right? Well, believe

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Celebrating Global Leaders and the UN

On Wednesday evening, big names and bold voices like Ted Turner, Jane Fonda, UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson, Her Majesty Queen Rania, and Priyanka Chopra joined UN Foundation board members, UN supporters, diplomats, and business leaders at our Global Leadership Awards Dinner. This dinner, hosted by the UN Foundation and the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA), benefits our Global Classrooms Model UN program, which connects students in underserved communities with global issues and

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We made history – but not in a good way

The U.S. made history today – but not in a way that’ll make you proud. For the first time ever, we lost our vote in a United Nations organization for failing to pay our dues. And the agency we just walked away from is none other than the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), whose programs are clearly and directly in the interests of Americans. UNESCO, charged with promoting education, science, and culture worldwide, works to

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