UN – United Nations

Yesterday, the U.S. Administration rescinded federal guidelines related to the protection of transgender students in our nation’s schools. This discouraging news runs counter to American values and hurts the country’s ability to champion human rights around the world. For the United States to be credible in advancing human rights and combating discrimination on the international stage, it needs to also set an example right at home. Congressional Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) was right to call […]

Right now, more than 20 million people in South Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, and northeast Nigeria are facing food insecurity or famine. Ongoing conflict in these countries, combined with difficulty getting aid to those in need, has resulted in several humanitarian crises. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), “Famine remains relatively rare, and multiple, simultaneous famines have not been seen in modern times. People are already dying in all four countries because of malnutrition. The

As Black History Month comes to close, we prepare to welcome Women’s History Month in March to honor the extraordinary achievements and contributions of American women. On the onset, the idea of designating a month to recognize anything, let alone a group of people, may appear odd; but is it really? History is filled with examples of Black women who have embodied the intersectionality of these months to enrich the story of America in a

The United Nations describes the Lake Chad region of Africa as “a region under pressure,” which is grappling with a serious humanitarian crisis. What is the situation? According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), communities across the Lake Chad region (specifically in northeast Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger) are struggling with “the compounded impact of climate change, deep poverty, and violent extremism.” Lake Chad, an important source of water and economic opportunities

While children everywhere face bullying, LGBTI youth often face higher levels of taunting, name-calling, and violence at school, home, and in their community. The United Nations notes that children who experience this kind of abuse have a higher risk of anxiety, loneliness, low self-esteem, self-harm, depression, and suicide. They are also more likely to skip or drop out of school. According to a recent UNESCO report, a study from the United States found that 70% of

The Minister of Public Health for Chad, Ngarmbatina Odkimbeye Soukate, is the mother of four girls. This morning in Brussels, in a gathering of more than 45 government representatives from all continents and 400 parliamentarians and civil society participants, Minister Soukate declared, “If the world wants to advance, women have to decide.” Her passionate sentiment was the theme of She Decides, an international conference devoted to mobilizing political, financial, and practical support for global sexual and

Every year, U.S. public officials receive approximately 2 million more letters and calls from men than women. Research also suggests that women are less likely to write opinion editorials, speak up at town hall meetings, or consider running for office. The percent of U.S. women registered to vote in the 2010-2012 cycle was only 64.3%, and only 50% of registered women cast a ballot, a precursor to last November when almost half of all eligible

Note: This blog was co-authored by Ryan Kaminski, Senior Program Manager for Human Rights and Special Initiatives and Anna Mahalak, UNA-USA’s Manager of Youth Engagement. The top United Nations human rights body, the UN Human Rights Council, convened yesterday, March 6, 2017, for a high-level discussion on supporting the human rights of youth in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Recommendations from GenUN advocates – members of the United Nations Association of the United States of America

I went to Calvary Women’s Services in Washington D.C. on a February morning to coach, encourage, and learn from women like Grace, and I left recommitted to the United Nations Foundation’s work to help empower girls and women. In honor of International Women’s Day, a team of UN Foundation colleagues and I spent the morning with approximately 30 women at Calvary as volunteers for a women’s job search boot camp. We fielded questions about job seeking, participated