2021 Geneva Peace Talks: Recovering better for an equitable & sustainable world

We are pleased to invite you and your staff to attend the 9th edition of the Geneva Peace Talks. Marking the International Day of Peace, the Geneva Peace Talks will take place on Tuesday, 21 September 2021 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. in Room XVIII at the Palais des Nations and online.

The 2021 edition is organized under the theme “Recovering better for an equitable and sustainable world”. In 2021, as we heal from the COVID-19 pandemic, we are inspired to think creatively and collectively about how to help everyone recover better. People around the world are facing not only a global health crisis, but also other imminent crises: climate change, poverty, inequalities, stigma and discrimination. We must transform our world into one that is more equal, inclusive, sustainable, and healthier. We must make peace with one another.

The event will feature speakers from a wide range of backgrounds, from health equity to environmental action. We will hear from the former Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mr. Yves Daccord, the Head of the Secretariat of the Principles for Peace Initiative Ms. Hiba Qasas, Senegalese singer and champion for climate action Mr. Baaba Maal, Chief Executive Officer of the World Health Organization Foundation Mr. Anil Soni in an interview, three high school students from the first-ever Peace Talks club, a choreographer from South Africa; as well as two film makers creating a documentary on climate refugees.

Due to COVID-19 preventive measures, only a limited number of seats will be available in Room XVIII. Early registration for in-person participation is required as it will be closed once the maximum capacity is reached.

To follow the event online or to register, please use the following link: peacetalks.net.

This year’s Geneva Peace Talks are co-organized, once again, by the United Nations Office at Geneva, Interpeace and the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform, in partnership with the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations Office and to other international organizations in Geneva.

The Geneva Peace Talks are an annual highlight of International Geneva. We look forward to your participation, which will send a strong signal of support and demonstrate our collective commitment to peace across the world.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org.

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day: Access to Justice

Participate in part of the UN’s observance of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on Tuesday, 15 June at 15:00- 16:15 Geneva time/ 9:00 – 10:15 NY time!

The International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA) founded the first World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) in 2006. WEAAD was designated as a United Nation’s International Day in 2011 in GA resolution A/ RES/66/127. This year’s theme is Access to Justice.

COVID-19 highlighted distressing reports of abuse and neglect of older persons in long-term care institutions and in the community where the majority of older persons live. Older persons who have experienced situations of violence, abuse and neglect face multiple barriers in accessing judicial remedies such as issues of accessibility, affordability, excessive delays and backlogs in judicial processes, impact of digitalization, gender bias, discrimination, and entrenched ageism in policy, norms and practices.

Access to justice is a fundamental right in itself and an essential prerequisite for the protection and promotion of all human rights. An expert panel will discuss ways to overcome the barriers and showcase examples of access to justice by older persons who suffered violence, abuse and neglect, including during the current COVID 19 pandemic. Register here today: https://bit.ly/3x3YiSj

Program:

Opening words:

Susan Somers, President of INPEA
HE Mr. Federico Villegas, Permanent Representative of Argentina to the UN in Geneva, co-chair of the Group of Friends of the human rights of older persons, Geneva
HE Mr. Enrique Austria MANALO, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the UN, New York (TBC)

Panelists:

Claudia Mahler, Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons
Maria Soledad Cisternas Reyes, Special Envoy of the UN SG on Disability and Accessibility
Etienne Krug, Director of the department of Social Determinants of Health, World Health Organization
Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health (TBC)
Natasa Todorovic, Health and Care Program Manager, Red Cross of Serbia and INPEA Europe
Bill Mitchell, Principal Solicitor, Townsville Community Law Inc, Australia

Moderator: Silvia Perel-Levin, INPEA representative to the UN and Chair of the NGO Committee on Ageing, Geneva

The event will be accessible with sign language and captioning. It will have French, Spanish, German and Russian interpretation. It will also be webcast on webtv.un.org.

This event is funded by the European Union’s Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020). The content represents the views of the participants only and is their sole responsibility. The European Commission does not accept any responsibility for use that may be made of the information it contains.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-NY, please visit ngocoa-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Vienna, please visit ngoageingvie.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Geneva, please visit ageingcommitteegeneva.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com.

UN Friends of Mental Health and Well-Being in Times of COVID-19

Dear colleagues and members of the Group of Friends of Mental Health and Well-Being,

Please consider yourselves invited to an event on Mental Health and Well-Being in Times of COVID-19 being held on March 30^th from 9:00 to 10:15 am EST. This event is co-organized by the World Health Organization, the Co-Chairs of the UN Group of Friends of Mental Health and Well-being, UNICEF, the International Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), and the UN System Workplace Mental Health and Well-being.

Presenting experience from professionals in the field and examples from member states, the event will share practical tools, best practices and resources, as well as self-care tools, to help navigate through this difficult time and to strengthen and support our mental health and psychosocial well-being.

We hope you will be able to join us for this important conversation. Please register here!

Best regards,

Pierre-David Jean
First Secretary (Political) | Premier Secrétaire (Politique)
pierre-david.jean@international.gc.ca

Tel. (212) 848-1136
Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations |
Mission Permanente du Canada auprès des Nations-Unies
Government of Canada | Gouvernement du Canada

______________________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Mental Health, please visit ngomentalhealth.org. For more information on the NGO Committee for Rare Diseases, please visit ngocommitteerarediseases.org.

Nuclear Weapons and International Law in the Contemporary Era

You are invited to: A Virtual Conference on Nuclear Weapons and International Law in the Contemporary Era

12 November 2020, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST

Seeking to address the huge gap in public awareness of nuclear weapons risk and applicable international law, the New York State Bar Association International Section is holding an all-day virtual conference that will bring together leading public officials, thought-leaders, policymakers, and experts for a comprehensive look at this often ignored subject.

According to Professor Charles J. Moxley, Jr., an LCNP director and a conference organizer, “International law may well hold the world’s best prospect for addressing and getting ahead of the existential risks posted by nuclear weapons.”

Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy (LCNP) is one of the co-sponsors of the conference and is well-represented in the program.

Register (no charge) and see the agenda here.

Among the speakers:

Professor Moxley, Kathleen Lawand of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and Professor David Koplow of Georgetown Law
Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, will deliver a keynote address, followed by a panel on the role of the United Nations featuring her, LCNP Senior Analyst John Burroughs, Allison Pytlak of Reaching Critical Will/WILPF, and LCNP Executive Director Ariana Smith (moderator)
Jerry Brown, former Governor of California and Executive Chairman, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, will engage in a dialogue on responding to the greatest threats to humanity with Jonathan Granoff, President of Global Security Institute and an LCNP director
A panel on advancing the rule of law and morality in relation to nuclear weapons includes Jacqueline Cabasso, Executive Director of Western States Legal Foundation, LCNP advisor Laurie Ashton, an attorney who served on the legal team for the Marshall Islands in its nuclear disarmament cases in the International Court of Justice, and Tom Collina, Director of Policy, Ploughshares Fund, and co-author with William Perry of The Button

Additional panels will address nuclear weapons risks, consequences and responses, and the treaty regime on nuclear weapons.

Conference co-sponsors in addition to LCNP are Fordham Law School, Center on National Security; Georgetown University, Berkley Center for Religion, Ethics and World Affairs; American Bar Association, International Law Section; New York City Bar Association, Committees on International Law, Military and Veteran Affairs, Nuclear Policy and the United Nations, and Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice; New York County Lawyers Association, Committee on Foreign & International Law; Global Security Institute.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org.

Red Cross