Newsletter of th e global network of Unit ed N ations Information Centres

UNIC @ Work February 2017 Issue No. 2

Page 1

In this issue

In Spotlight

New, innovative projects

Sights @ Work

A tour of where we work

In Focus

Get to know our priorities

Teams @ Work

Highlights of our activities

Creativity @ Work

New information materials

Social Media @ Work

Social media initiatives

Experiences @ Work

Staff views and experiences

New Faces @ Work

Our new colleagues

In Spotlight ¿Did you know? Exhibition Opening of "Giant Children representing

the UN-Convention on the Rights of the Child " Ten “Giant Children” were on display at the Vienna International Centre from 24 February to 3 March, representing the fundamental rights of the child in the Children's Rights Convention. The exhibition of the 270 centimetres tall sculptures was organised by their creators - the Youth Ambassadors from Caritas Vorarlberg, the Austrian Permanent Mission and UNIS Vienna. During the event, students that attended met with representatives of international organizations in Vienna and the City to receive teaching material on Human Rights.

As World Radio Day is now in its 6th year, UNESCO notes that it remains as the most dynamic, reactive and engaging medium

there is, adapting to 21st century changes and offering new ways to

interact and participate.

Sights @ Work

Brazil: Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas is a lagoon in a district of Rio de Janeiro, located near the famous Ipanema and Leblon Beaches.

Colombia: La Ermita Church, known for its Gothic style is a landmark site in Santiago de Cali, the most populous city in southwest Colombia.

Zambia: The Victoria Falls is a waterfall on

the Zambezi River at the border of Zambia

and Zimbabwe.

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February 2017 Page 2

In Focus

Collaborating with Female Artistes to mark International Women’s Day

Photo ©Yoshimoto Creative Agency

To mark International Women’s Day (8 March), UNIC Tokyo

worked with Yoshimoto Kogyo, Japan’s top entertainment

company, to invite local female artistes to raise awareness on

gender equality issues to the Japanese public. The campaign’s

main message was that gender discrimination imprisons the

mind and stifles potential for collective growth. At the same time,

the campaign also aims to shed light on the progress made so far

in terms of gender equality and to bring hope on the progress that

can be achieved, particularly as we try to achieve the Sustainable

Development Goals and strive towards true equality between

men and women.

Photo ©Yoshimoto Creative Agency

The artists shared messages demonstrating their experiences,

hopes and dreams. Comedienne Oni-yakko talked about the

challenges of giving up her childhood dream of becoming a

professional baseball player because of gender stereotypes.

Comedienne Yuriyan Retriever shared a similar belief that

because of these stereotypes, women tend to preoccupy

themselves with perceived “beauty standards” instead of taking

the time to love and inspire themselves and those around them.

Photo ©Yoshimoto Creative Agency

Campaign organizers hope that these comedians’ messages will

resonate with Japanese women – particularly with those who are

hesitant and unsure of their power to speak up and let their

personal voices be heard.

Photo ©Yoshimoto Creative Agency

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February 2017 Page 3

Teams @ Work

Highlights of our activities

Armenia

Holocaust Memorial Events

UNO Yerevan observed the Memorial with

the Jewish Community during a wreath

laying and candle-lighting ceremony at

the Holocaust Monument in downtown

Yerevan that also included a reading of

excerpts from the Secretary-General

message. Then, during an open lesson at

the American University in Armenia,

students watched the Secretary-General

video message, learned and discussed

about the poster series “State of

Deception: The Power of Nazi

Propaganda” and watched the

documentary “The Path to Nazi Genocide”.

The BBC-produced film “Woman in Gold”

was also screened at Cinema Moscow

alongside an exhibition of the “State of

Deception” poster series, 27 January.

International Law Moot Court

Competition

Thirty five finalists from the Philip C.

Jessup International Law Moot Court

Competition, which is closely related to

the work of the International Court of

Justice, received UN publications on

human rights and Sustainable

Development Goals from UNO Yerevan.

Five teams from the American University

in Armenia, the French University in

Armenia, the Russian-Armenian

University, Yerevan State University and

Artsakh State University are registered to

compete, 11 February.

Promoting the Work of the UN through

School Outreach

During an educational outreach

programme at the UN Armenia Office,

representatives of UNO Yerevan, UN

Development Programme, UN Children's

Fund and UN Industrial Development

Organization spoke to 40 second grade

children form “Ayb” Elementary School

about the work of the UN in Armenia and

around the world. The children also

watched a short animation film and

received UN outreach materials and small

souvenirs, 22 February.

Australia

Promoting the “TOGETHER” Campaign

through Canberra’s Multicultural

Festival

UNIC Canberra promoted the

“TOGETHER” Campaign at an information

stall it organized with the International

Organization for Migration and the Office

of the UN High Commissioner for

Refugees during Canberra's Multicultural

Festival. The event also provided UNIC

Canberra with an opportunity to speak

about the upcoming Ocean's Conference,

which is extremely topical for Australia,

28 February.

Austria

Ciné-ONU Vienna: Screening of the

Film “Warriors”

On the occasion of the International Day

of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital

Mutilation, the monthly film series Ciné-

ONU Vienna screened “Warriors” a

documentary by Barney Douglas about

the empowerment of young Maasai

Warriors who through cricket, are taking

a stand against the harmful cultural

practice of female genital mutilation.

Following the screening, UNIS Vienna

moderated a panel discussion featuring

representatives of the NGO Desert Flower

Foundation, UN Women and members of

academia, 6 February.

Ferienspiel – TOGETHER

As part of the “TOGETHER” initiative,

UNIS Vienna’s Visitors Service launched

its 2017 round of “Holiday Games” for

local school children during the 6-10

February winter school holidays. Children

played “connect the world” by tracing

their own families’ migration paths on a

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February 2017 Page 4

world map and learning to say “Together”

in the six UN languages and many others,

8 February.

Bangladesh

International Mother Language Day

Celebrated in Dhaka

In observance of International Mother

Language Day, UNIC Dhaka organized a

discussion seminar, a play and a cultural

programme with Daffodil International

University. Participants discussed the

importance of mother languages around

the globe, particularly in Bangladesh, and

listened to the message of the Secretary-

General, 21 February.

Radio Talk on Bangladeshi

Peacekeepers in UN Peace Operations

Bangladesh Betar, the state run radio in

Bangladesh, organized a radio talk show

highlighting the contribution of

Bangladeshi Peacekeepers in UN peace

operations around the globe. The

programme featured an interview of the

National Information Officer of UNIC

Dhaka on UN peace operations in general

but also Bangladesh's contribution, 1

February.

TV Interview of the UN Resident

Coordinator in Bangladesh on the

Rohingya “Crisis”

UNIC Dhaka worked with Bangladesh

Channel 24 to organize an interview of

Robert Watkins, the UN Resident

Coordinator in Bangladesh to discuss the

Rohingya “crisis” and the work of the UN

in the country, 9 February.

Belgium

Ciné-ONU Screening of the Oscar-

nominated Film Life, Animated

UN Regional Information Centre in

Brussel’s Ciné-ONU hosted a screening of

the Oscar-nominated film Life, Animated

for an audience of more than 300 people

at the Italian Cultural Institute in Brussels.

The film shows how the healing power of

animation helped a young boy with

autism achieve his dreams. Following the

film screening, Dima Yared (Office of the

UN High Commissioner for Human

Rights), Aurelie Baranger (Autism Europe,

an NGO) and Peter Vermuelen (the

Autisme Centraal NGO) discussed issues

related to autism spectrum disorders, 14

February.

Collaboration with United Nations

University on Comparative Regional

Integration Studies

The Benelux Desk at the UN Regional

Information Centre in Brussels worked

with the United Nations University (UNU)

to organize an event welcoming the

University of Ghent and the Free

University of Brussels as new partners of

the Institute on Comparative Regional

Integration Studies of the United Nations

University (UNU-CRIS). During the event,

Under-Secretary-General David Malone,

who is the Rector of UNU, highlighting the

work of UNU-CRIS in fostering a better

understanding of regional integration

processes worldwide and the role of

regionalization, 9 February.

Promoting International Organizations

in Times of Populism

The Director of UN Regional Information

Centre (UNRIC) Brussels gave a

presentation on the theme of “Promoting

international organizations in times of

populism – the role of UNRIC” during a

lunch lecture organized by the Belgian

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February 2017 Page 5

(Flemish) UN Association. The

presentation was followed by a debate

with representatives of, government,

academia and civil society, 9 February.

Bolivia

Homage to the Victims of the Holocaust

in La Paz

Together with the Jewish community, the

German Embassy and the Bolivian

Government, UNIC La Paz commemorated

the victims of Holocaust during a public

ceremony at the United Nations Plaza in

La Paz that included a prayer by Rabbi

Luis Brandeis and a performance by the

German School Choir. The event also

included an exhibition produced by local

schoolchildren that aimed to rescue the

memory of survivors, 10 February.

Brazil

Interview with Regional

Representative of the High

Commissioner in South America

Regional Representative of the High

Commissioner in South America, Amerigo

Incacalterra, came to Brazil for a one-

week visit. UNIC Rio de Janeiro organized

an interview for the Regional

Representative with a public news agency,

which was reproduced in 18 different

media. The Centre also recorded an

interview for posting on the multimedia

section of the ONU Brasil and the

Portuguese UN News web site, 22

February.

Cameroon

UNIC Yaoundé Joins the UN Country

Team in Helping Refugees

To mark the 2017 International Women’s

Day in Cameroon on the theme “Women

in the changing world of work: Planet 50-

50 by 2030”, Marie Therese Abena Ondoa,

Minister of Women’s Empowerment and

Family joined senior UN Women official

Adama Moussa to inaugurate the Women

Cohesion Spaces (WCSs) at the Minawao

refugee camp. UN Women sets up these

WCSs to provide humanitarian assistance

to women and girls in refugee camps.

UNIC Yaoundé provided media coverage

for the event, 22 February.

Colombia

UNIC Bogota Supports the World

Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates

During the 16th World Summit of Nobel

Peace Laureates, which was hosted in

Colombia, UNIC Bogota collaborated with

the Bogota Chamber of Commerce to raise

awareness on the work of the UN in

promoting Peace around the world. In

addition to providing extensive media

coverage of the Summit, the UNIC also

highlighted Colombia’s contribution to UN

Peacekeeping Operations. The event

provided an opportunity to raise

awareness on the Sustainable

Development Goals and tell the story of

the United Nations, whose organizations

and officials have been awarded 11 Nobel

Peace Prizes over the years, , 5 February.

Visit to the UN in Bogota by German

School

A group of students from the German

School in Quito, Ecuador visited UNIC

Bogota as part of a three-day tour of

international institutions based in Bogota.

The visit provided the UNIC Bogota team

with an opportunity to brief students on

the work of the Information Centre and,

overall, the UN system in the region, 21

February.

Republic of Congo

Second Model UN in Brazzaville

UNIC Brazzaville organized the second

Model UN in the Republic of Congo,

inviting 250 university students to

participate. The activity focused on

promoting Sustainable Development Goal

13: “Take urgent action to combat climate

change”. During the event, participants

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February 2017 Page 6

represented 15 countries and learned

about the work and processes of the UN

through the Model UN programme.

Officials from the Ministries of Foreign

Affairs and Youth, as well as

representatives from the Embassies of

Rwanda and Senegal attended the event,

10 February.

Communication Support to the Review

of UNDAF

UNIC Brazzaville provided

communication support to a meeting

between the UN Country Team and the

Government on the review of the

implementation of the UN Development

Assistance Framework in 2016. The

Centre produced press releases to drum

up media support and coordinated media

coverage, 23 February.

Holocaust Remembrance

UNIC Brazaville continued to maintain its

permanent exhibition to commemorate

Holocaust Remembrance Day. Scheduled

to be removed at the end of the month, the

exhibit continues to garner interests and

has been attracting visitors, 27 February.

Indonesia

UN4U Educational Outreach

Together with the UN Population Fund,

the UN Development Programme and the

UN Office on Drugs and Crime, UNIC

Jakarta organized an educational outreach

activity as part of the UN4U programme

for students from the University of

Indonesia, University of Tokyo and the

National Chengkung University. The

programme focused on the work of these

UN system offices in Indonesia and

promoted the Sustainable Development

Goals. In this context, UNIC Jakarta

highlighted the importance of how youth

can contribute to achieve the Goals

through education, 22 February.

UN Booth at the 2017 International

Conference on Data Revolution for

Policy Makers

UNIC Jakarta worked with UN Pulse Lab

Jakarta to set up and maintain a UN Booth

at the "2017 International Conference on

Data Revolution for Policy Makers,” which

took place in Jakarta. The UN Booth

became a portal of information for

participants wishing to know more about

the work of the UN in Indonesia, 22

February.

Support for Visit by the UN General

Assembly President

UNIC Jakarta provided support to Peter

Thomson, President of the UN General

Assembly during his visit to Indonesia to

attend the World Ocean Summit in Bali.

The Centre distributed press releases,

arranged interviews with national and

international media, and highlighted the

event through social media outlets, 22

February.

Iran

Photo Exhibition on the Historical

Partnership between Iran and the UN

held in Qom

The exhibition of historic photos and

documents illustrating more than 71

years of UN-Iran partnership was

inaugurated by the UNIC Tehran Director

and Director of the Mofid University

Library Dr. Alireza Maleki in Qom, 6

February 2017.

Seminar on “Role of ECOSOC in

fulfilling UN Charter’s goals”

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February 2017 Page 7

The Iranian Association of United Nations

Studies in partnership with UNIC Tehran

organized a one-day seminar on the “Role

of Economic and Social Council in fulfilling

UN Charter’s goals.” The event saw the

participation of several university

professors, students and researchers at

the House of Humanities Intellectuals, 15

February.

Victims of Terror and their Families

mark World Day of Social Justice

Since the UN Global Counter-Terrorism

Strategy has framed the current work of

the UN to support and show solidarity to

victims of terrorism and their families,

UNIC Tehran decided to mark, jointly with

the Association for Defending Victims of

Terrorism (ADVT), the World Day of

Social Justice. More than 25 civil society

activists from ADVT took part in the

round table discussion at the UN building,

16 February.

Malta

UN Regional Information Centre

Partnership with Malta to Achieve

Priorities

The Ambassador of Malta to Belgium, Mr.

Ray Azzopardi, met with the UN Regional

Information Centre (UNRIC) Brussels

team to discuss the priorities of Valletta’s

rotating Presidency of the EU. Migration,

single market, social inclusion,

neighborhood policy will be the tenets of

the Maltese action in the January to June

2017 semester. The partnership with

UNRIC will help ensure Valletta manages

to get the EU closer to its citizens, which is

the Maltese Presidency’s overarching

priority, 17 February.

Japan

Japan Metropolitan Model UN

The Director of UNIC Tokyo gave the

keynote speech to 300 high school

students at the Japan Metropolitan Model

UN (JMMUN) held at Senzoku Gakuen.

Drawing on her own experiences from

transitioning as a journalist to working for

the UN System at the Office of the UN High

Commissioner for Refugees, she inspired

young JMMUN delegates, many of whom

have similar objectives, to learn more

about the work of the UN, particularly the

Sustainable Development Goals, 11

February.

International Seminar Series on

Sustainability

Under a title of "Engaging yourself in UN

actions", UNIC Tokyo briefed 50 students

who attended a seminar at United Nations

University from Ibaraki prefecture on the

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

and career opportunities at the UN. The

event also provided students with an

opportunity to present their ideas on how

to contribute to the work of achieving the

SDGs by 2030, 1 February.

Kazakhstan

Presenting “New Possibilities of

Digital Literacy as a Matrix of Data

Journalism” for World Radio Day

To commemorate World Radio Day, about

150 journalism students and media

professionals took part in three days of

thematic discussions, workshops and

trainings during the 4th International

Winter School of Journalism and

Communication meeting on the theme of

“New possibilities of digital literacy as a

matrix of data journalism.” UNO Almaty

partnered with the UN Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization,

theNGO “Mediasphere”, Centre for

Humanitarian Studies of the al-Farabi

Kazakh National University, the Chief-

Editors Club and Turan University to

organize the event, which provided an

opportunity to disseminate UN

communication materials on the

Sustainable Development Goals, and UN

Radio stories, 11 February.

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the

Republic of Kazakhstan Admission to

Membership in the UN

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February 2017 Page 8

Together with the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and

the al-Farabi Kazakh National University,

UNO Almaty organized an event to

celebrate Kazakhstan’s UN membership.

During the celebration, about 400

participants, representatives of the

diplomatic community and civil society

organizationss, students, and media

partners watched a video chronicling

Kazakhstan’s history at the UN. The event

also featured an exhibition of UN photos

and a launch of a book by the first

Permanent Representative of the Republic

of Kazakhstan to the UN, Ambassador

Akmaral Arystanbekova titled "Pages of

History - Towards the 25th anniversary of

the admission of Kazakhstan to the United

Nations”. Students also greeted

participants in Kazakh and the six UN

official languages, 16 February.

International Model United Nations,

Dedicated to 25th anniversary of the

Accession of Kazakhstan and Central

Asian Countries to the United Nations

Together with the U.S. Consulate General

in Almaty, the New Silk Way Model United

Nations Organizing Committee, the al-

Farabi Kazakh National University, KIMEP

University, Ablai Khan University of

World Languages, Turan University,

International Academy of Business, and

partners from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,

Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and other

countries, UNO Almaty organized a Model

UN event to commemorate the 25th

anniversary of the membership of

Kazakhstan and Central Asian countries

to the UN. About 300 participants of the

Model UN discussed the work of various

UN bodies as well as the UN Secretary

General’s address at Cairo University, 25

February.

Kenya

Cadet Diplomats from Kenya Foreign

Service Briefed on the Work of UN

UNIC Nairobi together with the

Permanent Mission of Kenya to the United

Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON)

organized a one day briefing to 45 Foreign

Service cadets where UNON Director-

General, Sahle Work-Zewde and UN

Resident Coordinator, Siddharth

Chatterjee briefed participants on the role

of the UN in Kenya. The Cadets were also

briefed by senior officials of the UN

Environment Programme and UN special

envoys for Somalia and the Great Lakes

Region. This was the first such briefing on

the UNON compound, 20 February.

Egypt President Visits the UN Office in

Nairobi

UNIC provided communication and media

support during the state visit of Egyptian

President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi to Kenya.

The UNON Director-General introduced

President Sissi to UN senior officials and

invited him to sign thevisitors’ book.

President was then briefed on the

architectural design of the UNON complex

and planted a tree as a sign of

remembrance. UNIC Nairobi covered the

event for the local audience, 18 February.

Lebanon

Lebanese Radio Stations mark World

Radio Day 2017 in Partnership with

the UN

UNIC Beirut, in coordination with the UN

Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization, celebrated World Radio Day

this year by partnering with four radio

stations in Lebanon: The state-run Radio

Liban, Al-Bashaer, Delta and Voice of

Lebanon Achrafieh. Radio Liban and Al-

Bashaer radio stations dressed up the

occasion throughout their programs.

Radio Delta dedicated their morning show

to the Day and Voice of Lebanon

interacted with youth during their

afternoon "InstaTime" show. All radio

stations hosted UN guests to speak about

the celebration and aired audio segments

from UN Radio, UNIC Beirut and other UN

agencies in Lebanon, 13 February.

Madagascar

Conference on UN4U Educational

Outreach and Sustainable

Development Goals for University

Students

UNIC Antananarivo organized a

conference on the UN at private university

Estiim, within the framework of the UN4U

educational outreach programme and the

Sustainable Development Goals. The

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February 2017 Page 9

Conference helped to promote the Goals

to the law and diplomacy students that

participated. Following the presentation,

students shared their aspiration to pursue

UN careers, 7 February.

Discussion Forum with Institute of

Political Studies

UNIC Antananarivo participated in the

discussion forum organized by the

Institute of Political Studies, briefing

students about internship and work

opportunities within the UN System. A UN

Human Rights advisor on the discussion

panel, also presented the work of the

Organization in terms of human rights and

development, 8 February.

Leadership Training for University

Students

UNIC Antananarivo organized a

leadership training session for university

students that are student body association

and club presidents, briefing participants

on leadership and communication issues,

14 February.

Morocco

UN Morocco Launches Regular Press

Briefings

UNIC Rabat started an initiative to hold

regular monthly press briefings by the UN

system as part of the 2017 UN Morocco

communication strategy. The objective of

these regular press briefings is to bring

the UN closer to the public and ensure a

better visibility and understanding of its

activities. The first such regular press

briefing provided an opportunity to brief

the press corps about the priorities of the

Secretary General and key UN issues such

as women empowerment, migrants and

refugees and education. Morocco’s

Resident Coordinator and the

representatives of UN Women Maghreb,

the Office of the UN High Commissioner

for Refugees and the UN Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization took

part in this inaugural briefing, 8 February.

Namibia

Holocaust Commemoration with Senior

High School Students

UNIC Windhoek’s 2017 Holocaust

Commemoration with senior high school

student’s event was educational,

informative and allowed audience

participation. The event included an open

exhibition, a presentation followed by an

interactive discussion, and an activity to

remember the victims and symbolize the

hope for the future. Students received

promotional materials including

notebooks, pens and branded water

bottles, 7 February.

Using Photography to Communicate

the Work of the UN

The UNIC Windhoek team organized a

hands-on workshop in collaboration with

Francis Photo Studios, a local Namibian

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February 2017 Page 10

photography company. In addition to

learning about photo composition and

storytelling through photographs,

participants learned to use different

features of modern cameras through

multiple hands-on examples, 2 February.

Nepal

Communication Training to UN

Traineeship Youths

UNIC Kathmandu started a monthly

orientation programme to develop

communication skills for socially

marginalized youths training in various

UN agencies to prepare them gain

additional skills for future employment

opportunities. In collaboration with UN

system office on the UN Communications

Group in Nepal, the Centre organized one

hour long communication workshops

contributing to the UN in Nepal’s joint

traineeship programme, 6-4 February.

Pakistan

Documentary and Debate on Honour

Killings at the Millennium University

College

In partnership with the Millennium

University College, UNIC Islamabad

screened Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s Oscar-

winning documentary A Girl in the River:

The Price of Forgiveness. The film

screening event was part of UNIC’s efforts

to create a debate on human rights

through cinematography and was

followed by a panel discussion on honour

killings with Sangeeta Thapa, Deputy

Country Representative of UN Women,

Anne Marchal, Deputy Head of Delegation

of the European Union to Pakistan, Tahira

Abdullah, human rights activist and the

Director of UNIC Islamabad. Over 120

students participated in the screening and

debate, 12 February.

World Radio Day Training Session for

Radio Pakistan Producers

In conjunction with World Radio Day

2017, UNIC and the Training Academy of

the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation

(PBC) organized a training session for 35

radio producers. Participants learned

about the work and the structure of the

UN in general, the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) and the UN

System in Pakistan. Colleagues from the

UN Communications Group in Pakistan

gave a presentation following an

introduction of the SDGs by the UNIC

Director, 13 February.

World Radio Day: Radio and

Sustainable Development Goals

To mark World Radio Day 2017, UNIC

Islamabad and the Pakistan Broadcasting

Corporation organized a two-hour live

broadcast event on the theme of “Radio

and Sustainable Development Goals” at

the PBC headquarters. The radio

programme highlighted the solid

partnership between Radio Pakistan and

UNIC Islamabad, which resulted in more

than 100 feature programs co-produced

in the past 3 years. Guest speakers

included the Minister of State for

Information and Broadcasting, Maryam

Aurangzeb, the Director General of Radio

Pakistan, the UN Resident Coordinator,

the Ambassadors of the Netherlands and

of the European Union, the Director of

UNIC Islamabad and representatives from

the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization, the UN Development

Programme and the UN Children's Fund,

14 February.

Building Bridges with the International

Media

Amélie Hernstein head of Agence France-

Presse for Pakistan and Afghanistan

joined the meeting of the UN

Communications Group in Pakistan and

briefed communications focal points from

the UN System on best practices and team

work when covering stories about the role

of the UN in Pakistan. The discussion also

covered topics such as how the UN System

can help journalists by providing access to

unique stories on Development issues, 17

February.

Poland

Meetings with Education Coordinators

and Global Education Leaders

UNIC Warsaw briefed about 90

participants at two seminars dedicated to

global education, organized by the Centre

of Education for Development on the

importance of Sustainable Development

Goals for youth, 24 February.

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February 2017 Page 11

Conference Devoted to Diplomacy at

University in Bialystok

UNIC addressed participants during a

Conference on diplomacy at a University

in Bialystok on the role of youth in

achieving sustainable development and

maintaining peace. The event also

provided the Centre with an opportunity

to meet with Model UN organizers, 22

February.

Senegal

Traveling Exhibition on the Power of

the Nazi Propaganda

As part of the celebration of the

International Day of Commemoration in

Memory of the victims of the Holocaust,

(27 January), UNIC Dakar launched a

traveling exhibition to be shown in 13

secondary schools. This exhibition will

circulate facross multiple schools for four

months, aiming to raise awareness on the

devastating effects of the Holocaust and

inspire youth to learn to respect Human

Rights, 1 February.

Outreach Education “Mercredis du

CINU”

Since its inception in December 2016 the

"Mercredis du CINU" educational outreach

programme has reached close to 700 local

students. Now in its eighth edition, the

latest briefing programme welcomed

students from the School of Fatick, an

educational institution located 131km

from Dakar. Students provided positive

feedback on the usefuleness of the

programme, which were posted on the

UNIC Facebook page, 22 February.

South Africa

UNIC Pretoria celebrates International

Mother Language Day

UNIC Pretoria celebrated International

Mother Language Day with over 200

primary and secondary school students at

a community hall in Kempton Park,

Johannesburg. Students watched video

presentations about the importance of

mother languages, which has particular

local significance since South Africa boasts

11 official languages. Participants also

discussed the role that language played

during the country’s struggle for equality,

including Apartheid and the Soweto

uprisings of 1976. The event, held in

partnership with the Gauteng Department

of Basic Education and the National

Library of South Africa, brought together

students from Johannesburg and Pretoria

based schools, 24 February.

Sudan

Knowledge Exchange and

Coordination Workshop on Public-

Private Partnership in Agriculture

UNIC Khartoum provided communication

support to the three-day Knowledge

Exchange and Coordination Workshop on

public-private partnership in agriculture

sector organized by the United Nations

Office for South-South cooperation in

Khartoum in collaboration with the

Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, the

International Fund for Agricultural

Development and the Islamic

Development Bank. The workshop

brought together representatives of

ministries of agriculture, technical

cooperation agencies and centers of

excellence from Algeria, Hungary,

Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia and

Turkey, as well as UN agencies and

international organizations, 20 February.

Visit by UN Independent Expert on the

Situation of Human Rights in the Sudan

UNIC Khartoum provided communication

support to the United Nations

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 12

Independent Expert on the situation of

human rights in the Sudan during his

third visit to Sudan from 10 to 22

February. UNIC, in collaboration with the

Office of the UN Resident Coordinator,

also organized a press conference at the

end of the senior official’s visit, 22

February.

Switzerland

Ciné-ONU Geneva Screening “Vous

n’aurez pas ma haine”

Ciné-ONU Geneva screened Vous n’aurez

pas ma haine (You will not have my

hatred) to an audience of more than 650.

This moving documentary tells the story

of people who have lost their loved one in

terrorist attacks, such as Antoine Leiris,

whose letter to terrorists who killed his

wife during such an attack in Paris, moved

the world. The debates which followed the

screenings, including the participation of

Antoine Leiris, raised strong emotions,

keen interest and hope, 22 February.

UN Photo / Violaine Martin

Coverage of Historic Intra-Syrian Talks

UNIS Geneva provided live TV and web

coverage of the historic face-to-face

meeting between representatives of the

government of the Syrian Arab Republic

and of the Syrian opposition, gathered

symbolically under the United Nations

seal by UN Special Envoy Staffan de

Mistura at the Assembly Hall in Geneva.

More than 250 media representatives

accredited for the intra-Syrian talks, as

well as the Geneva press corps, covered

the event, 23 February.

Tanzania

Sustainable Development Goals

Educational Outreach at Social Work

Institute

UNIC Dar es Salaam briefed about 200

students at the institute of social work,

Kijitonyama Campus in Dar es Salaam on

the Sustainable Development Goals. The

briefing went hand in hand with an

educational outreach event coordinated

by a civil society organization known as

Trumark in Tanzania which aims to

provide future social workers with a

better understanding of their roles in

implementing the Goals, 4 February.

World Radio Day

Together with the UN Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization, the

Government and Community Radio

Stations in Tanzania, UNIC Dar es Salaam

organized an event to commemorate

World Radio Day at the Open University of

Tanzania. The Minister of Information,

Culture Arts and Sports, Nape Nnauye,

invited community media to diversify

programme content and join forces with

the government in promoting key UN

priorities. The celebration also included a

presentation of the Sustainable

Development Goals and the role of media

and radio in promoting the Goals, UNIC

Dar es Salaam provided media support

during the event, securing an exclusive

interview for the Head of the UN

Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization on Capital TV and sharing

content with UN multimedia, 13 February.

Ministerial Sustainable Development

Goals Regional Forum for Eastern

Africa

UNIC organized a press conference and

coordinated media coverage for the

Ministerial Forum on the implementation

of the 2030 Sustainable Development

Agenda in the Eastern Africa Region

which was organized by the UN

Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization Regional office in

partnership with several UN agencies.

High Level Government Representatives

from 13 countries participated in the

event which aimed to develop a common,

robust and functional Regional

Sustainable Development Goal (Goal 4:

Quality Education) Roadmap for Eastern

Africa that can be locally translated into

actions. During this event, UNIC provided

multimedia content in Kiswahili and

English to UN News, 15 February.

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 13

Turkey

Visit to UNIC by Students from TOBB

University Sustainable Development

Solutions Network

Together with the UN Development

Programme and the Office of the UN High

Commissioner for Refugees, UNIC Ankara

organized a presentation on the

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at

the UN House. In addition to engaging

with a group of 46 students from TOBB

University Sustainable Development

Solutions Network, the initiative also

aimed to explore possible areas for joint

advocacy. Students received SDG flash

disks produced by UNIC Ankara to raise

awareness on the Goals at the local level, 9

February.

Zimbabwe

UNIC Commemorates World Radio Day

UNIC Harare joined the UN Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization and

various national radio stations at

Takashinga Stadium in the high-density

suburb of Highfields, Harare for a day-

long gala to celebrate World Radio Day.

The event, which was attended by over

5,000 people, included a parade;

presentations from radio stations that

included Capitalk, National FM and ZiFM;

and the displaying of Sustainable

Development Goals-branded promotional

materials, 13 February.

Creativity @ Work

New information materials

Armenia

UNO Yerevan produced public

information and promotional materials

that were prepared to be distributed

during the Holocaust Memorial day

events: folders, bookmarks, posters

(English and Russian), posters as

handouts for students, badges and

advertising poster for a film screening.

On the occasion of the dual 25th

Anniversaries of Armenia’s membership

to the UN and the establishment of the UN

in Armenia Office, UNO Yerevan initiated a

historical photos exhibition in the UN

House Lobby in Yerevan. Newspaper

clippings from the early 90s were selected

to provide a visual historical context to

these anniversaries. Both photos and

clippings are being scheduled for social

media posting throughout the year,

hashtag – #UNArmenia25.

Austria

A new brochure on the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) for school

classes and adult education in German

was developed by a group of Austrian

NGOs in cooperation with UNIS Vienna. It

will be used at teacher’s workshops and

will be handed out to teachers coming

with their students to take the guided tour

on the Sustainable Development at the

Vienna International Centre. The brochure

is available on the Vienna website under

teaching resources and the SDG topics

page.

UNIS Vienna, in cooperation with the

French Translation Section of the

Conference Management Service at the

UN Office in Vienna, launched the French-

language version of the web portal, a

platform for showcasing the UN family’s

work and an entry point to all the

different Vienna-based UN organizations.

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 14

Belgium

The UN Regional Information Centre in

Brussels created the “Go Goals”

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

board game to educate children and help

them understand the SDGs and the 17

goals in a fun and playful way. It is

targeted as an educational activity that

school teachers and parents can use with

children. The game is available online and

is designed as an inclusive/do-it-yourself

kit for everyone, including audiences in

developing countries, with access to a

printer. The game will be rolled out

through 2017 and will be translated to

other languages including French, German

and Dutch.

The Benelux Desk of UN Regional

Information Centre in Brussels

collaborated with the publisher of Belgian

school books to develop a poster linking

the Sustainable Development Goals to

global facts on well-being, development,

urbanization, etc. The poster will be

introduced in the official 2017 school

atlas, will be printed in A1 format, and

sent to all Belgian secondary schools as a

permanent classroom poster. The poster

was presented on 14 February.

Brazil

UNIC Rio de Janeiro produced a special

video on a Brazilian Rugby Lesbian, Gay,

Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) athlete,

who ”came out” during the 2016 Olympic

Games in Rio de Janeiro. The initiative is

the first of a series of similar videos and

prepared with the local team of the “Free

& Equal” campaign. The video was also

reproduced as a feature on a national

newspaper (article and video).

UNIC Rio de Janeiro published an online

article as a special feature on the ONU

Brazil web site, providing guidance on the

best approach to assist Syrian Refugees,

particularly children.

Colombia

On 1 February, UNIC Bogota produced the Voces Unidas Radio Programme, a report

about “Hands to Peace” (Manos a la Paz)

initiated by the High Council for Post

conflict in Colombia and the United

Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

was published.

On 13 February, the audio of the

interview with Miguel Córdoba news

director of the community station ́ Digital

Estéreo´, within the framework of the

World Radio Day became available.

Similarly, on the UN Radio web site, audio

segments of an interview of the Director

General of UN Educational, Scientific and

Cultural Organization, Irina Bokova, as

well as other interviews of various

community stations, on the occasion of

World Radio Day were produced.

Also on World Radio Day, a report “A

conflict narrated through radio” produced

by UNIC Bogota on the Colombian

situation from the perspective of a

journalist victim of the armed conflict was

published.

On 25 February, the “Voces Unidas”

Programme broadcasted on 19 February

on “Radio Nacional de Colombia” was

uploaded on the Soundcloud platform of

Radio ONU. The programme focused on

the UN Mission in Colombia and the work

being carried out in the country.

In addition to the material of World Radio

Day, a radio and written report was

published on the UN Radio web site about

the strengthening of the project “Get

down to work for peace” (Manos a la Obra

para la paz) of the High Presidential

Adviser for Postconflict, UNDP and the

Siemens Foundation.

A report on the meeting coordinated by

UN Women in partnership with UNDP,

Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights, and with

the help of the European Union on the

same initiative has also been produced.

Eight experts in transitional justice

processes participated in the meeting, and

shared their experiences through various

panels, conversations and meetings.

A two minute video overview of the 16th

World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates is

available. The different sequences show

the general framework of the event, such

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 15

as the graffiti wall, people tagging it,

people entering the panels or the United

Nations stand. The video also includes key

statements made by the various speakers.

Greece

UN Regional Information Centre

Brussels/Greece has created a

“TOGETHER” webpage in Greek with

information about the initiative, links,

photos and videos and the TOGETHER

logo in Greek.

Japan

UNIC Tokyo has developed a webpage for

the TOGETHER campaign with the aim of

engaging with the Japanese public. The

webpage, which is in Japanese, contains

updates about the campaign, as well as

links to supporting UN agencies and

programmes, NGOs, the Ministry of Justice

and others.

A leaflet for the TOGETHER campaign

was also created by UNIC interns for

public distribution. The leaflet, which is

available on UNIC Tokyo’s TOGETHER

campaign website, contains information

on how the public can get involved.

An op-ed by Secretary-General Antonio

Guterres’ was published in The Japan

News by The Yomiuri Shimbun on 12

February, with the Japanese translation

appearing in The Yomiuri Shimbun on

14 February.

In view of the 60th anniversary of

Japan’s accession to the UN in 2016, two

new blog posts featuring a series of

interviews with various personalities

were published each on the UNIC blog

and on Huffington Post Japan:

Kiyama Keiko of Japan Emergency NGO

(UNIC Blog and Huff Post Japan, Feb 17

and Feb 20)

Hasegawa Sukehiro, former UN senior

official(UNIC Blog and Huff Post Japan, 9

Feb and 10 Feb)

UNIC Tokyo has translated the following

UN News Centre stories:

UN released two million tonnes of CO2

equivalent in 2015 latest ‘Greening the

Blue’ report shows

UN launches new strategy to minimize

environmental footprint of its peace

operations

UNIC Tokyo provided subtitles for the

Together Campaign video.

In view of the International Day of

Commemoration in Memory of the

Victims of the Holocaust, UNIC Tokyo

translated a UN News Centre article

recounting the efforts of Chihune

Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat who

saved thousands of lives during the

Holocaust. Five subtitle translations of

video interviews were also made

available.

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 16

Namibia

In light of Holocaust Commemoration,

UNIC Windhoek produced branded

notebooks and pens, for attendees to

make notes and jot down their answers

for feedback and presentation session.

UNIC facilitated a creative “Fingerprints of

Hope” session, where a canvas was

created and handed to the participating

school.

Switzerland

To celebrate World Radio Day on 13

February, UN Geneva took its Facebook

audience on a live virtual tour of the

historic UN Radio studios. The tour

featured a closer look at the work of

sound engineers and radio producers. We

also showed live radio interviews

conducted by UN Radio’s Daniel Johnson

with Geneva-based representatives of

World Health Organization and UN Mine

Action Service. The segment reached

82,000 people, receiving about 5,000

views and nearly 400 engagements.

Zambia

In order to ensure that no one is left

behind in the Sustainable Development

Goals, UNIC Lusaka has translated the

Global Goals into Zambia’s seven official

local languages (Nyanja, Bemba, Lozi,

Tonga, Lunda, Luvale and Kaonde).

Validation of the translations by the

Government of the Republic of Zambia is

underway with the materials expected to

be presented to Cabinet for endorsement

soon after. The Government has since

proposed a launch of the materials so that

stakeholders and the public are aware of

their existence. The materials will be used

for outreach by UNIC, UN agencies,

Government and other stakeholders

across the country.

Pakistan

UNIC Islamabad and the High Commission

of Canada organised workshops for school

children, between the ages of 11 and 14,

on human rights. Students learned about

human rights through interactive sessions

and games. UNIC then produced a short

video to share with the audiences to

provide a summary of the event. Credit is

attributed to the teachers, the trainers, the

High Commission of Canada, to the

students and to the UNIC Islamabad

intern who made the video.

Social Media @ Work

Social Media Initiatives Brazil

On the International Day of Social Justice,

UNIC Rio de Janeiro produced a special

feature – text and a 10 minute long video -

on homeless people, discussing their main

problems and possible solutions. The

material was published on all the digital

platforms. On Facebook, it reached over

39,000 people, with over 200 shares.

Inspired by UNIC Mexico, which made the

material in Spanish, UNIC Rio de Janeiro

translated three quotes of the Secretary-

General talking about the United States

measures on migration and produced

cards to use on social media. On Facebook,

they had 17,575 views and 138

engagements; on Twitter 17,267 views

and 186 engagements and 458 likes on

Instagram.

Iran

Effective February 2017, UNIC Tehran

began to increase public awareness on

Sustainable Development Goals and

promote #SmallSmurfsBigGoals campaign

through its social media by using digital

cards and video with Persian translation

according to release dates. The Centre

translated and subtitled the World

Largest Lesson's video and posted it on its

Aparat Channel and promoted the video

through other social media (Telegram,

Instagram, Telegram)

Kazakhstan

UNO Almaty organized a social media

Contest dedicated to the “World Day of

Social Justice” observed on 20 February.

The winning students from Afghanistan

and Kazakhstan have been awarded at the

special ceremony held during a Model

United Nations event.

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 17

Tunisia

UNIC Tunis organized the observance of

the International Day of Women and Girls

in Science through a Facebook Live

session with three Tunisian women

working in the field of science promotion

and scientific research. The session, which

was held on 16 February in French, was

announced beforehand to the public. The

United Nations Office in Geneva and

several francophone UNICs shared the

announcement and the video, helping to

boost engagement.

Experiences @ Work

Staff views and experiences

By Junichi Imai, UN Volunteer, UNIC Lusaka In October 2016, I arrived in Zambia to join UNIC Lusaka as a United Nations Volunteer (UNV) having been selected for a competitive five month programme through Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan where I am studying Sociology as a third year student. I will never forget working with UNIC Lusaka. It was a priceless experience for

me. As a Communications Assistant, I did my best to spread attractive information and help to visually promote UN activities in Zambia using my information/communications technology and photography skills. In the process, there were some achievements like my picture from a Sustainable Development Goal cycling activity being used by the UN official twitter account which has an amazing 8.5 million followers. I was also happy that some UN agencies in Zambia, whom I supported through the UN Communications Group used my pictures. Thanks to the UNIC colleagues, I was able to contribute to holding successful outreach activities in schools. UNIC Lusaka and the local UNV office supported me and were like my family. I say to the team: “Natotela Sana”, which translates to “Thank you very much” in the Bemba language that I enjoyed speaking with the few words I managed to grasp and use with every local that I met. I was happy to enjoy Zambia’s staple food, nshima and accompanying fish, meat, local vegetables and other delicacies. I travelled for close to 500 kilometers to Livingstone to see the Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Wonders of the World and Zambia’s most popular tourist attraction. Visiting the Victoria Falls was amazing. I have seen many world heritage sites in but the falls is the best one for me. Zambians say that without visiting the falls, you have not been to Zambia. I am now back in Japan.

New Faces @ Work

Our new colleagues

Nigeria

Bolanle Olumekor, Library/Knowledge Management Assistant, UNIC Lagos

Bolanle Olumekor, or Bola for short,

recently joined the UNIC Lagos team as a

Reference Assistant on 1 March.

She is a professional librarian that worked

in the academic and legal services sector

for more than 16 years before joining the

United Nations. Among Bola’s most

memorable achievements were her role to

lead the team that prepared the second

Comprehensive index of all Case Reports

in Nigeria between 1991 and 2010 as well

as her setting up the Lagos Court of

Arbitration Library.

Bola has a Master’s Degree in Library and

Information Science and lives with her

husband and three daughters. In her spare

time, she enjoys travelling.

This is a product of the Information Centres Service, Department of Public Information. For more activities of the global network of UN information centres, visit the global UNIC Activity Blog.

UNIC @ Work

February 2017 Page 18

Where our Information Centres are Located: https://unic.un.org/factsheet/Default.aspx