Fourteenth U Thant Distinguished Lecture
Martti Ahtisaari on Negotiating Peace
Monday, May 26, 15:30–17:20
Former President of Finland Martti Ahtisaari has made vital contributions to international peace and security. His lecture on “Negotiating Peace in Africa, Asia and Europe” will highlight our shared responsibility to help and protect our fellow human beings.
57 Students, 37 Countries
UNU Welcomes Students to 2008 International Courses
2008.05.12 • Fifty-seven students from thirty-seven countries attended the opening ceremony of the 2008 UNU International Courses today. The ceremony marked the beginning of six weeks of intensive lectures and study in four courses: Governance of Emerging Global Issues; Environmental Change: Managing Risks; Globalization and the Multilateral System; International Trade and Development.
The UNU International Courses are organized annually for a select group of postgraduate students and professionals in various occupations in Japan and abroad who wish to pursue careers in international fields in public-service or private organizations, including the United Nations, multinational corporations and non-governmental organizations, as well as national foreign service organizations.
UNU takes great pleasure in welcoming the students — and an internationally-renowned roster of lecturers who will be guiding them — to Tokyo and wishes them the very best for what will be a gruelling but (we are sure!) rewarding six weeks of study.
Sweden-Japan Symposium on Sustainable Urban Development
UNU Rector Meets with Swedish Prime Minister
UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder (left) meets with Prime Minister Frederik Reinfeldt. Photos: Jeremy Hedley/UNU.
2008.04.17 • UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder met with Swedish Prime Minister Frederik Reinfeldt ahead of their delivering opening remarks at the joint Japan/Sweden Symposium on Sustainable Urban Development held at UNU.
From left: Konrad Osterwalder, Andreas Carlgren, Frederik Reinfeldt, Ichiro Kamoshita
Ichiro Kamoshita, Minister of the Environment of Japan, and Andreas Carlgren, Sweden's Minister for the Environment, joined the meeting. The two ministers delivered keynote speeches at the symposium, which examined issues of sustainability with regard to the growth of cities and transportation systems.
Others in attendance included Toshiro Kojima (Japan's Vice Minister for Global Environmental Affairs), Akira Nakajima (Ambassador to Sweden), Stefan Noreén (Ambassador to Japan), and Erik Hammarskjöld (Ambassador for the Environment). The prime minister was accompanied by his wife, Filippa Reinfeldt, Healthcare Commissioner for the County of Stockholm.
Saving the Ayuquila River
UNU is Finalist in Stockholm Challenge Award
2008.03.26 • The Saving the Ayuquila River video documentary and e-case study developed by the UNU Media Studio has been selected as a finalist in the Stockholm Challenge Award 2008. The awards cover information and communication technology projects with a development focus in six categories: public administration; culture; education; economic development; health; and environment. The UNU's work was entered in the environment category.
All projects are reviewed by an international jury of experts in information and communication technology, and only about 20 percent of the entries that make it to the jury round are selected as finalists. The best projects will win the prestigious Stockholm Challenge trophies and receive a 5,000 Euro stipend. Winners will be announced during a ceremony at Stockholm City Hall on May 22, 2008.
Peacebuilding from Asia to the World
The First Tokyo Peacebuilders Symposium & UNU Open Campus
Photo courtesy Harshad Sharma.
Minister Koumura's Keynote Speech
Building Peacebuilders for the Future (2008.03.24)
UNU Video Portal
On March 24 & 25, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and United Nations University will co-organize the first Tokyo Peacebuilders Symposium at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo. The focus will be on contributions to peacebuilding from an Asian perspective and on strengthening regional and global networks in this field.
On Monday, the focus of the symposium will be on “Peacebuilding Experience in Asia — Listening to Voices on the Ground” (Cambodia and Timor-Leste) and “Asian Contributions to Peacebuilding — Sharing Best Practices in the Field”. On Tuesday morning, the symposium will feature keynote speeches on “Promoting Asian Contribution to Global Peacebuilding” by Masahiko Koumura, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan; Surin Pitsuwan, Secretary-General, ASEAN Secretariat; and Kenzo Oshima, Senior Vice-President, Japan International Cooperation Agency. These keynote speeches will be followed by a session on “Peacebuilding from Asia to the World — Next Steps”.
On Tuesday afternoon from 2:00 p.m. UNU will host a UNU Open Campus public outreach event in conjunction with the symposium. Activities include three public mini-symposiums: “The United Nations and Peacebuilding”; “Peacebuilding in South Sudan”; and “Peacebuilding With Your Words and Deeds in 90 Seconds” (simultaneous English–Japanese translation will be provided). There will also be career seminars, and other activities targeted at a young audience. For more information about these outreach events, see the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
More information:
New from UNU Press
Trafficking in Humans
Edited by Sally Cameron and Edward Newman
This volume aims to deepen understanding of the social, economic and political contexts of human trafficking: the recruitment and transportation of human beings through deception and coercion for the purposes of exploitation.
Download the UNU Press 2007-2008 catalogue
(1.8 MB PDF)
Global Seminar Series
UNU Global Seminars are held annually in Japan and abroad in an effort to increase awareness and enhance understanding of contemporary global issues and the role of the United Nations. This aim is achieved through close interaction of students and young professionals with scholars and experts working in the UNU's global networks.
International Courses
The UNU International Courses (UNU/IC) are organized annually for a select group of postgraduate students and professionals in various occupations in Japan and abroad who wish to pursue careers in international fields in public-service or private organizations
U Thant Lectures
The U Thant Distinguished Lecture Series is a forum through which eminent thinkers and world leaders speak on the role of the United Nations in addressing the challenges facing the world's peoples and nations in the twenty-first century.
UNU Library
The UNU Library plays a vital role in support of dissemination of the knowledge gained in UNU activities and assists learning and research through information resources.
UNU Video Portal
Tune in to UNU events as they happen, and on-demand. Recent additions to the UNU Video Portal:
- 7th Awarding Ceremony of International Certificate of Kids' ISO 14000 Programme
- Inaugural Meeting of UNU Capacity Development Alumni Association
- Zero Emissions Symposium 2007
Financial Assistance
The UNU Financial Assistance Programme is implemented by UNU with the generous assistance of the Government of Japan and JBIC which provides reimbursable funds to self-financed students from developing countries studying at junior colleges and universities in Japan.
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Page last modified 2008.05.16.
Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
Achieve Universal Primary Education
Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
Reduce Child Mortality
Improve Maternal Health
Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other Diseases
Ensure Environmental Sustainability
Develop a Global Partnership for Development