New York – Part 1
This edition of ‘Our Voice at the UN’ is divided into two parts. In part one Bette Levy, SI’s Lead United Nations (UN) Representative in New York, introduces the principal organs of the UN and looks at how the pandemic has impacted SI’s activities.
“The United Nations Headquarters (UNHQ) in New York, holds the seats of the principal organs of the UN, with the exception of the International Court of Justice located at the Hague, Netherlands. UNHQ is home to the Secretary-General (Secretariat), the Security Council, the General Assembly, the President and six working committees: the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), UN Women, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the UN Development Programme (UNDP). Home to all 195 Member States and Observers, the recent High-Level Political Forum, takes place here, together with annual events including the Commission on Social Development, the Commission on the Status of Women, the Commission on Population and Development, the Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing, the forum for the Rights of Persons with disabilities, the ECOSOC Youth Forum, and the Indigenous Peoples Forum. Major issues/conflicts, resolutions, and the work at the other UN Centres, eventually make their way to the Member States in New York (NY) for ratification by the General Assembly, or to be discussed at the Security Council.
The COVID-19 Pandemic has not stopped the required work but simply switched it to a virtual format. Due to the nature of much of the work that the NY team does, this virtual format actually means SI’s Representatives are spending more time engaging in the different processes, and since meetings are not being held physically, times are adjusted to meet multiple time zones in one meeting. The NY team frequently starts meetings at around 6:00 am and might have the last meeting of the day at 11:00 pm.
UNHQ remains closed to civil society, and most meetings are virtual – with the exception of a few hybrid sessions where the official meeting requires that the opening and closing sessions are in person to allow member states to cast votes, and even then, only one person per mission has been allowed to attend.
The New York team is comprised of six representatives, Bette Levy (Lead UN Representative), Frances Zainoeddin, Barbara Rochman, Vanesa Treers, Maria Fornella, and Jackie Shapiro.
Each team member is assigned a minimum of two standing assignments and/or thematic issues. All are encouraged to take on leadership roles within the committees, volunteer for task groups, or extra assignments within their assignments, such as chairing a major UN event or being selected to represent civil society at official UN meetings.
The team is assigned to a myriad of CoNGO Committees, Working Groups, Coalitions, and ad hoc task groups aligned to the SI Mission. Due to COVID-19, a number of assignments have either been on hiatus or very limited interactions with members. This is giving the NY team the opportunity to re-align assignments more closely with the new goals and structure within SI Global Policy work.
Click HERE to read Part 2, where we hear from Bette, Frances, Maria and Jacqueline about their individual assignments and areas of expertise.
Feature image top left: Bette Levy, middle left: Barbara Rochman, bottom left: Jacqueline Shapiro, top right: Frances Zainoeddin, middle right: Vanesa Treers, bottom right: Maria Fornella.