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Some 35 years after the United Nations published its Brundtland report [Brundtland Commission. (1987). Our common future: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development, Geneva, UN-Dokument A/42/427. Retrieved December 24, 2022, from ] on the many threats our planet is under due to over- and underdevelopment, we are still struggling with how to make our world sustainable. Today we have the Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) to guide us, but they have been largely criticized just like their predecessors. The debate in Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) mainly concerns to which extent Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) may contribute to the SDGs. This editorial offers a historic overview of the different development goals that the UN has offered and eight papers that offer a view into the discussion of the challenges facing the SDGs, but also examples of experimental strategies on how ICTs can be used in realizing, or undermining, these goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The history of post‐war Sri Lanka has seen an escalation of nationalisms that constantly collide. Post‐2009, with the end of the war, the reproduction of narratives around nationalisms has become intense, with home‐grown protests for accountability of minority injustices continuing to sustain its fervour over time. Within the context of Switzerland these events in Sri Lanka are invariably aligned with diasporic engagement. Dominant spaces such as the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland become transnational sites for the performance of long‐distance nationalism by Tamil diaspora groups, raising questions around legitimacy and claims‐making. This paper presents empirical insights as to how long‐distance Tamil nationalism is manifested as political engagement, by groups, and/ or individuals, in formal and informal transnational sites within the socio‐political landscape of Switzerland. It argues that modes of political engagement are manifested through rituals of performance and performativity such as scripting and iteration of claims‐making processes that enable legitimacy in transnational sites of lobby and protest within the UN arena in Geneva during the Human Rights Council (HRC) sessions. The paper situates its analysis within a shift in post‐war Tamil diaspora claims‐making narratives from a separatist stance to that of victimhood and human rights producing narratives that present the Tamil diaspora as a singular actor albeit with complex heterogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No one disputes that knowledge is the lifeblood of international organizations and especially specialized agencies of the United Nations. However, there has been little consensus on the best methods to share knowledge, leverage the extensive international expertise and make it available to the constituents and partners of these organizations. What is their strategy for managing knowledge? Do they have one? What impact does it have? What is the role of senior management in championing knowledge sharing in these international organizations? These are the questions this paper addresses through the lenses of the evaluations of current knowledge sharing practices in two institutions located in Geneva, Switzerland, both part of the United Nations system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the program prepared by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission for the Geneva Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy in Switzerland. Thus, looking toward presentation at Geneva, several thousand organizations associated in some way with atomic energy were invited to submit for review abstracts of papers for submission to the United Nations. Moreover, all papers submitted to and accepted by the United Nations, including the American papers will be published in full in the conference proceedings. According to the author, Geneva will mark the first time that all available technical information on the constructive uses of atomic energy has been assembled in one place and where specialists from eighty countries have been able to convene.

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The article reports issues and topics related to the United Nations Conference on Atomic Energy held on August 8 to 20, 1955, in Geneva, Switzerland. According to the event's organizers, the final count of papers accepted for the conference was 1,061, with 460 scheduled to be presented orally at one of the 60 sessions. The range of subjects is shown by the titles of the six volumes which will contain the published papers including "Safety Aspects of Nuclear Reactors," "Power Reactors," "Research Reactors," "Nuclear Fuels," "Atomic Raw Materials," and "Applications of Nuclear Radiation in Food and Agriculture."

The Convention on the Rights of the Child celebrated its 30th birthday in November 2019. All Member States to the United Nations save one have ratified the convention during the 30 years of its existence. Three Optional Protocols were added to the Convention. In order to monitor and check progress, a treaty body was created, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, based in Geneva. This treaty body is regularly evaluating the reports of Member States. Concluding observations have to be drawn to assist Member States in upgrading the level of child protection in their respective countries. Treaty bodies have also to draft General Comments among other duties. Moreover, the Committee has to react to individual communications coming from children or persons acting on their behalf. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the legal basis for the concept of the responsibility to protect (R2P) in international law. Accordingly, the article attempts to determine the extent to which various elements of the concept have already been incorporated into existing international instruments as well as in customary international law. It also ascertains the extent to which the concept has been accepted as a binding norm of international law, particularly in view of the burgeoning activities and resolutions concerning its use. The study analyses the existing provisions of major international instruments concerning the responsibility to protect, such as the Genocide Convention and Geneva Conventions, as interpreted by the International Court of Justice in its opinions. Finally, as part of the conclusion, the article evaluates the scope and limitations of the concept of R2P under international law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deployment of autonomous weapon systems (‘aws’) in military operations is a major concern for the international community. While the military in particular argues that increased autonomy mitigates the risks of death and injury for civilians, scientists and civil society emphasise that humans still have to play a decisive role when increasingly outsourcing core competences to machines. In 2017, a Group of Governmental Experts (‘gge’) met for the first time to discuss legal and ethical issues of aws. The centrepiece of the debate was (and still is) the role humans play in an increasingly automated battlefield. In the past couple of years, consensus has been emerging on the necessity of maintaining human control. It will be argued in this contribution that human control (in abstracto) is not merely a political demand. It is also a legal obligation derived from international humanitarian law (‘ihl’). This contribution seeks to analyse relevant rules of ihl with a specific focus on the legal nature of the Martens Clause arguing that human control (in abstracto) is not only politically desired but that it is legally required. That being said, the various concepts aiming to implement and operationalise human control (in concreto) will be examined with a view to offering solutions for a potential regulatory framework on aws at the United Nations (‘UN’) in Geneva. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jean Piaget is well known as a child and cognitive psychologist. He is less understood as the founder of the discipline of genetic epistemology, the scientific study of the genesis and development of human meaning-making. He is also a major proponent of constructivist learning and activity pedagogy. A major supporter of the first international school, the International School of Geneva (which later developed the International Baccalaureate), and an early director of both the world's first child study center, the Jean-Jacques Rousseau Institute, and the International Bureau of Education (later a part of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), Piaget was deeply committed to student self-government, collaborative, active learning, and peace education. In 1980 I became principal of the Hiroshima International School of peace and culture, and we used his seminal work, "The Right to Education in the Modern World," based on Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to create and sustain an authentic "international" school organization, curriculum, and pedagogical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a discussion on the Conference of the Committee on Disarmament (CCD) based in Geneva, Switzerland, its structure, and its usefulness. Formerly the Eighteen-Nation Disarmament Committee, CCD has been enlarged in 1975 by the UN General Assembly with the addition of Federal Republic of Germany, Iran, Peru, German Democratic Republic, and Zaire. It also presents a series of contradictions as observed by a new member of the CCD such as between the eloquence and depth of some statements and its minimal record of achievement.

Information about the United Nations Conference of Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Expert Meeting on FDI in Natural Resources held from November 20-22, 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland is presented. Discuss in the event were the issues regarding poverty reduction, mineral industries, and the resource governance in Africa.

Discusses the controversies surrounding the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held by the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland in December 2003. Criticisms against the WSIS; Complaints of nongovernmental organization against the process; Controversy in the administration of the domain name system performed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Named and Numbers at WSIS.

The article presents the text of the opening statement by Ruud Lubbers, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) delivered at the fifty-third general assembly on September 30, 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. He discussed positive developments such as the return and integration of refugees in a number of countries, the ongoing challenges, retirements and new appointments, restructuring of offices and the setting up of a Task Force to review UNHCR partnerships with other United Nations agencies.

This article presents information on the meeting of the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Rights of Child in Geneva, Switzerland on October 7, 1996 concerning children and the media. During the day it was recognised that no single agency of the UN had a complete overview of issues relating to the media, and, especially with the advent of electronic media like the Internet, there was merit in involving agencies who would not normally be involved with discussions concerning children. The day was greatly assisted by the presence of a number of journalists, including Bettina Peeters from the International Federation of Journalists. An innovative project called Young Media Partners founded by journalists to encourage young people who want to become journalists was also represented. However, it was recognised during the day that the television industry was not adequately represented and nor were the large international media conglomerates. While it is easy to focus on how the media can affect children negatively, it was pointed out how important their work can be in highlighting injustices against children. There was considerable discussion about whether better codes of practice were needed for journalists who covered issues involving children. One study had revealed that of 16 media ethics codes only 3 mentioned children specifically. Journalists present worried that while codes of practice where helpful, many journalists did not read them, and changing the ethos of journalism towards children meant much more.

The article presents information on the International Institute for Labor Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. The institute is an international center for the scientific study of labor problems through research and education. A brief account of the institute's history, membership, organization, scope of interest, publications and financial support is given in the article. The institute was created by the United Nations International Labor Organization in 1960 and has put most of its efforts into an educational program. The board of the institute deals with program and budgetary policy matters and usually meets once a year in February. The institute is concerned specifically within its sphere of interest with education for leadership responsibility, research into trends and emerging problems, and discussion of choices and issues in public policy. Institute publications include studies carried out under its auspices, books based upon symposia convened by the institute and educational materials developed in institute courses.

This article highlights the United Nations Conference for the negotiation of a successor agreement to the International Tropical Timber Agreement, which met at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland from February 14-18, 2005. Delegates continued their discussion of bracketed text from the First Part of the Conference, held in Geneva in July 2004. At that session, some progress was made in agreeing on the text for a new agreement. Many proposals on the unresolved issues were tabled during the meeting, but delegates were unable to reach agreement on a number of cross-cutting proposals.

Next year the Geneva, Switzerland-based International Council of Nurses (ICN) will celebrate the 90th anniversary of its establishment. During all these years many other group significant to nursing, and thus to ICN, have been organized. In the 1930s ICN moved to Geneva from London, England to be near and to work with the League of Nations. When that great experiment collapsed due to lack of support from some important groups, ICN returned to London, then waited to be sure the United Nations was really well on its way and returned to Geneva in 1966.