May 2, 2013
International Jazz Day 2013: Artists From Across The Globe Grace The Stage In Istanbul, Turkey
Photo: A concert on the theme, “Jazz: A Language for Peace”, featuring the Brubeck Institute Jazz Quintet, was held at UN Headquarters in connection with the International Jazz Day (30 April). Shown here: A stack of program notes for the performance. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas.
Photo: Jazz Appreciation Forever Stamp Honors America’s Gift to Music. Photo Credit: U.S. Postal Service.
• In an unprecedented series of events worldwide, UNESCO and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz joined together to celebrate jazz as a universal language of freedom on April 30th. With events taking place in 196 countries, International Jazz Day 2013 culminated in an evening concert at Istanbul’s Hagia Irene that was viewed live by millions around the world. Dating back to the 4th century, the Hagia Irene, located in the outer courtyard of the Topkapi Palace - a UNESCO World Heritage Site - is regarded as an international treasure for music lovers because of its brilliant atmosphere and enchanting acoustics.
Those who participated in the Istanbul event included pianists Herbie Hancock, John Beasley (Musical Director), George Duke, Robert Glasper, Ramsey Lewis, Keiko Matsui and Eddie Palmieri; vocalists Ruben Blades, Al Jarreau, Milton Nascimento, Dianne Reeves, Esperanza Spalding (who also played bass) and Joss Stone; trumpeters Terence Blanchard, Hugh Masekela and Imer Demirer; bassists James Genus, Marcus Miller and Ben Williams; drummers Terri Lyne Carrington and Vinnie Colaiuta; guitarists Bilal Karaman, John McLaughlin, Lee Ritenour and Joe Louis Walker; saxophonists Dale Barlow, Igor Butman , Branford Marsalis, Wayne Shorter and Liu Yuan; clarinetists Anat Cohen and Husnu Senlendirici; violinist Jean-Luc Ponty; Pedrito Martinez on percussion; tabla master Zakir Hussain; trombonist Alevtina Polyakova; and special guest Martin Luther King III.
Pianist Herbie Hancock said, “Using jazz as a tool, I have faith that the music - either through playing an instrument, learning about its rich cultural history, or listening to the millions of recordings made over the past century - will demonstrate that barriers can be broken, unity can be achieved, new forms of expression can be created, and a dialogue between cultures can begin. From my decades long career as a jazz musician, I know first hand that inventive ideas can achieve the impossible, transform humanity, and make productive changes at the grass roots level.”
International Jazz Day was adopted by UNESCO Member States on the initiative of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock in order to encourage and highlight jazz’s unique power for advancing intercultural dialogue and understanding across the world.
International Jazz Day brings together communities, schools and groups from across the globe to celebrate jazz, learn about its roots and highlight its important role as a form of communication that transcends differences.
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Posted by Editors at 4:26 AM
April 4, 2013
L'OREAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science 2013
Photo: For Women in Science - La Sorbonne. Jean-Paul Agon, Chairman and CEO, L’Oréal, delivers opening remarks. © For Women in Science 2013.
Photo: Professor Deborah S. Jin, University of Colorado, USA, L’ORÉAL-UNESCO Awards 2013 Laureate for North America “For having been the first to cool down molecules so much that she can observe chemical reactions in slow motion which may help further understanding of molecular processes which are important for medicine and new energy sources”. With Jean-Paul Agon, Chairman and CEO, L’Oréal, and Irina Bokova, Director General, UNESCO. © For Women in Science 2013.
Photo: 2013 L’Oréal-UNESCO Awards ceremony. © For Women in Science 2013.
Photo: Grand Salon, La Sorbonne, Paris, France. 2013 L’Oréal-UNESCO Awards ceremony. © For Women in Science 2013.
Photo: Photo Exhibition “Femmes de Science” - Avenue des Champs-Elysées, Paris. Photo Credit: Micheline Pelletie. © For Women in Science 2013.
• The L’OREAL-UNESCO For Women in Science program awarded five exceptional women scientists from around the world with the 2013 L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards in the Physical Sciences. The award ceremony took place on March 28 at Sorbonne University in Paris, France.
Since its inception, L’OREAL-UNESCO For Women in Science has honored 77 Laureates, including two who subsequently were awarded the Nobel Prize. The program has also supported more than 1,652 Fellows who have made contributions in every field of scientific research. By the end of 2013, a total of 1,729 women scientists from over 100 countries will have benefited from the program.
An international network of nearly 1,000 scientists nominates the candidates for each year’s Awards. The five Laureates are then selected by an independent, international jury. Each Laureate receives $100,000 in recognition of her contribution to the advancement of science.
Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO remarked, “This program embodies UNESCO’s founding principles. It is based on the idea that science has no gender and no frontiers; that scientific knowledge must be shared; that the curiosity of all girls and boys must be nurtured and encouraged as much as possible for the benefit of all.”
The five Laureates recognized for their scientific achievements are:
NORTH AMERICA
Professor Deborah S. Jin, University of Colorado (USA)
AFRICA and ARAB STATES
Professor Francisca Nneka OKEKE, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (Nigeria)
ASIA / PACIFIC
Professor Reiko Kuroda, Tokyo University of Science (Japan)
EUROPE
Professor Pratibha Gai, University of York (United Kingdom)
SOUTH AMERICA
Professor Marcia Barbosa, Federak University if Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre (Brazil)
The 2013 L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards Jury is made up of 13 eminent members of the international scientific community. The President of the jury is Professor Ahmed Zewail, Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1999. Professor Christian de Duve, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1974, is the Founding President of the Awards, while Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO, is Honorary President.
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Posted by Editors at 3:27 AM
October 14, 2012
UN Secretary-General Attends UNESCO Executive Board Meeting
Photo: View of Paris from UNESCO Headquarters — A view of Paris and the Eiffel Tower from the Salon Lowendael at the headquarters of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), as a lunch is hosted in honor of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. 09 October 2012. Paris, France. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
Photo: UN Secretary-General Attends UNESCO Executive Board Meeting — A wide view of the Executive Board meeting of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in Paris, France. 09 October 2012. Paris, France. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
Photo: UN Secretary-General Meets UNESCO Chief in Paris — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (right) meets with Irina Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris, France. 09 October 2012. Paris, France. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
Photo: UN Secretary-General Visits Eglise du Dôme in Paris — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited the Eglise du dôme at the Hôtel national des Invalides in Paris. Stained glass window at the Eglise du dôme. 09 October 2012. Paris, France. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
Photo: UN Secretary-General Meets Community of Democracies Secretary General — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (right) meets with Maria Leissner, Secretary General of the Community of Democracies, in Strasbourg, France. 08 October 2012. Strasbourg, France. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
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Posted by Editors at 8:18 AM
September 28, 2012
Opening of the 67th Session of the UN General Assembly
Photo: View of a cross-section of the General Assembly Hall during the opening of general debate of the Assembly’s sixty-seventh session. 25 September 2012. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/JC McIlwaine.
Photo: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with Barack Obama, President of the United States. 25 September 2012. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
Photo: “Education First”, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Global Initiative on Education, which seeks to make a breakthrough to mobilize all partners to achieve universal primary education ahead of the 2015 target date for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), was launched on the margins of the UN General Assembly’s general debate. 26 September 2012. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
Photo: Bill Clinton, Founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and former President of the United States, speaks at the launch of the Global Initiative on Education, “Education First”. The Initiative seeks to make a breakthrough to mobilize all partners to achieve universal primary education ahead of the 2015 target date for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). 26 September 2012. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
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“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”
— Aristotle.
Posted by Editors at 1:37 PM
December 10, 2011
Social Watch Report 2012 - THE RIGHT TO A FUTURE
Photo: Roberto Bissio, Coordinator of Social Watch, briefs on “Civil Society and Global Financial Regulation - The Role of the United Nations”, and his organization’s publication, “Social Watch Report 2012 - THE RIGHT TO A FUTURE”. December 9, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/JC McIlwaine.
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Posted by Editors at 1:32 AM
November 18, 2011
Sheep in the Ariana Park, Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland
Photos: Sheep graze on the lawn of the Palais des Nations, the United Nations Regional Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, as part of an environmentally-friendly tradition held every year in October and November. The sheep’s grazing allows for the lawn to be naturally cut and for other organic maintenance work to be done. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
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Posted by Editors at 12:21 PM
October 4, 2011
International Day of Non-Violence Commemorated at UN
Photo: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon receives a copy of “India After Gandhi: The History of the World’s Largest Democracy” by Ramachandra Guha, at a special event organized by the Permanent Mission of India to the UN commemorating the International Day of Non-Violence on the theme “Non-Violence as an Instrument of Social Change”. Mr. Guha was among the speakers at the event. Pictured with Mr. Ban are Hardeep Singh Puri, Permanent Representative of India to the UN and Baso Sangqu, Permanent Representative of South Africa to the UN. The day is celebrated annually on October 2, the birthday of non-violence pioneer Mahatma Gandhi. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
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Posted by Editors at 10:56 AM
September 24, 2011
"The World Economy is in Trouble" — Prime Minister of India tells UN General Assembly
Photo: Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of the Republic of India, addresses the general debate of the sixty-sixth session of the UN General Assembly. September 24, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Evan Schneider.
“The world economy is in trouble,” Dr. Singh, an economist, told the General Assembly. “The shoots of recovery which were visible after the economic and financial crisis of 2008 have yet to blossom. In many respects the crisis has deepened even further.”
“The traditional engines of the global economy - countries such as the United States, Europe and Japan, which are also the sources of global economic and financial stability, are today faced with continued economic slowdown. Recessionary trends in these countries are affecting confidence in world financial and capital markets,” he told the gathering.
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Posted by Editors at 2:34 PM
September 21, 2011
UN General Assembly Session Opens with General Debate
Photo: A wide view of the General Assembly Hall as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon presents his annual report, at the opening of the general debate of the Assembly’s sixty-sixth session. September 21, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
Photo: A view of the dignitaries’ gallery at the opening of the general debate of the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly.
Front row, right to left: Muna Ghassan Tamim Rihani, wife of Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, President of the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly; Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States of America; and Yoo Soon-taek, wife of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. September 21, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
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Posted by Editors at 1:08 PM
August 13, 2011
UN Year of Youth “Culmination Celebration” Spotlights Girls and Young Women
Photo: Monique Coleman, UN Youth Champion for the International Year of Youth, co-hosts the Year’s “Culmination Celebration” with a focus on the role girls and young women play in advancing dialogue and mutual understanding. August 11, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas.
Photo: A view of audience members during the UN Year of Youth “Culmination Celebration” focusing on the role girls and young women play in advancing dialogue and mutual understanding. August 11, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas.
Photo: Begona Lasagabaster, UN Women Advisor on Political Participation, speaks at the UN Year of Youth “Culmination Celebration”, an event focusing on the role of girls and young women in advancing dialogue and mutual understanding. August 11, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Rick Bajornas.
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Posted by Editors at 4:36 AM
July 29, 2011
Security Council Meets on UN Peacekeeping
Photo: Lieutenant General Chander Prakash, Force Commander of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), addresses the Security Council. July 27, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Devra Berkowitz.
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Posted by Editors at 3:57 AM
July 20, 2011
ECOSOC 2011
A meeting of the High-level Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), with focus on education, took place in Geneva.
Photo: Participants at the ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
Photo: Joseph Deiss, President of the General Assembly, delivers his statement during the meeting of senior United Nations officials with local Pupils in the context of the 2011 ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
Photo: A member of delegation of Qatar at the ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
Photo: Nafisa Shah, Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan, addresses the ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
Photo: Esther Duflo, Professor or Poverty Alleviation and Development, Massachussetts Institute of Technology, during the ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
Photo: Otaviano Canuto dos Santos Fihlo, Vice-President, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management, World Bank, during the ECOSOC High-Level Segment. UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferre.
ECOSOC was established under the United Nations Charter as the principal organ to coordinate economic, social, and related work of the 14 UN specialized agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions. The Council also receives reports from 11 UN funds and programmes.
• The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) serves as the central forum for discussing international economic and social issues, and for formulating policy recommendations addressed to Member States and the United Nations system.
ECOSOC is responsible for:
• Promoting higher standards of living, full employment, and economic and social progress;
• Identifying solutions to international economic, social and health problems;
• Facilitating international cultural and educational cooperation; and
• Encouraging universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
It has the power to make or initiate studies and reports on these issues. It also has the power to assist the preparations and organization of major international conferences in the economic and social and related fields and to facilitate a coordinated follow-up to these conferences. With its broad mandate the Council’s purview extends to over 70 per cent of the human and financial resources of the entire UN system.
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Mobius Says Another Financial Crisis ‘Around The Corner’
May 30, 2011 — Mark Mobius, executive chairman of Templeton Asset Management’s emerging markets group, said another financial crisis is inevitable because the causes of the previous one haven’t been resolved.
“There is definitely going to be another financial crisis around the corner because we haven’t solved any of the things that caused the previous crisis,” Mobius said at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Tokyo today in response to a question about price swings. “Are the derivatives regulated? No. Are you still getting growth in derivatives? Yes.”
The total value of derivatives in the world exceeds total global gross domestic product by a factor of 10, said Mobius, who oversees more than $50 billion. With that volume of bets in different directions, volatility and equity market crises will occur, he said.
The global financial crisis three years ago was caused in part by the proliferation of derivative products tied to U.S. home loans that ceased performing, triggering hundreds of billions of dollars in write-downs and leading to the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in September 2008.
The freezing of global credit markets caused governments from Washington to Beijing to London to pump more than $3 trillion into the financial system to shore up the global economy.
— BLOOMBERG.COM
Posted by Editors at 12:06 PM
June 4, 2011
Electric Cars at UN as General Assembly Meets on Green Economy
Photo: Electric cars are parked at United Nations Headquarters in a campaign to work towards supplying sustainable electricity to billions of people. The UN General Assembly is discussing: “Green Economy: A Pathway to Sustainable Development”. June 2, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/JC McIlwaine.
Photo: Participants of the Global Summit to Strengthen Public-Private Partnerships to Accelerate Global Electricity Technology Deployment arrive at United Nations Headquarters by electric cars, in a campaign to work towards supplying sustainable electricity to billions of people. The side event is held as the UN General Assembly debates on: “Green Economy: A Pathway to Sustainable Development”. June 2, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/JC McIlwaine.
Photo: A wide view of the General Assembly thematic debate on: “Green Economy: A Pathway to Sustainable Development”. June 2, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Devra Berkowitz.
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Posted by Editors at 6:16 AM
May 21, 2011
Military Bands of China and USA Take Friendship Tour to UN HQ
Photo: Senior Colonel Yu Hai conducts the Military Band of the People’s Liberation Army of China during a joint concert with the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” at UN Headquarters. The concert is part of the ensembles’ three-city tour based on friendship and cooperation through music, and will conclude on May 21 at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. May 20, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras.
Photo: A close-up of performers of the Military Band of the People’s Liberation Army of China during their first-ever joint concert with the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” at UN Headquarters. The concert is part of the ensembles’ three-city tour based on friendship and cooperation through music, and will conclude on May 21 at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. May 20, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras.
Photo: A close-up of performers of the Military Band of the People’s Liberation Army of China and the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” during their first-ever joint concert at UN Headquarters. The concert is part of the ensembles’ three-city tour based on friendship and cooperation through music, and will conclude on May 21 at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. May 20, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras.
Photo: Colonel Thomas Rotondi, Jr. (left), Leader and Commander of the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own”, and Senior Colonel Yu Hai, Chief of the Military Band of the People’s Liberation Army of China, thank the audience after their first-ever joint concert at UN Headquarters. The concert is part of the ensembles’ three-city tour based on friendship and cooperation through music, and will conclude on May 21 at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. May 20, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras.
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Posted by Editors at 4:11 AM
May 13, 2011
"Decade of Action for Road Safety" Launched
Photo: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (at podium) speaks at a press event to launch the Decade of Action for Road Safety, alongside Mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg (right) and Jeannette Sadik-Khan (right), New York City Transportation Commissioner, in Manhattan, New York. May 12, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.
Photo: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left) receives a helmet and campaign pin from Michelle Yeoh (right), actress and Global Ambassador for the Make Roads Safe campaign, who met with Mr. Ban to promote the “Decade of Action for Road Safety”. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.
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Posted by Editors at 7:35 AM
April 21, 2011
UN Headquarters Display Laser Message: "No Slavery"
Photo: As part of a media-art installation by Swiss artist Johannes Gees, a “No Slavery” laser-beamed message is projected onto the north wall of the UN Secretariat building. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.
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Posted by Editors at 10:44 AM
April 15, 2011
Spring Returns to UN Headquarters in New York
Photo: Daffodils are in full bloom as spring returns to the campus of UN Headquarters in New York. April 14, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/John McIlwaine.
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Posted by Editors at 12:12 PM
April 12, 2011
UN Peacekeeping Operations: Top Five Troop-Contributing Countries
Photo: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (third from right) meets with the representatives of the top five countries contributing troops to UN peacekeeping operations.
From left:
• Hardeep Singh Puri, Permanent Representative of India to the UN;
• Abulkalam Abdul Momen, Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh to the UN;
• U. Joy Ogwu, Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the UN;
• Abdullah Hussain Haroon, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN; and
• Maged A. Abdelaziz, Permanent Mission of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the UN.
April 11, 2011. United Nations, New York. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras.
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Posted by Editors at 7:48 AM
April 9, 2011
Liechtenstein Royal Castle
Photo: View of Vaduz Castle, the official residence of the Prince of Liechtenstein. Vaduz, Liechtenstein. UN Photo/Mark Garten.
Liechtenstein is a small Alpine principality in central Europe between Austria and Switzerland. It was created as a principality within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719 and became independent in 1866. Vaduz is the capital.
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Posted by Editors at 5:07 AM
March 23, 2011
Portrait Photography
Photo: Portrait of one of the young girls in the Kapisa Province of Afghanistan who are receiving Vocational Education and Training. Photo © United Nations/Eskinder Debebe.
The UN Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) until March 23, 2012.
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Posted by Editors at 5:56 AM
