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IO & UN Studies at SIPA: Looking back at 2022

Daniel Naujoks - Thursday, December 22, 2022
 Events   IO/UNS Newsletter 

Dear International Organizations and UN Community, 

2022 has been an interesting year! At SIPA, our campus came fully alive again with vivid discussions, classes, events, and interactions. 

The COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing war in Ukraine have again highlighted the challenges our established forms of multilateral cooperation face. But multilateralism is about more than “the veto” and realpolitik in New York and Geneva. Multilateral institutions work with a broad range of stakeholders in all parts of the world. They support governments, civil society, and the private sector, create norms and guidelines, generate ideas, and establish platforms for discussion and exchange. In 2022, the International Organization and UN Studies specialization facilitated many discussions on the role of IOs in global, regional, and local governance regimes. Our 15 panels, guest lectures, career talks and student-centered events attracted more than 1,300 participants. For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, we were able to have guest speakers join us physically – though we continued all our events in hybrid mode to allow for a broader and more inclusive participation. 

This enabled us to have excellent substantive discussions with UN Women Executive Director, Sima Bahous, President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Shahid, the UN’s Victim Rights Advocate, Jane Connor, and events on international law, UN reform, participation, migration, and several more. 

In September, we held our annual in-person IO/UNS retreat at Columbia's beautiful Lamont Campus, where we spent a full day engaging in meaningful conversations with a group of UN experts and practitioners, became creative and got to know fellow specializers. And for the first time since 2019, we organized three site visits to UNHQ, providing students with hands-on opportunities to study multilateral processes as they develop.

Our blog Multilateralism in Action (MiA), that we launched in October 2021, saw many key think-pieces by some of the foremost experts on international organizations and global governance. In the past 14 months, we've published 26 cutting-edge think-pieces by SIPA faculty, alumni, and leading UN experts, as well as by a few students - and many more are in the pipeline!

I would like to thank our extraordinary program assistants. In the Spring 2022, Nate Edwards and Yun Liang and in the Fall 2022, Asha Richards and Aurelian Mohan did an outstanding job researching internship opportunities and UN news, curating our weekly newsletter, editing MiA blog posts and managing the MiA website, as well as organizing our many events. I am deeply indebted to their professional support, creativity, and commitment to the work of the specialization!
Going forward I'm also excited to share that Laura Dankowski Mercado joined the IO/UNS team as our new specialization coordinator. 

The below recap of our activities in 2022 is not short but I rejoice in thinking about the important discussions and interactions we had this year. I thank all of you for being part of our community and I look forward to new intellectual adventures in 2023.

Daniel Naujoks
Director
International Organization & UN Studies Specialization 
School of International and Public Affairs
Columbia University 

Throughout 2022, we hosted many exciting talks and panels with UN experts and practitioners.

In February, Executive Director of UN Women Dr. Sima Bahous gave a keynote speech to the SIPA community. The 200+ participants, half of which attended in-person and half online, gained deep insides into Dr. Bahous' vision and positioning of UN Women. The conversation with Professors Yasmine Ergas and Daniel Naujoks honed in on the role of the UN more broadly, mainstreaming of gender across various policy sectors by the UN, and key areas of work on gender & women the world over. You can read Yun Liang's write up of the event here.

Dr. Nina Reiners presented her new book 'Transnational Lawmaking Coalitions for Human Rights' (Cambridge UP, 2022) that sheds light on the composition, work, and influences of the UN's human rights treaty bodies and how experts and civil society partners shape the development of international law beyond the ratification of new treaties by states.

SIPA's own Dirk Salomon and Dennis Dijkzeul presented their new book International Organizations Revisited. We enjoyed the discussion of the many aspects of international governmental and non-governmental organizations and how they shape the world. We learned about the importance of paying attention to the local level and local players and why a management perspective is important to understand the shortcomings in the design and implementation of what IOs do in the strategic, as well as the operational sphere of activities. Check out Dirk Salomons' short think-piece "On the Agency and Pathology of International Organizations" on our blog Multilateralism in Action that draws on key insights from the book.

On March 21––the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination––Teddy Keya, Senior Programme Management Officer (antiracism) in the UN’s Department of Management, Strategy, Policy and Compliance, shared insights into the UN's first strategic action plan on addressing racism. Mr. Keya was chiefly involved in coordinating the activities of the Secretary-General’s Task Force on Addressing Racism and Promoting Dignity at the United Nations Secretariat and highlighted key challenges and recommendations for the work of the UN. UNDP's Tiffany Moore shared observations from similar work at UNDP and her blog Moving the needle on racism inside UNDP. The discussion was moderated by SIPA Professors Jenny McGill and Daniel Naujoks and saw the active participation of 40 students and faculty, who had come to the in-person event, as well as more than 40 online attendees.

Professors Susan Allen and Amy Yuen presented key findings from their new book Bargaining in the UN Security Council. Loraine Sievers, one of the foremost experts on the workings of the Security Council and former Chief of the UN Security Council Secretariat Branch, provided insightful comment in a discussion that was moderated by Professor Daniel Naujoks. Review their new blog on Multilateralism in Action. 

The UN's Victim's Rights Advocate and UN Assistant Secretary-General Jane Connors joined us in-person to share how her office confronts sexual exploitation and abuse by the UN, elevates the voices of victims and puts their rights and dignity at the forefront of prevention and response. Check out Ms. Connors' think-piece about her work at Multilateralism in Action.

In April, Abdulla Shahid, President of the UN General Assembly came to SIPA to share his vision for how to secure multilateralism for future generations. In an engaging discussion with more than 100 students and faculty in the room, as well as 70 participants who joined online, Mr. Shahid highlighted the particular role of youth and what needs to be done to effectively build a UN 2.0 that is fit to tackle key global challenges with regard to humanitarian action, climate change, human rights and peace. You can read his initial remarks here. 

In our first talk in the fall of 2022, Düzen Tekkal, a filmmaker and activist, and Natia Navrouzov, a Yazidi Lawyer and Columbia University Human Rights LL.M. Fellow, joined us for the filmscreening and discussion on Female Yazidi Genocide Survivors as Agents of Change in International Relations. Tekkal shared insights about her path to work with survivors of the Yazidi Genocide and how to use international fora to bring attention to the suffering and the need for investigation and closure for communities. In discussion with Navrouzov, partipants learned about the need to protect oneself from trauma, about the importance to listen to communities about their most pressing needs, and how female Yazidi genocide survivors can become agents of change. Watch the recording here.

Dr. Helidah Ogude-Chambert from The New School and the World Bank shared her research on the United Kingdom’s gendered and racialized immigration policies. From the starting point of the UK's decision to send single young male asylum seekers to Rwanda, Dr. Ogude-Chambert outlined the racism inherent in the UK’s recent immigration policies and the depiction of migrants in the British media. She also highlighted the hypocrisy in the rhetoric surrounding the policy and its general infeasibility. In Dr. Ogude-Chambert's discussion with SIPA Professor Daniel Naujoks, participants learned about the near impossible means for migrants from certain countries to legally apply for asylum in the UK as well as the power and implications of politics. Watch the recording here.

Professor Rossana Deplano, who directs the Centre for European Law and Internationalisation at Leicester Law School, joined us for a discussion on her new book Empirical and Theoretical Perspectives on International Law: How States Use the UN General Assembly to Create International Obligations (Cambridge University Press 2022). In discussion with SIPA Professors Yasmine Ergas and Daniel Naujoks, Professor Deplano explained how states attribute legal significance to resolutions in three different contexts: at the time of adoption, within domestic law and in international practice. Her findings indicate that, contrary to the existent theories on the legal significance of resolutions, the General Assembly is not a unitary actor. She also demonstrated that the concept of legal significance of resolutions is not predetermined or static. While resolutions are often framed in normative language, they acquire legal significance only to the extent that states find it desirable or convenient, depending on context and circumstances. Watch the recording here.

The IO/UNS Specialization is dedicated to creating professional development and networking opportunities for our students.

25 UN and IO experts from a broad range of agencies and over 120 SIPA students met during the annual, though virtual International Organizations and UN Roundtable Conversations networking event. In small breakout rooms, students discussed with experts UN career trajectories, necessary skills and specific programs, ranging from peace and sustainable development over gender, climate, and human rights to data analysis and private sector partnerships. We are already excited to host this event again next Spring.

The U.S. Ambassador to the UN on Management and Reform, Chris Lu offered candid career advice and insights about his current efforts at the US mission to the UN, as well as a sneak preview into the reform agenda of the US.

From June through August, IO/UNS Director, Professor Daniel Naujoks offered a platform to exchange pointers on what to focus on while preparing for summer internships at international organizations. In addition to many key pointers, over several meetings, students discussed and sought feedback on how to establish key internship goals, what skills participants should aim to build, and how to use internships as a platform for robust networking. The discussions helped participants proactively steer their activities, skill building and networking endeavors in the right direction.

In September, we co-hosted a UN Careers Panel alongside the ICR. The panel provided an opportunity to gain insight on what it is like working in and around the UN system. Moderated by ICR director, Professor Jean-Marie Guéhenno, the panel featured senior experts, who shared invaluable insights into the ever changing intake process of the UN system, as well as on how to cope with imposter syndrome, mental health, and family life while working in unfamiliar and potentially unsafe environments.

Throughout the course of the year, we hosted several social events to encourage networking and community building among specializers, as well as our first post-pandemic site visits to the UN.

In September, we had the opportunity to spend an amazing day at our IO/UNS Fall Retreat. The day started early in the morning - next to Alma Mater -  with hot coffee and freshly baked muffins, from where we headed with more than 30 specializers and the IO/UNS team of Professor Daniel Naujoks, Asha Jhanay Richards and Aurelian D. Mohan by bus to Columbia's scenic Lamont campus.

In a session with thematic roundtables, students circled in small groups through discussions with UN exerts, namely with with Xin Guo (Associate Migration Policy Officer, IOM) on migration governance, with Dr. Katarina Mansson (Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) on global and local human rights protections and the work of the OHCHR, with Martin Ras (Programme Management Officer at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction), on the integration of DRR into climate change adaptation and with Professor Daniel Naujoks (Director of the IO/UNS specialization) about how to build an “ideal” IO/UN studies program.

During our post-lunch group hike, we explored the picturesque forest path to the Hudson River, while exchanging ideas about UN internships, debating the ongoing developments of the UNGA 77, and taking unique photos on the river bank. In the afternoon we got creative and retexted Beyoncé's "If I were a boy" with important calls for multilateral cooperation, peace, climate change, human rights, UN internship working conditions, youth employment, and sustainable development. Finally, we reflected over wine and juice about the future of the intergovernmental organization and SIPA students' involvement in the UN reform.

In the fall, IO/UNS students had three opportunities to tour the United Nations headquarters in New York. Several of our students joined UNITAR's high-level  event on Peace, Education, and Dialogue. A few weeks later, an official UN Tour provided an opportunity for students to not only learn about the day to day operations of the UN, but see the places where important global discussions and agreements take place. We also had the rare opportunity to visit the chamber of the Security Council and that of the General Assembly. In addition, on UN Day - October 24 - a group of students accompanied IO/UNS Director Daniel Naujoks for his participation in the discussion on Higher Education and Multilateralism: Academia Responding to Global Challenges.

In April, the IO/UNS community celebrated the end of the eventful Spring  semester at the IO/UNS End of Year Social. After a performance by a group of students and Professor Naujoks of UN-themed karaoke and a few quick rounds of UN pictionary, attendees dug into food and good conversation. In September, we hosted an IO/UNS Back to School Social to celebrate the beginning of the new academic year. And on October 24, the UN celebrated its 77th anniversary and so did we at SIPA for our annual UN Day Festival. Students used the #MultilateralismRocks photo booth, took pictures with their favorite SDGs, and mingled over snacks, and tried their luck at a UN prize raffle - just before a group of SIPA students joined Professor Naujoks for an event at UNHQ.

In the end of the fall term, the IO/UNS community celebrated the end of 2022 with our IO/UNS End-of-Year Social. Over delicious food, specializers celebrated each others' achievements and the conclusion of the fall 2022 semester. A highlight were the IO/UNS awards. Except for the top event attendee and social media engagement, all awards are based on peer nomination and peer-voting. IO/UNS is excited to announce the following awardees:

  • Future UN Secretary-General - Ambar Pagan
  • Future President of the UN General Assembly - Sara Rashidi
  • UN Reformer - Akmaral Bekbossynova
  • First Resident Coordinator - Nykarlis Nunez
  • Glocal Peacemaker - Angel Ornelas
  • Top IO/UNS Event Attendee - Deris Nagara
  • Social Media Engagement Award - Sara Rashidi
We are grateful for all who could attend and celebrate the semester with us. We look forward to more social events next Spring!

To foster a better understanding of the various ways in which multilateral organizations and processes work toward goals of sustainable development, peace, human rights, and equity, one year ago – on UN Day 2021 – we launched Multilateralism in Action (MiA). Our first 26 cutting-edge think-pieces from leading UN and global governance scholars and practitioners provide insights into the determinants, modalities, and outcomes of multilateralism at the global, regional, national, and local levels. 

Over the past year, MiA featured new ideas on climate change governance, the role of global advocacy coalitions for human rights, how to implement the humanitarian-development-peace nexus, how global cooperation needs to help overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN's gender agenda, bargaining practices at the UN Security Council, reform needs and opportunities at international organizations, as well as think-pieces on important aspects of international careers.

Sustainable Development

Saving Lives or Saving Livelihoods? Reflections on the United Nations’ Role for Development in War by Mourad Wahba, Former UNDP Associate Administrator

Reimagining Development Futures: What we can learn from UNDP’s Integrated and Systems-Driven Approaches by Haoliang Xu, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Director of UNDP's Bureau for Policy and Programme Support

To Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, the UN Needs To Prioritize Strategic Storytelling by Nathan Edwards (’22), SIPA Master of International Affairs candidate

The Crisis in Haiti: Can a Nexus Approach Help towards a Solution? by Mourad Wahba, Offiicer-in-Charge of the UN Capital Development Fund and former UNDP Associate Administrator

Promoting Sustainable Development through Tourism Education – The Role of the World Tourism Organization by Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of the United Nations' World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

UN Reform & Global Governance

On the Agency and Pathology of International Organizations by Dirk Salomons, SIPA Professor

Reforming the United Nations: Fit for Purpose at 75? by Joachim Müller, Former UN Senior Official and author of Reforming the United Nations

Bargaining in the UN Security Council: Setting the Global Agenda by Susan Hannah Allen, Associate Professor at the University of Mississippi and Amy Yuen, Associate Professor at Middlebury College

Renewing the UN Human Rights Regime in a Changing World – Transnational Lawmaking Coalitions Call for Human Rights Optimism by Nina Reiners, political scientist specialized in International Relations and research associate at the Global Governance Centre of the Graduate Institute Geneva

The Pandemic 

Framing Global Health Diplomacy at the Heart of International Cooperation and Multilateralism by Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki, CEO of the African Union Development Agency (NEPAD) and former Prime Minister of Niger 

The Pandemic will continue to rage as long as the WTO keeps bickering over Vaccine Rules by Joseph Stiglitz, University Professor, Columbia University and Lori Wallach, Director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch

Is Teleworking in Diplomacy Working at the United Nations? by Andrés Córdova, SIPA alum and First Secretary at the Permanent Mission of Ecuador to the United Nations

Gender Equality, Racsim & Youth 

Dear Power, Book a Ride to a More Equitable World for All Generations by Jayathma Wickramanayake, the UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth and Bianca Herzog and Maanishaa Jessani from the UN Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth

Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women Shares Her Vision of the Future of the UN’s Gender Agenda with SIPA Community by Yun Liang ('22), SIPA Master of International Affairs candidate

The UN’s Role in Combating Racism and Discrimination: 7 Recommendations for Greater Effectiveness by SIPA graduates Minji Ko, Sanskruti Majmudar, Laura McCreedy, and Amanda Waldron

Peace & Security

Advocating for the Rights of Victims of Sexual Misconduct by Jane Connors, UN's Victim's Rights Advocate and UN Assistant Secretary-General

Revisiting Statebuilding in the Hardest Places by Jonathan Papoulidis, Columbia Global Project Fellow and Global Director, Fragility and Resilience, Food for the Hungry

Climate Change

The Climate Change Summit: More Effective Mechanisms must be adopted to meet the agreed-upon Commitments by José Antonio Ocampo, SIPA Professor and former UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs

The UN Security Council Declined to take up Climate Change as a Security Problem. Why? by Sabrina B. Arias, political scientist at the University of Pennsylvania

Non-refoulement: A Legal Hope for the Protection of Environmental Migrants and their Rights by SIPA graduates Shaindl Keshen, Steven Lazickas, and Lucía Solórzano

IO Careers

Applying for a Comms Role at the United Nations? These 4 Fool-proof Tips can Help by Mehmet Erdogan, leader of communications for UNDP’s Climate Promise initiative

UNtold Stories: Young UN workers accept job insecurity for the good cause by Linda Mülli, anthropologist at the Universities of Basel and the LMU Munich

How to Start Your Career at the International Organization for Migration by Erin Bowser, IOM Talent Management Consultant and Anke Strauss, Head of IOM Talent Management

UNtold Stories: Young UN workers accept job insecurity for the good cause by Linda Mülli, author of Privileged Precarities. An Organizational Ethnography of Early Career Workers at the United Nations

Since we started the specialization’s Twitter account @UNatColumbia in September 2019, we have not only witnessed an impressive growth of our followers, but importantly, meaningful engagements with students, faculty, UN staff members, and the general audience. Through the interactions with our more than 2,600 followers, we hope to stimulate discussions on the role of multilateralism to address the critical challenges of our times and to highlight the work done at Columbia on these issues to international organizations and other interested audiences. If you don’t follow us, please do at: @UNatColumbia.

We would like to extend our most sincere gratitude to Columbia partners who co-sponsored events with us this semester. Partnerships enabled us to share information about our events across larger communities thus bringing in a more diverse array of thinkers to engage with our guests. In particular, we would like to thank the following departments, concentrations, specializations, and student groups for their ongoing collaboration throughout the year:
  • Economic and Political Development concentration
  • MPA Program in Development Practice
  • International Conflict Resolution Specialization
  • Center for Career Advancement
  • The Working Group on Race, Inequality, Solidarity, and Economics
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Climate, and Engagement Committee
  • Institute for the Study of Human Rights
  • Gender and Public Policy Specialization
  • Human Rights and Humanitarian Policies concentration
  • Columbia Committee on Forced Migration
  • Human Rights Institute at Columbia Law School
  • Executive MPA
  • Columbia University Political Science Department
  • Barnard College Political Science Department
  • UN Association

Follow the IO/UNS Specialization on
CampusGroups and Twitter

Feel free to reach out to us:
Daniel Naujoks, Director, daniel.naujoks@columbia.edu

Laura Dankowski Mercado, Program Coordinator, ld3071@sipa.columbia.edu
Asha Jhanay Richards, Program Assistant, ajr2264@columbia.edu
Aurelian D. Mohan, Program Assistant, aurelian.d.mohan@columbia.edu