United Nations Association London and South-East Region

AGM UNA Harpenden
2025-02-08 10:30 - 12:30 UTC | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 8th February, 10:30 – 12:30, UNA Harpenden will be hosting its AGM and Group Discussion at The Salvation Army, Harpenden, AL5 2TG. Register here.

Amnesty Activist-Led UN Network
2025-02-12 19:30 - 21:00
On 12th February, 19:30-21:00, the Amnesty activist-led UN Network will be hosting a free. open webinar on the UN Human Rights System: Essentials for Activists, with speakers Renzo Pomi (Amnesty International UN Representative in New York) and Anna-Karin Holmlund (Amnesty International UN Representative in Geneva) on how the UN can make a difference to global human rights and crisis situations and how activists can best engage with its mechanisms and help make them more effective. For more information, contact here. The zoom links is here.

Challenging the UN Security Council Veto in the Face of Atrocity Crimes
2025-02-22 12:30 - 14:00 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 22nd February, 12:35-13:45, UNA Warwick are holding a meeting online and at the Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa, CV32 4RN, on Challenging the UN Security Council Veto in the Face of Atrocity Crimes. The speaker is Professor Jennifer Trahan (of New York University’s Center for Global Affairs, author of Legal Limits to Security Council Veto Power in the Face of Atrocity Crimes). The UN Security Council’s veto power has repeatedly blocked action, even in response to genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, leading to devastating loss of life and a failure of global accountability. Professor Trahan will explore the history and evolution of the veto (including showing the short film The Veto). The zoom link is here, with ID 846 9914 4523 and passcode: [REDACTED] For further information, please contact the Chair.

Rural Town Planning and Development
2025-02-22 13:00 - 17:00 | St. Peter’s Community Centre, Church Street, Bexhill, England, TN40 2HE, United Kingdom
On 22nd February, 13:15-17:00, UNA Bexhill and Hastings is holding a free meeting at St. Peter’s Community Centre, Church Street, Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, TN40 2HE with a discussion on Rural Town Planning and Development, led by Stephen Hardy, preceded by a short AGM, and a tea break. The discussion will consider how the government’s National Housing Plans will affect plans to revive local communities with sustainable businesses and services, as well as to provide more affordable housing. For further information and to register, please contact the Chair.

International Mother Language Day
2025-02-24 07:30
On 24th February, 19:30, UNA Luton will be celebrating International Mother Language Day, to promote awareness about the day’s historical origins and the importance of promoting and preserving mother languages. They are important identities for all communities in plural societies, and the awareness of them can help to build Peace across Diversity. The zoom link is here, with meeting ID 874 4014 7657, passcode [REDACTED].

Pathway for Peace
2025-02-25 19:00
The third event in their series looking at ways forward to end the Israel-Palestine conflict will be on 25th February, 19:00 at St Peter’s Hall, Leamington Spa CV32 5AA. Two Jewish activists with differing perspectives will share their views on the way ahead. They are Professor Haim Bresheeth (child of Holocaust survivors and author of An Army Like No Otherabout the Israeli Defence Force) and Dr Magen Inon (child of people killed on 7th October 2023 and part of British Jewish organisation, Yachad). Book here to attend in-person or watch online.

Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen International Law Lecture
2025-03-11 18:30
On 11th March, 18:30, UNA Westminster – with the Bar Council, and the Centre for International Studies at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) – will be holding at SOAS’ Brunei Gallery, London WC1H 0XG, the twenty-second annual Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen International Law Lecture, on Fragmented Refuge: It’s time to rebuild the case for humanity, marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).
The speaker, Professor Catherine Briddick (University of Oxford’s Refugee Studies Centre), will review today’s changed attitudes to the call of humanity, explore access to protection and the enforcement of international refugee law, and draw on the experiences of those involved in drafting the UN Refugee Convention. The event will be followed by a free wine reception. Please register here.

USA/UN Aid Crisis Hits Women the Hardest; What is to be done
2025-03-11 19:30 - 21:30 | The Community Church, Werter Road, London, England, London SW15 2LL, United Kingdom
On 11th March, 19:30-21:30, UNA Wandsworth is celebrating International Women’s Day with a meeting on USA/UN Aid Crisis Hits Women the Hardest; What is to be done?. It will be in the Community Church, Werter Road, London SW15 2LL.

Rights, Equality, Empowerment for All Women and Girls
2025-03-14 06:00 - 20:00
On 14th March, 18:00-20:00, UNA Luton will be celebrating International Women’s Day, with a virtual meeting on Rights, Equality, Empowerment for All Women and Girls to discuss global, national and local issues impacting gender equity. Speakers include Dr Nazia Khanum (on Key global challenges and progress re gender equality); Susan Beaumont (on Women’s Rights in Afghanistan), Debra Knight (on Nine Red Presents: Abuse and Violence Faced by Women) and Sadia Rahman (on Hijab: Perception and Prejudice). The zoom link is here, with meeting ID 879-2448-1457 and Passcode [REDACTED].

LASER Policy Conference
2025-03-15 12:00 - 18:00
Our Policy Conference will be on 15th March, 2025, 12:00-18:00. It will be at Bermondsey Village Hall (close to London Bridge station), and online. Please bring a packed lunch. Drinks will be provided. If you would like to attend in-person, please register here. If you would like to join online, please register here.
Thank you for the draft resolutions. The Policy Committee has met and considered them, and combined them with some further proposals of its own, as well as going through all the existing resolutions, to create this Draft Agenda. You are welcome to suggest further amendments to these resolutions, with the deadline for amendments being Friday 28th February.
Amendments can be submitted by UNA Groups or individual members. You can see our current resolutions – for inspiration and for the framework of notes and calls to action that we use – here. Note that we then promote the resolutions more widely – including forwarding them to the Foreign Secretary and other key actors – and share the responses on our website.
You can suggest amendments to the new draft resolutions and to existing resolutions. After any additions or deletion that you propose, the amended resolution must be no more than 75 words longer than the original resolution. Please do not send in longer amendments! We are particularly looking for amendments or replacement resolutions on Sri Lanka, Syria and the UK Aid budget.

Middle East and Global Affairs
2025-03-17 06:30 - 20:00
On 17th March, 18:30-20:00, UNA Warwick District is hosting an online meeting on Middle East and Global Affairs. The speaker is Professor Yossi Mekelberg (from the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House). He will consider the latest developments in: Gaza and Israel; the growing US-China rivalry; the war in Ukraine; the future of international institutions in an era of rising nationalism. The zoom link is here, with meeting ID 824 7994 6009 and passcode [REDACTED].

The Space of the World: can human solidarity survive social media and what if it can’t?
2025-03-22 10:30 - 12:30 | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 22nd March, 10:30-12:30, UNA Harpenden will host a hybrid event at The Salvation Army Hall, Leyton Green, Harpenden AL5 2TG on The Space of the World: can human solidarity survive social media and what if it can’t?. The speaker, Professor Nick Couldry (London School of Economics and Political Science), will reflect on the global space of social communications and interaction that has been constructed over the past three decades through a commercialised internet and the emergence of digital platforms whose business model depends on the extraction of data from their users and the shaping of user behaviour to optimise advertising value. Further information about the talk is here. Please register here.

UNA UK Conference
2025-04-12 10:30 - 17:00
On 12th April, 10:30-17:00, the UNA Conference Committee is organising the 2025 UNA Conference, to be held in London and online. It will include some keynote addresses, presentations, discussion sessions and opportunities to engage with UNA-UK staff. In-person attendance will cost £10; virtual attendance is free. More information is available here. Please register here. We need UNA-UK – and they need us! If you are not currently a paid-up member, do join! Details are on their website here.

Black Swans, White Swans and the Purple Transition
2025-04-26 10:30 | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 26th April, 10:30-12:30, UNA Harpenden will host a hybrid event at The Salvation Army, Harpenden, AL5 2TG on Black Swans, White Swans and the Purple Transition. The speaker on zoom, Dr Simon Michaux (Geological Survey of Finland), will consider the Purple Transition to phase out fossil fuels, based on the four foundation technologies: liquid fuel fission using thorium as the fuel; burning iron powder; ammonia-fuelled internal combustion engines; and electric vehicles, powered by alternative battery chemistries. Please register here.

Has the Trump Administration declared independence from the post-war international order and its institutions?
2025-04-26 12:30 - 14:00 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 26th April, 12:30-13:45, UNA Warwick are holding a hybrid meeting on Has the Trump Administration declared independence from the post-war international order and its institutions?, led by Professor Michael Cox, Founding Director of LSE IDEAS, who will speak on the current international geopolitics being shaped by the Trump administration. He will consider how Trump’s foreign policy in the next four years will affect multilateralism, international diplomacy and the role of the UN (with the US already having withdrawn from some of its Specialised Agencies). The meeting will be at Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RNor online withthis zoom link, meeting ID: 850 7054 1874 and Passcode: [REDACTED]

UN Mother Earth Day: The Environment, Capitalism, Peace and Justice
2025-04-26 13:30 - 17:00 | St. Peter’s Community Centre, Church Street, Bexhill, England, TN40 2HE, United Kingdom
On 26th April, 13:45-16:40, at St. Peter’s Community Centre, Church Street, Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, TN40 2HE, UNA Bexhill and Hastings invites you to a public seminar on UN Mother Earth Day: The Environment, Capitalism, Peace and Justice, looking at the tensions and connections between the environment and capitalism, and between peace and justice. For further information and to register, please contact the Chair.

Economy for the Common Good: An economy aligned with ethical values
2025-05-10 10:30 | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 10th May at 10:30, UNA Harpenden will be hosting a public lecture on Economy for the Common Good: An economy aligned with ethical values by Bridget Knapper, at the Salvation Army Hall, Leyton Green, Harpenden AL5 2TG. More information about the talk can be found at https://unaharpenden.wordpress.com/home/events/talk-20250510. Register at https://unaharpenden.wordpress.com/home/events/register.

The International System in the Age of Trump
2025-05-10 14:00 - 16:00 | The Old Auction House, The Old Auction House, Linden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells, TN2 5QL, United Kingdom
On 10th May, 14:00-16:00, in The Old Auction House, Linden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells TN2 5QL, UNA Tunbridge Wells and the Weald will hold a discussion on The International System in the Age of Trump, led by Mike Martin, MP, followed by the group’s AGM. For further information, please contact here.

The International System in the Age of Trump
2025-05-14 14:00 - 16:00
On 10th May, 14:00-16:00, in The Old Auction House, Linden Park Road, TN2 5QL, UNA Tunbridge Wells and the Weald will hold a discussion on The International System in the Age of Trump, led by Mike Martin, MP, followed by the group’s AGM. For further information, please contact here.

The UN: deconstruct to rebuild?
2025-05-17 12:00 - 14:00 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 17 May, 12:30-13:45, UNA Warwick are holding a hybrid meeting on The UN: deconstruct to rebuild? We are living in an age of unravelling, as prominent features of the past decades — including the United Nations — may be reaching the end of their lifespan. But people still need the UN: they just need it to do better. Natalie Samarinsinghe, former CEO of UNA-UK, will consider what roles the UN should play; what must be rebuilt, reimagined or replaced to meet the challenges of tomorrow; and how we can ensure bold, effective leadership at this critical juncture. This is more than a talk; it is an invitation to be part of a crucial dialogue about the future of global cooperation and peace. The meeting will be at Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RN or online with this zoom link, meeting ID: 883 6951 0768; passcode: [REDACTED]

International Day of UN Peacekeepers Conference and Wreath-laying
2025-05-22 | Royal United Services Institute, 61 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2ET, United Kingdom
On 22 May UNA Westminster will be holding its twenty-second annual International Day of UN Peacekeepers Conference and Wreath-laying, based at the Royal United Services Institute, 61 Whitehall, London SW1A 2ET. This morning-only conference will be hosted by the Royal United Services Institute, in association with Westminster UNA and UNA-UK. The conference will pause at 13:00 for the diplomatic wreath-laying ceremony at London’s Cenotaph in remembrance of UN Peacekeepers who lost their lives while in service. Please join us in Whitehall for the ceremony of wreath-laying by military attachés from all over the world, as – supported by a military band – they remember those from their countries who have given their lives as peacekeepers, wearing the UN blue beret.

UN Reform and the Veto
2025-05-22 18:00 - 19:30
On 22 May, 18:00-19:30, UNA Luton, with UNA Scotland, is hosting a webinar workshop on UN Reform and the Veto, led by Dr David Cheesman, on the Accountable Veto Resolution Initiative. To register, please follow this link. For further information, please contact the Vice Chair of UNA Scotland.

UNA Luton Women’s Peace Parade
2025-05-26 12:00 - 16:00
On 26 May, 12:00-16:00, in Luton Town Centre UNA Luton (with Purbachal – the Eastern Sky – and Nine Red Presents) will lead the UNA Luton Women’s Peace Parade in the Luton International Carnival. There will be banners of Equality, Diversity, Inclusion, Community, Cohesion; and a chorus sung by 20+ people, led by Debra Knight and Nazia Khanum, to inspire people locally, nationally and internationally to work to achieve sustainable gender equality. For more information or to join, please contact Dr Nazia Khanum.

The World Health Organisation - its role in promoting health & keeping people safe, and the impact of the USA leaving
2025-06-03 19:00 | Common Room, the Omnibus Theatre, 1 Clapham Common Northside, London, London, SW4 0QW, United Kingdom
On 3 June, 19:00, UNA Streatham and Clapham will host a hybrid talk on The World Health Organisation – its role in promoting health & keeping people safe, and the impact of the USA leaving, presented by David Heymann, former Executive Director of several WHO programmes. The event will be at the Common Room, the Omnibus Theatre, 1 Clapham Common Northside, London SW4 0QW. For more details contact Peter and Sarah Webster; register for a zoom link here.

Israel’s Treatment of the Palestinians
2025-06-14 10:30 - 12:30
On 14 June, 10:30-12:30, UNA Harpenden invites you to a public lecture at the Salvation Army, Leyton Green, Harpenden AL5 2TG on Israel’s Treatment of the Palestinians by David Harrold, Palestine Trauma Centre. He will consider how ordinary people are coping in the face of ethnic cleansing. Here is more about the talk and the speaker. Please register here.

Artificial Intelligence: Unleashing the Potential and Exploring the Limits
2025-06-17 19:00
On 17 June, 19:00, at The Old Auction House, The Pantiles, Linden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells TN2 5QL, UNA Tunbridge Wells and Wealden will present Artificial Intelligence: Unleashing the Potential and Exploring the Limits, with Grace Munyiri (founder of Cacumator Mentorship) and Tia Chang (Chief Data Officer, Gallagher). For more information and to book this free event, please go here.

How UNA London Trust can support projects and ideas for marking UN80
2025-06-18 19:30
On 18 June, 19:30, UNA London Trust is hosting a webinar to discuss how UNA London Trust can support projects and ideas for marking UN80. Please register for the webinar here. For further information, please contact Trust Chair, Catherine Pluygers.

LASER Summer Council, Marking UN80
2025-06-21 10:30 - 16:30 | Methodist Central Hall, Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, London, SW1H 9NH, United Kingdom
The UNA LASER Summer Council is being hosted by UNA Westminster on 21 June, 11:00-16:30, at Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, London SW1H 9NH. With the theme The United Nations at 80: challenging times for “We the Peoples”, this prestige event, located in the same building as the inaugural UN General Assembly meeting in January 1946, will mark the eightieth anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter in June 1945 in San Francisco.
The programme will feature presentations, discussion, film and the launch of the Wall of Peace on UN Green. (See below, in UNA Westminster’s events, how you can become a Founder Builder.) Speakers will include Professor Can Yeginsu (High Level Panel of Legal Experts on Media Freedom), Daniel Lurie (Mayor of San Francisco), and, probably, The Lord Mayor of Westminster and The Minister for the United Nations. Please register here for this free event.
On 21 June on UN Green, London SW1H 9NH, as part of the UNA LASER Summer Council (see above), UNA Westminster will launch their Wall of Peace. To become a Founder Builder of the Wall costs £20; register here.

Re-Making our NHS in-keeping with WHO’s ‘Health-for-All’ Policies
2025-07-05 13:30 - 16:30 | St Peter’s Community Centre, St Peter’s Community Centre, Bexhill TN41 2HE, United Kingdom
On 5 July, 13:30-16:30, at St Peter’s Community Centre, Bexhill-on-Sea, TN40 2HE, UNA Bexhill and Hastings is hosting an in-person meeting on Re-Making our NHS in-keeping with WHO’s ‘Health-for-All’ Policies, led by Sheila Kesby and a Representative from East Sussex Adult Health & Social Care. They will contribute to the Government’s 10-year NHS Plan by: historical review to right the wrongs of the past; re-developing community care to relieve hospital pressures; restoring the ethos of the 1946 NHS Act; and WHO’s ‘Heath-for-All’ policies 1978-2018. Please register with the Chair.

Nuclear Weapons still threaten us all TODAY! What can we do about it?
2025-07-12 12:30
On 12 July, 12:30, UNA Warwick is hosting a free hybrid conversation at Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa, CV32 4RN, led by Lauren Muir (UNA-UK), on Nuclear Weapons still threaten us all TODAY! What can we do about it?. Lauren will talk about UNA-UK’s disarmament work and campaigning strategy, as well as what practical steps we can take – as individuals and communities – to influence UK policy and global attitudes. As more countries enhance or expand their nuclear arsenals, the possibility of use – by design, miscalculation or accident – becomes disturbingly plausible. This is not just a foreign policy issue; it’s an existential challenge. To register or get the zoom link, please contact Gian Clare.
