United Nations Association London and South-East Region

UNA Bexhill and Hastings AGM
2024-02-24 13:00 UTC
On 24th February, 13:15, at the Quaker Meeting House, Bexhill-on-Sea, TN40 1DG, UNA Bexhill and Hastings are hosting their AGM, followed at 14:00 by a public seminar on Refugees & Migrants and Local Communities, with speakers Sheila Kesby, Barbara Echlin and Bea Rogers discussing how to unite our local communities to welcome refugees and migrants. Please register here.

International Mother Language Day Celebrations
2024-02-25 16:00 - 18:00
On 25th February, 16:00-18:00, UNA Luton is holding a webinar on Purbachal – the Eastern Sky, celebrating International Mother Language Day, which will combine talks, poetry, recitation, singing and a film, with cultural and faith diversity. Contributors include the Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, Luton Sixth Form College Principal and CEO, local MPs and Mayor. The celebration aims to raise awareness of the importance of multilingual education in the early years, promoting respect for diversity and peace. For further information, please contact here. The zoom link is here.

Avoiding a Broader Middle East War – Building Bridges for Peace Between Israel and Palestine
2024-02-27 18:00 - 20:00
On 27 February, 18:00-20:00, Uniting for Peace are holding their annual Spring Conference (online) on Avoiding a Broader Middle East War – Building Bridges for Peace Between Israel and Palestine, focusing on cultivating harmony. Speakers include Sarah Leah Whitson (Arab World Now), Jonathan Kuttab (Al-Haq and non-Violence International), Tony Greenstein (Palestine Solidarity Campaign), Vijay Mehta (Uniting for Peace), Ahmad Shahidov (Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights). Please register here or use this direct zoom link.

Dag Hammarskjöld's plane crash: The Continuing Search for Truth
2024-02-29 10:30 - 17:00
On 29th February, 10:30 – 17:00, UNA Westminster is hosting an all-day online conference on Dag Hammarskjöld’s plane crash: The Continuing Search for Truth. Our speakers at this all-day online conference will set out the landscape in which the UN inquiry has had to work, the obstacles it has faced, and identify those issues which deserve further and urgent attention. Please register here.

Strengthening Women’s Organisations at Grassroots Level
2024-03-05 19:30 | The Community Church, Werter Road, London, England, London SW15 2LL, United Kingdom
On 5th March, 19:30, at The Community Church, Werter Road, London SW15 2LL (opposite Sainsbury’s), SLUNA is holding an International Women’s Day event, Strengthening Women’s Organisations at Grassroots Level, chaired by Catherine Pluygers, Wandsworth UNA, with convenor Gillian Dare, former diplomat. The speaker will be Sierra Schraff Thomas, Womankind Worldwide. There will be refreshments. For further information, please contact Robert and Meena Storey or Catherine Pluygers.

Political Economy, Internationalism and British thinking about the world
2024-03-09 10:30 | Salvation Army Hostel, Leyton Green, AL5 2TG, Salvation Army Hostel, Leyton Green, AL5 2TG, Leyton Green, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On Saturday 9th March, 10:30, at the Salvation Army, Harpenden AL5 2TG, UNA Harpenden is hosting a talk by Professor David Egerton, Hans Rausing Professor of the History of Science and Technology and of Modern History at King’s College, on Political Economy, Internationalism and British Thinking. This talk will suggest there was a distinctive British way of thinking about peace and war, often unrecognised by practitioners and critics. Please use this link to register for the talk. If you plan to hurry home after the talk, to join (most of) our Policy Conference online, don’t forget to register here!

LASER Policy Conference
2024-03-09 12:00 | Bermondsey Village Hall, Kirby Grove, London, SE1 3TD
Our 2024 Policy Conference will be held at Bermondsey Village Hall, London SE1 3TD – and online – on 9th March, starting at 12 noon. If you want to join by zoom, please register here. Registrations for attending at the hall are here.
This is your chance to help decide what stance the Region should take on a wide range of international issues. Resolutions need to be on an international topic and must call for action by the UK government or the UN. They can also set out background facts or statements of concern that you would like the Region to support, and they can be put forward by UNA Groups or individual members. You can see our current resolutions – for inspiration and for the framework we use – here. New resolutions need to be 175 words or fewer in total. You can also suggest amendments to existing resolutions which should add not more than 75 words to the total length of the resolution.
If there are no objections, the Policy Committee will make minor edits (to bring them up to date) to Resolutions:
– 7. Financial levy for clean water (remove reference to the 2016 US election)
– 8. Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) (remove reference to the Chief Executive election May 2022)
-12. Nuclear weapons (remove reference to June 2022 conference).
The following need updating because things have moved on. We would welcome proposals to help the Policy Committee prepare a draft of a new policy for Resolutions:
– 9. How did Dag Hammarskjold die?
– 14. Our world after the pandemic
– 17. Proposed laws restricting boycotts, divestment or sanctions
– 20. Refugees and Asylum Seekers in London hotels and elsewhere
– 21. Second Voluntary National Review of the UN Sustainable Development Goals
The Policy Committee will prepare new merged and updated draft resolutions on which amendments can be submitted in the second round of submissions (by 26th February) on:
– Climate Change (combining Resolutions 4, 5, and the AGM Resolutions)
– Israel/Palestine (combining Resolutions 15, 29, AGM Resolution)
– Ukraine
Please send in draft policy resolutions to our Policy Committee Chair by 5pm on Monday 29th January. We shall then share the draft agenda with you in the February Pulse for which you will be able to send in amendments by 26th February.

unveiling of a plaque
2024-03-16 10:30
On 16th March, 10:30, UNA Wandsworth, with the Putney Society, invites you to join them outside Southfields Library for the unveiling of a plaque by Fleur Anderson, MP, followed by a talk by Robin Gerber, to commemorate Eleanor Roosevelt’s formative years in Southfields, where she attended Allenswood School. For further information, please contact the principal organiser.

20th Annual Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen International Law Lecture
2024-03-19 18:30 | Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre, Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre, SOAS, England, WC1B 5DQ, United Kingdom
On 19th March, 18:30, at the Alumini Lecture Theatre at SOAS, UNA Westminster, with the Bar Council of England and Wales and the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy at SOAS, is holding its 21st Annual International Law Lecture, on Where are we in combatting impunity? to be presented by Professor Kingsley Abbott of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies. With authoritarianism, instability and conflict on the rise globally, do we have an impossible task? Or are there hopeful signs in the increased use of universal jurisdiction and the rise of a new generation of accountability mechanisms created by UN bodies (including the UN Human Rights Council)? There will be a wine reception following the lecture. Admission free. For full information and to register, please click here.

Israel/Gaza: impacts, human rights and routes to peace
2024-03-21 07:30 - 20:30
On 21st March, 19:00 – 20:30, Amnesty Central England Network are holding an online panel discussion on Israel/Gaza: impacts, human rights and routes to peace. Panellists include Dr Marwan Darweish, Dr Samah Jabr, Professor Lynne Segal, with Chair Dr Alan Kessedjian. They would welcome people linked to UNA. Please register here.

Challenges for Humanitarian Action in Conflicts
2024-03-23 12:30 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 23rd March, 12:30, at the Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RN, UNA Warwick are holding a hybrid meeting on Challenges for Humanitarian Action in Conflicts, with speaker Dr Martin Barber, UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. In an armed conflict, the safety, dignity, and livelihoods of civilian populations is the most pressing action and yet often the most difficult to ensure. The zoom link is here.

Reflections of an International Criminal Court Prosecutor
2024-03-27 18:30 | University of Greenwich, Room 002, King William Court, London, England, SE10 9LS, United Kingdom
On 27th March, 18:30, in Room 002 King William Court, University of Greenwich, SE10 9LS, UNA Blackheath and Greenwich, with Greenwich University, is holding a talk on Reflections of an International Criminal Court Prosecutor by Her Excellency Dr Fatou Bensouda, High Commissioner for Gambia and former Chief Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC). She will not only remind us of some of the important interventions and prosecutions during her time as ICC Prosecutor, but also consider its role in some key present global challenges. Please register here.

The Problems of Governing a Neoliberal Britain
2024-04-13 10:30 - 12:30 | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 13th April, 10:30-12:30, UNA Harpenden are holding a pubic meeting with a talk on The problems of governing a neoliberal Britain by Professor Gwyn Bevan, London School of Economics and Political Science, at the Salvation Army, Leyton Green, Harpenden AL5 2TG. After the talk, a few of us will be going for lunch with the speaker at Pasta Cibo. Register at https:/bit.ly/una-harpenden-events-register.

Study Visit to the UN Centre in Vienna
2024-04-15 - 2024-04-19
On 15-19 April, UNA Westminster is organising a 5-day, 6-night Study Visit to the UN Centre in Vienna, host to several important UN agencies and programmes, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and respected Think Tanks. For further information, please email here.

UNA Eastbourne on Apartheid, Arms, Activism
2024-04-19 18:30 | Eastbourne Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Eastbourne Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Eastbourne, England, BN21 1LQ, United Kingdom
On 19th April, 18:30, UNA Eastbourne invites you to a free speaker event being held by Eastbourne Palestine Solidarity Campaign on Apartheid, Arms, Activism at Emmanuel Church, Eastbourne BN21 1LQ. Speakers will be Andrew Feinstein and Dr Yara Hawari. Palestinian snacks will be served. For further information, please email here.

Our Travel Guardians: How a UN Technical Agency Shapes Travel Security
2024-04-27 12:30 - 14:00 | Online
On 27th April, 12:30-13:45, UNA Warwick is holding a hybrid meeting at the Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RN on Our Travel Guardians: How a UN Technical Agency Shapes Travel Security, looking at the work of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The speaker will be Alejandra Gentil, St Andrew’s University. To join online, go here.

The Dwindling Christian Palestinian Presence in the Holy Land, by Sir Vincent Fean
2024-05-04 10:30 | St Margaret’s Church, Twickenham, England, TW1 1RL, United Kingdom
On 4th May, 10:30, UNA Twickenham and Richmond invites you to join a breakfast talk at St Margaret’s Church, Twickenham TW1 1RL, organised by the Twickenham Repair Centre on The Dwindling Christian Palestinian Presence in the Holy Land, by Sir Vincent Fean, former British Consul-General in Jerusalem. Suggested donation £10. Please book here.

Online Meeting of UNA London Trust
2024-05-08 19:30 - 21:00 | Online
The UNA London Trust has funds to support groups. They are holding on online meeting on 8th May, 19:30-21:00 to discuss: how they work; what types of project you think it’s important for them to fund; their application process. Please register here.

Preventing Child Deaths in Africa
2024-05-11 10:30 - 13:00 | Salvation Army Hall, Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, AL5 2TG, United Kingdom
On 11th May, 10:30-13:00, UNA Harpenden is hosting a free talk on Preventing Child Deaths in Africa by Hefin Rees, Harpenden Spotlight on Africa, at the Salvation Army Hall, Harpenden AL5 2TG. The talk will be followed by the AGM. If you are interested in standing for a place on the committee, please contact the Chair. To attend the event, please register here.
Note: In the above image, Africa is shaded according to the geometric mean rank of the composite child-health index (blue = healthiest, green = unhealthiest), from data taken from maplibrary.org.

International Day of UN Peacekeepers 20th Annual Conference
2024-05-23 10:00 - 16:00 | Royal United Services Institute, 61 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2ET, United Kingdom
On 23rd May, 10:00-16:00, UNA Westminster is holding its International Day of UN Peacekeepers 20th Annual Conference at the Royal United Services Institute, Whitehall, SW1A 2ET, addressing: Host-nation consent; Cyprus at 60; Caring for the Peacekeepers. The conference will pause at 13:00 for the Diplomats’ Wreath-Laying Ceremony at the Cenotaph. Lunch will be provided. Please register here for the free conference. No need to register to join us on Whitehall for the moving Ceremony of Commemoration for those who have lost their lives when peacekeeping with the United Nations.

UNA Warwick District on UN & Multilateral and Multidimensional Peacekeeping Operations - Are they fit for purpose?
2024-05-25 12:30 - 14:00 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 25th May, 12:30-13:45, UNA Warwick is holding a hybrid meeting at the Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RN on UN & Multilateral and Multidimensional Peacekeeping Operations – Are they fit for purpose? The speaker will be Dr Jair Van Der Lijn, Stockholm International Peace and Research Institute (SIPRI). To join online, go here.

Annual Women’s Carnival Peace Parade
2024-05-27 13:00 - 16:00 | St George’s Square, Luton, London, SW1V 2HP, United Kingdom
On 27th May, 13:00-16:00, starting at St George’s Square, Luton, next to Luton Town Hall, UNA Luton would welcome participation in their Annual Women’s Carnival Peace Parade, a well-established part of the Luton International Carnival, to give a message of peace to the multi-cultural audience at Europe’s largest one-day street festival. For further information, please contact UNA Luton Chair.

Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel
2024-06-01 10:30 - 11:30 | Quaker Meeting House, 12 Southdown Road, Harpenden, England, AL5 1PD, United Kingdom
On 1st June, 10:30-11:30, UNA Harpenden is hosting a free talk on Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel at the Quaker Meeting House AL5 1PD by Peter Segal, founder of St Albans Friends of Palestine. The effectiveness and challenges of the BDS campaign against Israel will be examined in the context of the achievements and experience of the BDS movement against apartheid in South Africa. To attend the free event, please register here.
The event will be followed, at 11:30 by the Annual Garden Party. Cost £5 per person. Please register here and say whether you will bring a savoury and/or a sweet dish.

How to Foster Resilience to Environmental Change
2024-06-05 19:00
On 5th June, 19:00, UNA Cardiff and District is hosting a free webinar on How to Foster Resilience to Environmental Change, with speaker Abid Mehmood, researcher and teacher in climate change. Here is the link.

UNA Eastbourne AGM
2024-06-18 17:30 - 19:00
On 18th June, 17:30 – 19:00 UNA Eastbourne will hold its hybrid AGM at Room 116, East Sussex College, ECAT House, Cross Levels Way, BN21 2UF. The zoom link is here. For further information, please contact their Chair.

Awareness-Raising on Autism
2024-06-18 19:00 - 21:00
On 18th June, 19:00 – 21:00, UNA Luton is holding a webinar on Awareness-Raising on Autism, with speakers Dr Nazia Khanum and Mehedy Kabir and a Bengali film, Bornil Sutor Setu (A Bridge of Threads of Many Colours) with English subtitles. The event will raise awareness about autism through this film based on a real-life family story. There will be discussion on socio-economic challenges and possible improvements in equitable access to services. Please join the meeting here, with Meeting ID 810 5817 2682 and Passcode [REDACTED]. If you are not able to attend this webinar but would like to see the film, please contact the Chair for a link.
Forthcoming UNA Luton events include:

Conflicts, Peace & Remembering Srebrenica on 31st July, 18:00 – 20:00
Options for Public Investment in Social Housing on 20th September, 17:00 – 19:00

The UNA London Trust on How they work
2024-06-19 19:30 - 21:00
On 19th June, 19:30-21:00 the UNA London Trust is hosting a webinar for people to: learn how the Trust works; discuss what types of project/work you think they should support; walk through their application process. Please register here.

LASER Summer Council 2024
2024-06-22
Here is your final reminder to register for the free LASER Summer Council, Ploughshares into Swords!, on 22nd June at 11:00 for 11:30 at St Peter’s Community Centre, Bexhill-on-Sea. This is our annual chance to meet, hosted by a local group, in a different part of our Region and to focus together on some important aspect of UN activity. This year UNA Bexhill and Hastings are leading us to focus on the UN’s work in creating a more peaceful world and how it can be made more effective. We are delighted that Alyn Ware, Founder and Director of LAW not War, will be joining Emeritus Professor Richard Sakwa as our keynote speakers. (Lord David Hannay has had to withdraw because of the convention for crossbench peers during an election campaign.) Further details are here. The briefing and programme are here. The draft Peace Policy Statement for discussion in the workshops is here.
Please come and help shape the UNA and Bexhill draft Peace Policy Statement. Register here. Please bring a packed lunch. Apply here if you need help with the travel costs. Face to face discussion will be an important part of the day, but, if you are not able to attend in-person, register here and you will be sent a zoom link.

Election hustings at Mycenae House
2024-06-25 18:30 - 19:00 | Mycenae House, 90 Mycenae Road, London, England, SE3 7SE, United Kingdom
On 25th June, 18:45 for 19:00, UNA Blackheath and Greenwich is hosting an election hustings at Mycenae House, 90 Mycenae Road, SE3 7SE. For further information, please contact the Chair (also 0208 858 8489) and LASER.

General Election – Question Time
2024-06-29 12:30 - 14:00 | Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa,, England, CV32 4RN, United Kingdom
On 29th June, 12:30 – 14:00, UNA Warwick are hosting a General Election – Question Time at the Leamington Spa Baptist Church, CV32 4RN. Please send questions to the Chair.
