Current Resources
What’s Happening and What’s Harkening
Across the Sectors
Migrants in a detention center. Image Tom Westcott/IRIN
1. United NationsYear in Review 2016“2016…yet another year of challenges for the UN…” Watch the 16 minute overview of some of the greatest challenges last year and how the UN and the world community responded. Click
HERE for the trailer. We encourage you to take some time to watch and reflect on this review.
In Case You Missed ItThis is a bi-weekly update that allows you to quickly review some of the noteworthy news and developments that have taken place in the UN system. It includes links for documents, stories, and archived audio and video files.
UN Department of Public Information-Non Governmental OrganizationsThis UN agency provides information on UN-related events, oriented especially for civil society and non-government organizations. Current example:
Briefing on Education for Global Citizenship is a live streamed event from UN New York, 16 February 15:00-16:45 Eastern Time (video may be archived in due course).
Meet the UN Secretary-General, António GuterresHave a look at the new Secretary-General’s first message on peace (two minute video).
2. Development Sector
"15-year-old Nageeba was married at 14, and is now pregnant.
She lives in rural Taiz Province, Yemen." Image Amal Mamoon/IRIN
Guardian Global Development Professionals Network“[This is a] space for NGOs, aid workers and development professionals to share knowledge and expertise.” You can sign up to receive the
Guardian’s stories/updates or access them directly online. Current example:
Obsession with Ending Poverty is Where Development is Going Wrong, 8 February 2017, article by Efosa Ojomo. “Almost all development projects focus on alleviating poverty rather than creating prosperity. This is a fundamental flaw...”
Overseas Development Institute (ODI)Weekly Events Update and Bi-Monthly Newsletter (sign up at the top of the home page) Current example of resource:
10 Things to Know about how to Influence Policy with Research (January 2017—user friendly, fast-read overview)
Peace and Community Development Network (PCDN) Daily Digest and Weekly Newsletter. PCDN is a growing network with over “35,500 professionals, organizations and students engaged in social change, peacebuilding, social entrepreneurship, development and related fields…to inspire, connect, inform and provide the tools and resources to scale social change.” (quote from website) Register as a member for free on their website and request to receive the
Daily Digest or
Weekly Newsletter with updates on career, funding, events, and professional opportunities. Current example:
Development Assistance for Peacebuilding, Policy Brief (three pages) from the
United Nations University-WIDER (World Institute for Development Economics Research).
DevexGlobal Development Weekly Newsletter
Devex describes itself as the “media platform for the global development community. The social enterprise working to make the $200 billion aid and development industry do more good for more people. The largest provider of recruiting and business development services for global development….We connect and inform over 1 MILLION development, health, humanitarian, and sustainability professionals through news, business intelligence, and funding & career opportunities so you can do more good for more people.” (quote from website). To sign up for free and to receive the regular updates, click
HERE. Current example of resource:
Update on the ONE Campaign (anti-poverty advocacy).3. Humanitarian Sector
Humans who are internally displaced in Afghanistan. Image Bilal SarwearyIRIN
World Economic ForumA 10 Step Manifesto for the World’s Humanitarians (18 November 2016, by Neal Keny-Guyer, CEO, Mercy Corps). “We believe (as prophets have proclaimed) that the long arc of history bends toward justice, equality and dignity... and that we each have a responsibility to accelerate the pace and flatten the curve - regardless of our politics, faith traditions, national origin, race, ethnicity, or any other characteristic of identity. Headwinds may blow; storm clouds may gather. That's when we get going.” (quote from this short article)
Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and ProtectionOnline Learning Series on Humanitarian Law and Protection
Legal Protection for Internally Displaced People (21 February 2017, 12:00-14:00 Eastern Time). This online session features Cecilia Jimenez, recently appointed Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), and Jean-François Durieux. It introduces the legal frameworks pertaining to IDPs. “Protracted conflicts such as those in Syria, Iraq, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and elsewhere, often combined with natural disasters and food crises, have contributed to an unprecedented number of people fleeing their homes – many being displaced within their own countries. The estimated number of IDPs in the world is currently double that of the number of refugees. However, while the causes for their displacement can often be the same, refugees and IDPs are not provided the same protection under international legal frameworks.” (quote from announcement)
Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Network (MHPSS)Ensuring MHPSS for Gender-Based Violence Survivors (online webinar, 21 February 9:00 Eastern Time) This webinar presents the newly revised
Guidelines for Integrating Gender-Based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Settings (2015). To register for the webinar send an email with your name, organization, country location to
sabrina@mhpss.net. Space is limited—register as soon as possible.
Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HPNW, 6-10 Feb 2017, Geneva)
HNPW is hosted by the Swiss Government and co-chaired by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). It brings humanitarian organizations and colleagues together for discussion, debate, sharing resources, cooperation, and further strategizing about how to address the substantive issues facing the humanitarian sector/world. Two resources: The
Humanitarian Disability Charter and the
OCHA Year in Review 2016 (about five minutes, interactive presentation).
UN Interagency Standing Committee (IASC)Monthly Newsletter. Humanitarian information and updates related to the IASC’s work. You can sign up for the monthly newsletter
HERE. Current example of resources: Featured on the home page of the IASC website is the video interview with Jaime McGoldrick, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, on
leadership and best practices in humanitarian action (part of the Humanitarian STAITment video series).
4. Health and Mental Health Sector
"Military policeman in Iraq's largest church, severely damaged, in Qaraqosh Iraq..."
Image Tom Westcott/IRIN
Geneva Global Health Hub (G2H2)G2H2 Newsletter. G2H2 is a membership-based association based in Geneva. It enables civil society to meet, share knowledge and create initiatives to advocate for more democratic global health governance. Current example of a resource on the website is the call for case studies for the
Global Health Watch 5 (fifth edition). “The Global Health Watch [GHW] is an alternative World Health Report that incorporates the voices of marginalized people and civil society into discussions around social justice and global health.” (quote from the GHW website)
Five on Friday: Musings on Mental HealthKathleen Pike, Global Mental Health Program, Columbia University
This weekly update includes five brief items on mental health. The latest edition (11 February 2017) shares five examples of research and clinical work in low-middle income countries. “In most low-income countries, less than 1 psychiatrist exists per 100,000 people, and national budgets spend less than $1 per person on mental health. But mental illnesses are just as common in low-income countries as they are in high-income countries - and even higher in regions plagued with war, conflict and displacement. Illustrating the kernel of truth that necessity is the mother of invention, there has been an explosion of innovation in low-income settings to advance desperately needed mental health services.” Sign up
HERE.
International Psychology, Division 52 of the American Psychological Association
Bulletin (quarterly). Click
HERE for the current issue of the
Bulletin (Winter 2017). To sign up for the weekly summary of news items, contact:
merrybullock@intl-psych.org. Two current examples of free webinars: Leadership Network Webinars series,
Perspectives on Internationalizing Leadership in Psychology through Teaching and Curriculum Development (17 February 2017, 17:30-18:30 Eastern Time) presented by Richard Velayo, Pace University; and
Screening and Interviewing with Refugees: Understanding Trauma and the Mental Health Needs, 17 February 2017, 12:00-13:00 Eastern Time, organized by Division 52 and Division 56, Trauma Psychology).
