United Nations Regional Information Centre
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The United Nations Regional Information Centre (UNRIC) is one of 63
United Nations Information Centres United Nations Information Centres (UNIC) is an organization which was established in 1946. Its headquarters is situated at New York, USA, and it currently works worldwide in 63 countries. These centres are managed by the United Nations to exchan ...
(UNICs) around the world. Their main task is to spread the UN message,
raise awareness Consciousness raising (also called awareness raising) is a form of activism popularized by United States feminists in the late 1960s. It often takes the form of a group of people attempting to focus the attention of a wider group on some cause or ...
and create understanding of issues relating to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
' objectives. UNRIC serves the Western European Region by providing and disseminating UN information material, UN reports and documents, press kits, posters, fact sheets and brochures. The intention is to reach out to all segments of society and therefore the UNRIC Reference Library is open to all inquiries about the UN via telephone, e-mail and post. UN documents and publications are available in English, French and Spanish, but some material is also available in other European languages. UNRIC maintains websites in 13 languages of the region: Danish, English, French, Finnish, German, Greek, Icelandic, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese, Swedish and Spanish. Each version presents basic information on the UN, its structure, goals, main documents, affiliated agencies, employment/internship opportunities and main areas of work. Moreover, it gives information about the most important UN related events, activities and
international observances Lists of holidays by various categorizations. Religious holidays Abrahamic holidays (Middle Eastern) Jewish holidays * Chag HaMatzot (Feast of Unleavened Bread – 7 days of consumption of matzo with wine and avoidance of leavened food ...
, as well as the programs of UNRIC and the UN family in the region. UNRIC organizes information projects or campaigns with key partners, including governments, the media,
NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...
, educational institutions and local authorities.


Countries served

On 1 January 2004, the United Nations Regional Information Centre opened in
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, replacing the previous United Nations Information Centres in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...
,
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
,
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, Lisbon,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
,
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
and
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
which ceased operations on 31 December 2003. It has since provided services to the following Western European countries: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The United Nations also maintains information centres in other European Union states as well. The centre in
Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
serves Switzerland and also coordinates with the Geneva-based United Nations offices to inform the world about the importance of the organization in world affairs. The centre in Prague serves the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
, while the centre in Warsaw serves
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. Meanwhile, the centre in
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
liaises between the
United Nations Office at Vienna The United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV) is one of the four major office sites of the United Nations where numerous different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the ...
and the world, as well as serving
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
,
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
,
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
and
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
.


Desk Officers

The main duty of a Desk Officer is the promotion of the UN system and its work in the country/countries of her/his responsibility. This can be achieved through the implementation of information campaigns, the dissemination of information materials and the publication of op-eds written by UN officials. A Desk Officer is also responsible for arranging interviews, organizing press conferences and briefings and for monitoring the press coverage of UN issues. The duties of a Desk Officer include the production of print information materials and the cooperation with key civil society partners at the national and regional level.


Reference library

The UNRIC library maintains a collection of UN documents and publications in English, French and Spanish, as well as general information material about the work of the United Nations. The library provides reference services via e-mail or telephone and is open to the public.


Campaigns and projects


CoolPlanet2009

Cool Planet 2009 is the UN's European information campaign on climate change. The CoolPlanet website is the centrepiece of UNRIC's campaign, geared at generating interest and involvement in
climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
issues in Europe and to mobilize citizens in support of a new climate agreement in
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
in December 2009. The Wall of Events on the website is a marketplace for European ideas, innovations and projects. People can post their own climate initiatives and see what others are doing in Europe. The web page was launched on 26 February 2006 by the Prime Minister of Iceland
Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir (; born 4 October 1942) is an Icelandic politician, who served as prime minister of Iceland from 2009 to 2013. She became active in the trade union movement, serving as an officer. Elected as an MP from 1978 to 2013, ...
on behalf of the Prime Ministers of the five Nordic countries at the Nordic Globalization Forum at the Blue Lagoon in Iceland. Coolplanet2009 has joined forces with numerous "Cool Friends and Partners", such as
Yann Arthus-Bertrand Yann Arthus-Bertrand (born 13 March 1946) is a French environmentalist, activist, journalist and photographer. He has also directed films about the impact of humans on the planet. He is especially well known for his book ''Earth from Above'' (19 ...
and Good Planet, the Icelandic rock band Sigur Rós, Björk's NGO Náttúra, and the three chairwomen of the Road to Copenhagen:
Margot Wallström Margot Elisabeth Wallström (; born 28 September 1954) is a Swedish politician of the Swedish Social Democratic Party who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2014 to 2019 and Minister for Nordic Coope ...
, Vice President of the European Commission;
Gro Harlem Brundtland Gro Brundtland (; born Gro Harlem, 20 April 1939) is a Norwegian politician ( Arbeiderpartiet), who served three terms as the 29th prime minister of Norway (1981, 1986–89, and 1990–96) and as the director-general of the World Health Organizat ...
, UN Special Envoy on Climate Change; and
Mary Robinson Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( ga, Máire Mhic Róibín; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who was the 7th president of Ireland, serving from December 1990 to September 1997, the first woman to hold this office. Prior to her electi ...
, former President of Ireland. CoolPlanet2009 is the European branch of the global UN campaign Seal the Deal. CoolPlanet is also promoting the Seal the Deal in Europe through the concept "Wear Seal the Deal" in partnership with the Belgian designer Jean-Paul Knott. The concept features downloadable Seal the Deal campaign tools based on a do-it-yourself philosophy and includes Seal the Deal postcards, pins and T-shirts.


Seal the Deal 2009

The UN-led global campaign Seal the Deal seeks to encourage governments to successfully conclude a fair, balanced and effective climate agreement at the Copenhagen climate conference from 7–18 December 2009. The campaign was launched on 5 June 2009, World Environment Day. The Seal the Deal campaign aims to raise awareness on climate change and to emphasize that public pressure from around the globe is important to make politicians reach a deal by the time the meeting ends on December 18. To gather public support the Seal the Deal campaign encourages users to sign an online global petition which will be presented to world leaders. The petition will serve as a reminder that world leaders must negotiate a fair, balanced and effective agreement in Copenhagen, and that they must seal a deal to power
green growth Green growth is a term to describe a hypothetical path of economic growth that is environmentally sustainable. It is based on the understanding that as long as economic growth remains a predominant goal, a decoupling of economic growth from resou ...
, protect our planet and build a more sustainable, prosperous global economy that will benefit all nations and all people.


Human Rights Education

Human Rights Education Human rights education (HRE) is the learning process that seeks to build up knowledge, values, and proficiency in the rights that each person is entitled to. This education teaches students to examine their own experiences from a point of view t ...
is an UNRIC campaign that began in 2009 to celebrate the International Year for Learning Human Rights. The web-based campaign is to be a marketplace of ideas for teachers and students where they can download and access material, exchange experiences about teaching and studying human rights, and find contacts, links, partners as well as a wide variety of other practical and relevant information.


Cartooning for Peace

The power and the responsibility of political cartooning was illustrated by the
Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد;  570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
cartoon debacle and the controversial cartoon exhibition on the Holocaust in Iran. Conceived by the French cartoonist Plantu, ‘Cartooning for Peace’ was born on 16 October 2006 at the UN Headquarters in New York. Twelve of the most renowned political cartoonists from all over the world participated in a two-day conference to help us ‘Unlearn intolerance.’ The conference was accompanied by an exhibition. A movement was born.


Development Policy Forum

The Development Policy Forum (DPF) is a partnership between the Brussels-based think tank ‘Friends of Europe,’ the World Bank, the United Nations, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Zusammenarbeit (GTZ). Support also comes from the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and an association with the European Commission Directorate General for Development and Relations with African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP). The goal of the partnership is to systematically address forthcoming challenges in the area of development policy through lively debates and written analyses. The aims of the DPF are to: * Raise awareness of development issues * Promote debate on topical and interlinked political, economic and social matters * Bring together political authorities, members of national, international and European development organisations, commentators and business representatives to discuss and debate development questions


CINE-ONU

CINE-ONU is an event organized by UNRIC on a regular basis (usually once a month). It is open to the public and it is one of the most successful initiatives of UNRIC in Brussels. Its success has grown over the past few years and it is expected that in the near future it will reach an even larger audience. CINE-ONU involves the screening of a film relevant to a specific UN issue, followed by a debate with reputed speakers - either connected to the film, to the issue in question, or to both. Often, CINE-ONU is organized to raise awareness of a UN International Day and the issues involved (for example, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women). CINE-ONUs are announced around two weeks in advance, via an internal mailing list, online platforms promoting similar events, and/or by putting up posters in universities and cultural centres. The purpose of CINE-ONU is to raise awareness and spark debate on UN-specific issues. It often offers the opportunity to its participants to see premieres of highly acclaimed documentaries and address questions to senior UN officials or other personalities.


''UNRIC Magazine''

''UNRIC Magazine'' provides an overview of UN-related events taking place in Western Europe. It also contains opinion pieces written by senior UN officials, an interview of the month, background material on recent major UN initiatives, an article from one of the staff members at UNRIC, new appointments and report launches. The magazine is published every month.


UN international days and observances


References


External links

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