Catherine Bertini is The Rockefeller Foundation Managing Director for Food, former Executive Director of the World Food Programme and World Food Prize Laureate (2003). We were delighted to have her join the Director of the Library & Archives, Francesco Pisano, for this episode to explore the question of food security and the vision of achieving zero hunger in an equitable world. The Rockefeller Foundation published a report last year providing an analysis of the current obstacles to food...

In this rich conversation with Professors Davide Rodogno and Carloyn Biltoft, we delve into a world of meaning making and examine the depth and breadth that history offers for policymaking. Davide Rodogno is professor of International History and Politics and the Head of the Interdisciplinary Master Programme at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. He specializes in researching international organizations and philanthropic foundations, and transnational...

Founder and Executive Director of Diplo Foundation, Dr. Jovan Kurbalija, takes us on a journey from the past to the present and across civilizations to explore the interplay of technology and diplomacy. Diplomacy and technology are at the heart of Diplo’s mission. Dr. Kurbalija emphasizes the importance of writing as a diplomatic tool and begins by telling us the story in the Sumerian poem “Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta”, recounting how Enmerkar invents writing on clay tablets to relieve...

We invited Itonde Kakoma, the new President and CEO of Interpeace,  to talk about the mission of Interpeace – an organization that had its origins in the UN and works to prevent violence and build lasting peace. Interpeace has over 30 years of experience working in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and Latin America.   In this conversation with the Director of the UN Library & Archives, Francesco Pisano, Itonde Kakoma talks about inclusive peacebuilding, a participatory approach and a...

A conversation with Under-Secretary-General Tatiana Molcean, Executive Secretary of UNECE The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is one of the five Regional Commissions of the United Nations. ECE was set up in 1947 to promote pan-European economic integration. Francesco Pisano met with UNECE’s new Executive Secretary, Ms. Tatiana Molcean for a conversation on the role of the Commission and how it serves multilateralism. They also talk about the vision for European economic...

Will we have a breakthrough or a breakdown? In this second episode with Adam Day, Head of the Geneva Office of the United Nations University Centre for Policy Research, we continue the exploration of the Six Transformative Shifts proposed by the High-Level Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism for a more secure and sustainable future. Adam Day talks with Francesco Pisano, Director of the Library & Archives about the second three shifts: digital and data governance, peace and...

In this and the following episode, we take a deep dive with Adam Day, Head of the Geneva Office of the United Nations University Centre for Policy Research, into the Six Transformative Shifts proposed by the High-Level Advisory Board (HLAB) on Effective Multilateralism for a more secure and sustainable future. Here, in part 1, Adam Day talks with Francesco Pisano, Director of the Library & Archives, about the first three shifts: rebuilding trust in multilateralism; planet and people; and...

We are starting our 2024 series with an episode with H.E. Mrs. Claudia Fuentes Julio, Permanent Representative of Chile. Ambassador Fuentes Julio talks about her interesting career path into diplomacy and representing her country. She tells us about the geography of Chile, bounded between the magnificent Andes and the vast Pacific Ocean, and she relates some of the history of Chile and its long connection with multilateralism, including as a founding Member of the United Nations. Where to...

In this end of year episode, Francesco Pisano, Director of the Library & Archives and senior managers Sigrun Habermann and Blandine Blukacz-Louisfert, find themselves on the other side of the table to talk about why knowledge matters in our times, whether libraries matter, what expertise we need and what digitization, technology and AI can mean for knowledge services.  Together, they come up with an innovative list of wishes to bring you advanced knowledge services for work and research...

A conversation with Ambassador Matthew Wilson As part of our ambassadors’ series, for this episode we invited the Permanent Representative of Barbados, Ambassador Matthew Wilson, to explore the role of Barbados in the Caribbean region and in the world today, and its enduring partnership with the UN over 40 years. Ambassador Wilson talks with Francesco Pisano, Director of the Library & Archives, providing us with a comprehensive insight into Barbados' fascinating history, its position as...

Le Monde d’ici commence ailleurs : coopérations utiles pour des temps compliqués Pour cet épisode, nous sommes ravis d’accueillir Isabelle Durant, ancienne Secrétaire générale adjointe de la Conférence des Nations Unies sur le Commerce et le Développement (CNUCED). Isabelle Durant est une femme politique belge, membre du parti Ecolo qu'elle dirigea à deux reprises, elle fut sénatrice et Vice-Première ministre fédérale en Belgique. Elle a été vice-présidente du Parlement européen pendant la 7e...

Futures of multilateralism – an applied research project on the challenge of transforming the global order   In this episode, three young researchers from the Graduate Institute in Geneva, Simfora Bangasimbo, Karim Achy, Sohini Chakrabarti talk about their applied research project on Futures of Multilateralism. The UN Office at Geneva and the Graduate Institute collaborate in several knowledge and research domains and this research project on futures of multilateralism was submitted by the...

A conversation with Swiss Youth Representative, Flora Chiper   This episode with Flora Chiper, Swiss UN Youth Representative for 2023-2025, explores the role of Youth Representatives and their current work, vision and hopes for multilateralism. Flora Chiper is multicultural and multilingual and brings a scientific perspective to the team of Swiss youth reps. She is currently a postgraduate student at the University of Basel, Department of Biomedicine Tissue Engineering Group and was...

A conversation with Ambassador Dušan Matulay This episode is part of our ambassadors’ series hosting Permanent Representatives of UN Member States in Geneva for conversations about the role of their countries in the UN and in the world. We invited the Permanent Representative of Slovakia, H.E. Mr. Dušan Matulay, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Slovakia’s membership in the UN. Ambassador Matulay talks with Francesco Pisano, Director of the Library & Archives and tells us more...

In this episode we continue our explorations in view of the Summit of the Future. The Summit of the Future (in 2024) will be a key moment to reaffirm and recommit to effective multilateralism in the interest of both people and the planet.   But how do we set out to redesign multilateralism and craft the future we all want in our era of ultra-rapid technological change? And how do we factor in our decisions of today the interests of future generations? Can we still rely solely on classical...

Our ambassadors’ series hosts Permanent Representatives of UN Member States for conversations about the role of their countries in the UN and in the world. In this episode we invited the Permanent Representative of Germany, Ambassador Dr. Katharina Stasch, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Germany’s membership in the UN. In 1973 there were two German states. The Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic were both admitted to membership in the United Nations fifty...

Corinne Momal-Vanian is the Executive Director of the Kofi Annan Foundation. Previously, she worked in various senior positions and a variety of countries for the United Nations, most recently as Director of Conference Management at the United Nations Office at Geneva (2015-2020) and Director of Information (2010-2015). We invited Corinne Momal-Vanian back to The Next Page for a conversation with the Director of the Library & Archives, Francesco Pisano to explore an intriguing topic: the...

Marcel Griaule, un ethnographe dans la diplomatie de l’entre-deux-guerres avec Yves Pourcher  Pour cet épisode, nous sommes ravis d’accueillir Yves Pourcher pour parler de Marcel Griaule, un anthropologue, explorateur et écrivain au destin particulier notamment parce qu’il est entré dans la diplomatie lors de la crise d'Abyssinie.  Yves Pourcher, professeur de science politique, a rassemblé plus de 50 textes de Marcel Griaule dans une publication, parue en 2023, intitulée Envahir l’Ethiopie....

In this episode, Davide Rodogno introduces his book Night on Earth, an account of international humanitarian programmes in Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and the Near East in the interwar period from 1918 to 1930. Professor Rodogno explains how concepts of international 'relief' and 'development' were deeply connected long before the existence of the United Nations. Through the conversation, we explore the long history of humanitarians operating in the region devastated by war and...

We invited Dr. Rebecca Adami, Associate Professor, Senior Lecturer at Stockholm University, Award winner of the 2022 Bertha Lutz Prize for highest quality public writing and research on women in diplomacy by the Diplomatic Studies Section (DPLST) of the International Studies Association (ISA), for a conversation around the role non-Western women had in shaping the UN system, from the UN Charter to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In this rich conversation, Dr. Adami shares with us...

Nous continuons notre série en lien avec le rapport du Secrétaire-général Notre programme commun, le Sommet pour les ODD, et le Sommet de l’avenir avec un épisode qui souligne l’importance de mettre l’égalité des genres au cœur de l’architecture multilatérale. Pour cet épisode, nous avons invité Marie-Cécile Naves, Directrice de recherche et Directrice de l‘Observatoire « Genre et géopolitique » à l’Institut de Relations Internationales et Stratégiques (IRIS) afin qu’elle nous parle de son...

In this episode, we met with Richard Gowan, UN Director at International Crisis Group (ICG) to get his perspective on current issues and trends in multilateralism. He shared his thoughts on reasons for optimism and pessimism about the way multilateralism is functioning, the ways in which it is evolving and the values on which it stands. We also talked about the UN, possibilities of reform, the SDGs, the Secretary-General’s report Our Common Agenda and the Summit for the Future. Richard also...

In this episode we explore a recent report of the High-Level Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism - A Breakthrough for People and Planet: Effective and Inclusive Global Governance for Today and the Future (United Nations University, 2023) - which offers a pathway to revitalize the multilateral system in view of the Summit of the Future. The Summit of the Future will be a key moment to reaffirm and recommit to effective multilateralism in the interest of both people and the planet. Adam...

UN Assistant Secretary-General Nikhil Seth, Executive Director of UNITAR, joined Francesco Pisano for a conversation about knowledge and learning for multilateralism in this 60th anniversary year of UNITAR. UNITAR was created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1963 and started operating in March 1965.The Institute originally had its headquarters in New York and a European Office in Geneva. In 1993, UNITAR’s headquarters were moved to Geneva. Over the past decades the Institute has...