For its annual International Women’s Day special, Voice Mail has invited Stephanie Copus Campbell, Australia’s Ambassador for Gender Equality, to talk about her wide-ranging portfolio and how the postal sector plays into it.

Dr Léonard Laborie, Historian at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), UMR SIRICE, discusses how and why the UPU emerged as a forerunner of global connectivity, how it shaped and was shaped by international politics, and why cooperation among postal operators will remain the key to the organisation’s lasting vitality.

Technology and integration are redefining the postal market. In quest of ways to diversify their services and remain competitive, posts, big and small, are forging new partnerships and adopting unconventional, high-tech solutions which help them generate new revenue streams and improve customer experience. In October 2023, the UPU brought together seasoned postal experts and senior executives within a new format of its World Leaders Forum to get a first-hand account of this new postal...

Patricia Lieberman, Head of Philately at Austrian Post, and Michael Dorner, CEO of a crypto stamp manufacturer and UPU Consultative Committee member, Stampfinity, recount the story behind the production of Austrian Post’s famous unicorn crypto stamp.

H.E. Anef Abanomi, President of Saudi Post, explains how the postal operator is turning into a touchpoint between government agencies, businesses and their customers, what digitalization has to do with it, and what hosting the global postal community means to the country.

The World Customs Organization (WCO) represents 185 Customs administrations that collectively process approximately 98% of world trade. In the era of digitalization, these border authorities find themselves in the epicentre of global e-commerce, influencing the country’s economic competitiveness, defining the ability of its small businesses to reach global markets, and protecting its citizens from illicit trade. With the level of national Customs development becoming the touchstone of overall...

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, ITU Secretary-General, discusses how meaningful connectivity can help bridge the digital divide.

Jeffrey Hardy, TRACIT’s Director General, talks about the dangers illicit trade presents to postal customers and employees, the costs it incurs on postal infrastructure and the ways to avoid these risks through public-private partnerships and capacity building.

Road safety is crucial to postal organisations. With millions of postal workers using the roads daily, raising awareness of road traffic rules and ensuring the safety of equipment and infrastructure is vital for Posts if they are to operate smoothly and efficiently. However, the quality of broader road traffic infrastructure and policies is highly dependent on the level of socioeconomic development and varies drastically across regions. While 1.3 million people perish on the roads every year,...

AfDB Climate and Environment Finance Manager Gareth Phillips discusses the state of climate finance in Africa and means of building the continent’s resilience to climate shocks, highlighting the widest gaps and the most promising solutions.

The UPU Consultative Committee is open to the private sector. In this episode, we discuss why this has happened, and we speak with some of the new private sector members of the Consultative Committee: Alexander Thern-Svanberg (Secretary, UPU Consultative Committee) discusses the reasoning behind opening the UPU Consultative Committee to the private sector How the Consultative Committee is organised Embracing a private sector perspective Egon Veermae, COO at Eurora Group, talks about...

Tony Robinson, UKi CEO and founder of global postal event Parcel+Post Expo, discusses the role and importance of technology in the postal world.

Dr Shamika N. Sirimanne, Director of the Division on Technology and Logistics (UNCTAD) discusses logistics, supply chain, and the role of the post in enabling cross-border trade.

Pedro de Vasconcelos, Manager of the Financing Facility for Remittances at the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), discusses the importance of international remittances to the global economy, as well as opportunities for the postal network.

Rodney Taylor, Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union, discusses digital transformation and the potential role of the post.

Anja Klug, Head of the Office for Switzerland and Liechtenstein at the UNHCR - the UN refugee agency, discusses the UNHCR’s role and how postal networks can help assist refugees.

Pierangela Sierra, founder and CEO of online shopping and delivery platform Tipti, and an e-trade women's advocate, joins us to discuss e-commerce, growth and opportunities, and encouraging women entrepreneurs:  Using the mail to keep in touch What Tipti is, and how it was created Mobile and internet adoption in Ecuador The pandemic's impact on online grocery Future growth in e-commerce in Ecuador and Latin America The role of the post in encouraging e-commerce Environmental impact of...

Dr Armani Abou-Zeid, African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, on the importance of the post in creating infrastructure. We cover: The importance of postal services in Africa, including access to financial services, government services, and e-commerce The ubiquity of the post office network Access to electricity and the internet, and the challenges of postal development COVID's boost for digitalisation and e-commerce in Africa The role posts can play in achieving AU...

Sophie Gligorievic, Head of Logistics Division at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), joins us to talk about humanitarian logistics and supply chain. Are there differences between the humanitarian supply chain and the commercial supply chain? Increased pressure on supply chain, including supply chain transparency and diversity ERP and supply chain Posts collaborating with the ICRC

Outgoing UPU Depute Director General Pascal Clivaz reflects on his time at the UPU and shares some pointers for the future of the postal sector: Corporatisation of Swiss Post How the UPU can add value to the postal sector Index for Postal Development How the index can help developing nations formulate their postal strategy Banking and financial services and logistics How key stakeholders can build postal strategy Advice for the next generation of postal leaders

USPIS Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale discusses the unique role of the US Postal Inspection Service and the contribution it makes to the postal world: How the USPIS fits in with other US law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI and DEA, as well as international agencies such as Europol How the USPIS‘s relationship with the US Postal Service makes it unique The importance of postal security to the USPS, its customers, and the general public The world‘s dependence on the postal...

In this special edition of Voice Mail, we have three perspectives on digital transformation, data, and the postal world, featuring interviews with UPU Deputy Director General Pascal Clivaz, UPU Consultative Committee Chair Walter Trezek, and David Avsec from the UPU Postal Technology Centre.

Stephan Sicars, Managing Director at the Directorate for Environment and Energy, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, joins us in this episode for an expert analysis of the circular economy.