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MODEL 8+8+8:INNOVATING THE SECURITY COUNCIL’S COMPOSITION

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ISSUE 1 > 2016

SPECIAL FEATURE

WomanSG:AN IDEA WHOSE TIME HAS COME

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FEATURE ONE MODEL 8+8+8: Innovating the Security Council’s Composition | 3Vesselin Popovski | Professor & Vice Dean and Executive Director, Centre for the Study of the United Nations, Jindal Global Law School

SPECIAL FEATUREWomanSG: An Idea Whose Time Has Come | 5Jean Krasno | Lecturer, Department of Political Science at the City College of New York (CCNY) and Professor of the UN and International Law at Columbia and Yale Universities

Melissa Labonte | Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Fordham University

THURSDAY – SATURDAY > JUNE 16-18, 2016Fordham University, New York City

2016 ACUNS ANNUAL MEETING

MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF DEVELOPMENT AND DIGNITYAM16

KEYNOTE SPEAKER Jan EliassonDeputy Secretary-General of the United Nations

JOHN W. HOLMES MEMORIAL LECTURE

H.E. Ibrahim GambariCo-chair for the Commission on Global Security, Justice & Governance, a joint project of The Hague Institute for Global Justice and the Stimson Center.

View their short biographies on page 6 >

A C U N S Q U A R T E R LY N E W S L E T T E R > I S S U E 1 > 2 0 1 6 A C U N S . O R G 2

WELCOME TO ACUNS

up2date news & opinions

STARTING POINT

Looking ahead: forecasting great transitions as practitioners of change management Advance planning on a 3-year cycle means we are ramping up preparations for big changes that are on the horizon, including a new host for ACUNS, a new secretariat team and a new editorial team for Global Governance.

Dr. Alistair Edgar, ACUNS

Preparing this editorial note has been a good opportunity for me to pause briefly, and examine what we have done, and what we are on target to accomplish, here at Wilfrid Laurier University and the Balsillie School of International Affairs as the host administrative location of ACUNS. The start of the new year sees us planning our departure as a secretariat – not “looking forward” to doing so, but “looking ahead” as we conduct our advance planning on a 3-year cycle and a new secretariat team and institutional host will open its doors officially on 1 July, 2018. No decisions have been made, of course, as we still are in the first phase of the transition process, accepting Concept Notes from interested groups. Likewise, we also will be transitioning to a new editorial team and host for Global Governance in 2018, and we are engaged in the process of discussions with prospective applicants. The coming two years will give us plenty of practice in ‘change management’.

Our journal Global Governance has taken significant steps forward in building new links to the policy communities in New York and in Geneva, as well as building bridges between the two communities, through the series of seminars begun by the current editorial team led by Ramesh Thakur, with the support of One Earth Future foundation. I cannot say enough about the work done by managing editor Roberta Spivak in making all of the arrangements for these seminars – most recently featuring John Langmore and Jeremy Farrell’s article “Can Elected Members Make a Difference in the UN Security Council?” In the last two weeks of January, we held two excellent meetings, hosted in turn by the Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations in New York, and in Geneva, with approximately 40 and 30 attendees respectively, including Ambassadors, DPRs, Counsellors, scholars, foundation and NGO officers, and others. In New York, we benefitted from great support also from the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) New York office, and in Geneva from the UNOG Director-General’s office and the Graduate Institute. Having two Board members – Stephen Browne and Tom Biersteker – based in Geneva is a tremendous asset. In both cases, at least ten ACUNS members were able to accept invitations to participate. We will post reports about both discussions onto our website, although the exchanges took place under Chatham House rules to encourage open, vigorous and frank interventions. We are planning the next iteration of this seminar, which may take place in March.

We also are working hard to continue to strengthen ACUNS’ relationships with our East Asian colleagues in the UN Studies associations of China, Japan, and Korea (CANUNS, JAUNS, and KACUNS). I am pleased to note that the Shanghai UN Research Association, SUNRA, is a new institutional member and we hope that others will follow. However, our partnership is not simply about having new members: the scholars and practitioners who are part of each of these associations bring new breadth, depth, and different experiences to our discussions of issues around the United Nations, international organizations, and global governance. Readers will know that we are engaging in a range of opportunities to build on our relationships, including participating in the annual East Asian Seminar on the United Nations, and the agreement that KACUNS will host the 2017 ACUNS Annual Meeting in Seoul, Korea.

Lastly, our core programs for 2016 are the Annual Meeting at Fordham University in June, and the ACUNS-ASIL Workshop at O.P. Jindal Global University, India, in October. The Call for Papers for the AM16, and the Call for Applicants for the Workshop, are open and we have been receiving steady numbers for both events. The AM16 program promises to be excellent, and I hope as many members as possible will join us in New York as we connect with the UN and diplomatic communities. The ACUNS-ASIL Workshop is a tremendous opportunity for early career scholars and practitioners to come together and exchange new research ideas and best-practice lessons, in a vibrant new university close to Delhi. If you are a more senior scholar or practitioner, please make sure that your younger colleagues know about the workshop, and encourage them to apply.

As always, we welcome your ideas, suggestions, and (gentle) criticisms of our work, including proposals for podcasts, Newsletter articles, and potential partnerships for programs and events.

SECRETARIAT STAFFAlistair Edgar Executive Director, ACUNS Associate Professor, Wilfrid Laurier University

T > 226.772.3167

E > aedgar@wlu.ca

Brenda Burns, Co-ordinator

T > 226.772.3142

F > 226.772.0016

E > bburns@wlu.ca

Gwenith Cross, Administrative Assistant

T > 226.772.3121

E > gcross@acuns.org

BOARD MEMBERS2015-2016ACUNS is governed by an international

Board of Directors:

Chair: Lorraine Elliott, Australian National University

Past Chair: Abiodun Williams, The Hague Institute for Global Justice

Vice Chair: Roger Coate, Georgia College and State University

Vice Chair: Margaret Karns, University of Dayton

M E M B E R S

Thomas Biersteker, Graduate Institute, Geneva

Stephen Browne, Ralph Bunche Institute

for International Studies, Graduate Center

Eunsook Chung, Sejong Institute

Cristián Gimenez Corte, Office of Legal Affairs, United Nations

Mary Farrell, University of Plymouth

Francesco Mancini, International Peace Institute

Nanette Svenson, Tulane University

FEATURE STORY

CREATIVE THINKING MODELS

3

> V E S S E L I N P O P OV S K IPROFESSOR & VICE DEAN AND

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF

THE UNITED NATIONS, JINDAL GLOBAL LAW SCHOOL

T he first can be overcome by asking the new permanent and renewable members in the Council to pay more, and thereby to reduce the burden of financial contributions of the current P-5. In 1963 four out of the P-5 initially disagreed with expanding the Council, but after the General Assembly voted in favor, all five ratified the expansion. The second obstacle can be overcome by innovating a flexible model converging the interests of the existing groups of states. In 2005, two models of expansion, ‘A’ and ‘B’, were proposed; this was a fine imaginative exercise, but a practical non-starter for a global agreement. Since 2008 the Inter-Governmental Negotiations (IGN) produced little by putting together all opinions of all countries in one big mish-mash. In 2014 the IGN issued an assessment listing ten possible versions of expansion:

(1) new permanent members with veto; or (2) with veto frozen until a review; (3) permanent seats without veto; (4) longer-term seats that can become permanent after a review; (5) longer-term seats that can be renewed many times, or (6) renewed only once; (7) longer-term seats not renewable; (8) non-permanent seats that can be renewed; (9) additional two-year non-permanent seats besides new permanent seats; (10) only new non-permanent seats. This was yet another fine exercise of imagination that was also completely useless. In 2015 text-based negotiations were proclaimed as a big breakthrough, but it is not clear how a huge number of proposals, many of which remain contradictory, could ever be negotiated into a single coherent set of recommendations.

MODEL 8+8+8: INNOVATING THE SECURITY COUNCIL’S COMPOSITION

THERE ARE TWO OBSTACLES FOR THE EXPANSION OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL – THE RELUCTANCE OF THE PERMANENT FIVE (P-5), AND THE DIVIDED OPINIONS AMONG THE REST OF THE UN MEMBER STATES.

MODEL A + MODEL B = MODEL 8 + 8 + 8

INSTEAD OF ASKING ALL STATES TO MAKE PROPOSALS, and demanding that everyone agrees with everyone else – an impossible global marriage – a better method would be for a pro-active coalition to offer a new model converging the interests of the existing groups. One such attractive model is 8 + 8 + 8: the Council in this view would consist of three categories – 8 permanent, 8 renewable and 8 non-renewable members. The total number of 24 conveniently allows each country to be a President of the Council once in 24 months. The renewable seats are for 8 years, so the members in this new category can serve 8 + 8 + 8 or more years.

The 8 permanent members are two regional – the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU), and six individual – Brazil, China, India, Japan, Russia, USA. In the second category countries such as Germany, Britain, France, South Africa, Nigeria, Italy, Canada, Egypt, Mexico, Argentina, Pakistan, Indonesia, South Korea and others qualify by committing to pay higher contributions to the UN budget, contributing more troops to UN peacekeeping, or offering to provide pro-bono senior mediators etc. The other 8 seats remain as two-years non-renewable, and because many big countries move out to other categories, small countries in this model would face less competition and more frequently be able to get a two-years membership on the Council. The European and African countries also enjoy the permanent collective representation in the EU and AU seats, thus feeling less the need to knock frequently on the door for two-years membership.

India, Japan, and Brazil get permanent seats, but in turn would declare no interest to use the veto, and would show a good example to the old permanent members. Germany,

Italy, South Africa, Nigeria, and Egypt would enjoy not only longer renewable seats, but also strong influence in the EU and the AU seats, certainly a much improved status from the current one, where they only have two-years non-renewable seats. Britain and France have shown a strong understanding of the need for Council reform; after being permanent members for 70 years, they would retain their seats in the next 24, 32 or more years, and have the choice to stay or take a break and save money. In fact 8+8+8 would increase, not reduce British and French voices in the Council, as in addition to their individual seats they will also have a major say as part of the EU seat.

To smooth the process there would be a 16-year transitional period. If the model is adopted by 2019, from 1 January, 2020 Britain, France, Germany, South Africa, Nigeria, Pakistan, Argentina, and Italy for example would become the first new-category members for 8 years. In 2028 four countries, for example: Egypt, Indonesia, Mexico, and Canada would replace the last four countries in the ‘new’ category.1 In 2036 the transitional period ends, and 8 members would be elected out of 16. In addition to the 12 countries listed above one can think of South Korea, Turkey, Australia (maybe jointly with New Zealand?), possibly even a collective seat for ASEAN etc. This does not need to burden our minds today, as the list could be decided in 2035. After that, every 8 years elections are held in the General Assembly to choose 8 from those willing to apply or re-apply for renewable membership. Naturally, some may decide not to run every time and instead save money; therefore, the actual competition may not be fierce, and the applying countries probably would have a 70% or 75% chance to get the seat.

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FEATURE ONE

Continued on next page >1 Those who are not members during the transitional period still qualify for two-year non-permanent seats. For example, Egypt does not need to wait for its membership in 2028-36 and can take a two-year seat before that.

The 8 + 8 + 8 model is win-win; it serves the interests of all, including small states. When 19 big countries (3 new permanent + 16 renewable) move away from the competition for the two-years non-renewable seats, the small countries receive more frequent seats. The new model matches and even exceeds the expectations of all current groups. The G4 gets what they want, Brazil, India, and Japan become permanent, and Germany becomes a renewable member which can easily be in the Council in the next 32 or 40 years – and this is in addition to its strong influence in the EU permanent seat, effectively doubling its voice. Africa gets more than what it asks for at the moment – a permanent seat for the AU plus one or even two between South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt being at any time in the Council. The model presents an excellent solution to a huge problem that Africa currently faces within its own demand - to name two permanent members once and forever. Asia receives two new permanent seats (India and Japan) and plenty of renewable seats – Indonesia, Pakistan, South Korea, Turkey, and possibly a collective seat for ASEAN. This means more power for Asia than any other proposal

made so far, filling the gap in the Asian representation in the Council. The same is valid for Latin America, which receives a permanent seat for Brazil, and with Argentina and Mexico rotating in membership every 8 or 16 years this effectively means a second constant seat, therefore more representation for Latin America than any other previous proposal. The Organization of Islamic Co-operation is also well represented with Egypt, Indonesia, and Turkey in the renewable longer-term seats. Everybody wins! Crucially, the USA, Russia, and China lose nothing, they remain full permanent members and the only change is that they will pay less after a large new group of contributors joins the Council. The model can be revised in 2045 at the centennial anniversary of the UN to reflect the world at that time.

Skeptics may ask how will the regional organizations vote? Well, the permanent seat comes with a challenge indeed, but this is a constructive challenge, one that will help the AU and the EU to integrate and fulfill their own promise to build common security and defense policy. The AU has its Peace and Security Council and the EU has its Foreign Ministry, not so different from any other

Foreign Ministry. These organs should be able to figure out how to vote. The 8 + 8 + 8 model will be instrumental not only for the UN, but also for the AU and the EU internal harmonization.

As Einstein reminded once, one cannot expect to resolve a problem by approaching it again and again with the same method that previously proved ineffective. It is high time to think creatively. A balanced, flexible, simple and attractive model, such as the one presented above will challenge states to agree or to raise objections. Silence will mean lack of objections and the proposal goes to a vote in the General Assembly aiming at two-thirds majority of 129 votes.

* Dr. Vesselin Popovski is a Senior Academic Programme Officer in the Peace and Security section at the United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS). A former Bulgarian diplomat, he gained his PhD from Kings College, London. He undertakes research and postgraduate teaching and supervision in the fields of international relations, peace and security, international law, human rights, international criminal justice, and governance.

5 A C U N S . O R G S i g n u p f o r o u r E > U P D AT E b y b e c o m i n g a m e m b e r !

THE 8+8+8 MODEL WILL BE INSTRUMENTAL NOT ONLY FOR THE UN, BUT ALSO FOR THE AU AND THE EU INTERNAL HARMONIZATION.

THE 8+8+8 MODEL IS WIN-WIN; IT SERVES THE INTERESTS OF ALL, INCLUDING SMALL STATES.

Continued from previous page >

AM16 details and updates

JOHN W. HOLMES MEMORIAL LECTURE

H.E. Ibrahim GambariCo-Chair, Commission on Global Security, Justice and Governance

Ambassador Ibrahim Gambari, a Nigerian scholar-diplomat, was the first Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Africa (1999-2005), working closely with heads of government, key policymakers as well as institutions in the continent to develop the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). He was concurrently the Resident Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Mission to Angola (2002-2003). He has been a delegate to the Assembly of the African Union as a national delegate (1984-1985) and as a member of the UN Secretary-General’s delegation (2000-2012).

Ambassador Gambari, is currently the Founder/Chairman of Savannah Center in Abuja, Nigeria, a think-tank for research, training and public policy debate on the nexus between diplomacy (conflict resolution), democracy and development in Africa. His last assignment at the United Nations was as the Joint Special Representative of the Secretary General and Chairperson of the African Union Commission/Head of the UN and AU Hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) from January 2010 to July 2012. During Ambassador Gambari’s tenure, UNAMID was the world’s largest international peacekeeping mission.

Having held several leadership positions at the national, regional and international levels, he has built extensive contacts with governments as well as public and private institutions, especially in Africa. He was the Chairman of the United Nations Special Committee Against Apartheid (1990-1994) during which he worked closely with African governments to coordinate UN policy to eradicate apartheid, thereby building trust and confidence with governments and policymakers in member countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

At the global level, Ambassador Gambari was Under-Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Department of Political Affairs (2005-2007). Operating as UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Cyprus, Zimbabwe and Myanmar, on 22 May, 2007, the Secretary-General entrusted him with the Good Offices Mandate on Myanmar. He was also appointed in 2007 by the Secretary-General as Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Iraq Compact and Other Issues, positions he held until 2009. Before joining the United Nations, he was Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations (1990-1999). He was also Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nigeria (1984-1985) and worked closely with regional leaders, institutions and governments, particularly within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the economic and political development of the sub-region. Prior to this, he was the Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs.

As a scholar, Ambassador Gambari is the author of several books and scholarly articles. He began his teaching career as a Lecturer, and rose to become an Associate Professor and subsequently full Professor. Ambassador Gambari was a visiting Professor and a Research Fellow, as well as a Resident Scholar with the Rockefeller Foundation Centre in Bellagio, Italy.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Jan EliassonDeputy Secretary-General of the United Nations

On 2 March, 2012, Jan Eliasson was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. He took office as Deputy Secretary-General on 1 July, 2012.

From 2007-2008 Mr. Eliasson was the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Darfur. Prior to this, he served as President of the 60th session of the UN General Assembly and was Sweden’s Ambassador to the US from September 2000 until July 2005. In March 2006, Mr. Eliasson was appointed Foreign Minister of Sweden and served in this capacity until the elections in the fall of 2006.

Mr. Eliasson served from 1994 to 2000 as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, a key position in formulating and implementing Swedish foreign policy. He was Sweden’s Ambassador to the UN in New York 1988-92, and also served as the Secretary-General’s Personal Representative for Iran/Iraq.

Mr. Eliasson was the first UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and was involved in operations in Africa and the Balkans. He led initiatives on landmines, conflict prevention and humanitarian action. 1980-1986, Mr. Eliasson was part of the UN mediation missions in the war between Iran and Iraq, headed by former Prime Minister Olof Palme. In 1993-94 Mr. Eliasson served as mediator in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). He has been a Visiting Professor at Uppsala University and Gothenburg University in Sweden, lecturing on mediation, conflict resolution and UN reform. Mr. Eliasson has had diplomatic postings in New York (twice) Paris, Bonn, Washington (twice) and Harare, where he opened the first Swedish Embassy in 1980.

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson also served as Chair of Water Aid/Sweden and a member of the UN Secretary-General’s Advocacy Group of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Mr. Eliasson graduated from the Swedish Naval Academy and earned a Master’s degree in Economics and Business Administration in 1965.

16-18 JUNE, 2016 Fordham University | New York City

SCHEDULED EVENTS

A C U N S . O R GBooking information, schedules and more information can be found online at

MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF DEVELOPMENT AND DIGNITY

PLENARY SESSIONSPLENARY I

EDUCATION AS THE ENGINE OF DEVELOPMENT AND DIGNITY

PLENARY II

REALIZING GENDER EQUITY IN THE UN’S NEXT 70 YEARS: INVESTMENTS, ACTION, RESULTS

PLENARY III

THE ROLE OF FAITH IN PROMTING DEVELOPMENT AND DIGNITY

PLENARY IV

TAKEAWAYS FROM THE WORLD HUMANITARIAN SUMMIT

A C U N S Q U A R T E R LY N E W S L E T T E R > I S S U E 1 > 2 0 1 6 A C U N S . O R G 6

> J E A N K R A S N OLECTURER, DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE,

CITY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK AND PROFESSOR OF THE UN AND INTERNATIONAL LAW AT

COLUMBIA AND YALE UNIVERSITIES

7 7

FEATURE STORY

NOW IS THE TIME

7

THE CONVERSATION that ultimately led to the creation of the Campaign to Elect a Woman UN Secretary-General to ensure that the 9th United Nations secretary-general is a qualified woman, emerged as so many do, on a rainy evening at a train station bar over a meal of cheeseburgers and mugs of cold beer.

> M E L I S S A L A B O N T EASSOCIATE DEAN FOR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES, GRADUATE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, FORDHAM UNIVERSITY

WomanSG: AN IDEA WHOSE TIME HAS COME

7 DEC

ADES OF UN LEADERSH

IP

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FEATURE TWO

I

Continued on next page >

LET’S GET THE UN IN STEP WITH THE MOVEMENT TOWARDS FEMALE EQUITY.

TIME TO STEP UP HELEN CLARK, ANGELA KANE, MICHELLE BACHELET, GRO HARLEM BRUNDTLAND, MARGOT WALLSTRÖM, MARY ROBINSON, ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF, LOUISE FRÉCHETTE, ANGELA MERKEL, GRAÇA MACHEL, IRINA BOKOVA, NATALIA GHERMAN, VESNA PUSIĆ

t was June 2013, on the last day of the ACUNS Annual Meeting, hosted that year by Lund University in Sweden with a focus on Leadership in Global Governance. During our dinner, we talked about the future of the UN and, in particular, what qualities make for an effective leader of the world organization, which represents 7 billion people around the globe. Who would succeed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon when his term ended in December 2016? The issue of selecting the next SG wasn’t yet on the radar screens of most people.

Based purely on historical precedent, a woman candidate seemed out of the question. But as we discussed it further, it seemed increasingly odd that no woman candidate had ever made it far enough through the selection process to have her name be the one printed on the slip of paper handed over by the Security Council to the General Assembly (GA) for its rubber stamping. Why not? Surely there were many women whose professional careers had earned them the kind of experience, knowledge, and skills necessary to run the UN effectively? We began rattling off names: Helen Clark, Angela Kane, Michelle Bachelet, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Margot Wallström, Mary Robinson, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Louise Fréchette, Angela Merkel, Graça Machel. We agreed to keep thinking about how we might collaborate further on this idea, and returned to our day jobs in New York City.

Nearly two years later, Dulcie Leimbach, founder and editor of the online news service, PassBlue, came to see Jean in her office at the City College of New York. She had heard of our interest in launching a campaign to elect a woman UNSG and a few days later, sent a videographer to interview Jean on the topic for a piece she was producing on this issue. The video, which included interviews with UN scholars, including Thomas G. Weiss, went viral on the internet.

From there, things began to move quickly. We reached out to a select group of like-minded colleagues and invited them to an initial planning meeting. The response was positive, and backed by a core committee of professionals hailing from intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations, the media, academia, and the private sector; the Campaign to Elect a Woman UN Secretary-General —WomanSG—was launched in February 2015.

WomanSG’s goals include advocating for a qualified woman as the next UNSG and working to make her selection inevitable. Historically, the process of selecting successive candidates to fill this post has remained highly secretive and non-transparent. This has made it exceedingly difficult for qualified women to rise to the forefront of consideration. Conversely, the selection processes for the heads of most UN agencies, funds, and programmes have become more and more transparent and egalitarian (see A/60/312). This suggests that the UNSG selection process is out of step with contemporary political developments and with expectations of the UN itself.

Indeed, the majority of UN Member States have, for some time, objected to the secretive process for identifying and appointing a UNSG. For example, in 1997 the GA attempted to assert a role in the process, outlined in Resolution 51/241. The UNGA’s most recently adopted resolution on the matter (A/RES/69/321, 11 September, 2015) proposed constructive methods to democratize the selection of the next UNSG, including through the drawing up of a publically available shortlist and an open vetting process, to include hearings with shortlisted candidates in GA forums. The resolution contains specific provisions to ensure that the UNSG selection process is characterized by principles of inclusiveness and transparency. It is striking for its emphasis on the desirability of gender and geographic balance in the shortlist of candidates, while meeting the highest possible qualification requirements. For the first time, it engages the whole of the GA in explicitly inviting Member States to nominate qualified women as candidates.

It is urgent to capitalize on the message and substance of this new UNGA resolution. While women now hold a number of top-level positions within UN agencies, programmes, and funds, and have proven themselves to be effective, responsive, and visionary leaders, they continue to be underrepresented within the highest echelons of the UN secretariat. Despite the fact that the UN committed itself in 1994 to gender parity (by the year 2000) within all levels of the world organization, in 2015 less than one-third of senior positions are held by women and only 7 of 44 Special Representatives of the Secretary-General are women. Across peacebuilding and peacekeeping missions, only some one-fifth of senior positions are held by women. Contrast this disparity in the UN’s senior ranks with the growing numbers of women in public office around the world as well as in diplomatic service. Left unaddressed, it may have an impact on the capacity of the world organization to address the fact that many of the UN’s most pressing agenda items (e.g. climate change, conflict, poverty, public health, and forced migration) disproportionately affect women.

As the Colombian Ambassador to the UN, María Emma Mejía has emphasized, gender equality is an “unfulfilled goal that remains critical to advance towards an inclusive and sustainable future.” A crucial and major step—both symbolic and substantive—in achieving this goal would surely be the appointment of a woman to the position of UNSG.

WomanSG’s work has garnered considerable global media coverage, including by The New York Times; The Washington Post; The Guardian; Reuters; U.S. News & World Report; PassBlue, National Public Radio; The New York Daily News; The Huffington Post, Al-Jazeera; Foreign Affairs Review, China Women’s Daily; South-South News; Radio Sputnik Moscow, Security Council Report; Global Connections TV; and Gulf News. WomanSG has also been recognized by the Group of Friends in favor of a Woman

WomanSG ALSO SEEKS TO DEBUNK THROUGH EVIDENCE THE LONGSTANDING REFRAIN, USED BY UN MEMBER STATES AND OTHERS, THAT THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH QUALIFIED WOMEN TO FILL THE UNSG ROLE.

for Secretary-General of the United Nations, chaired by Colombia.

WomanSG also seeks to debunk through evidence the longstanding refrain, used by UN Member States and others, that there are not enough qualified women to fill the UNSG role. As The New York Times Editorial Board noted in September 2015, WomanSG has developed dossiers on over 30 qualified women candidates for the position. Through social media outreach, our campaign features select candidate profiles weekly on Twitter (@She4SG) and on WomanSG’s Facebook Page, which has quickly garnered some 3,000 followers.

Our Core Planning Group members have also engaged directly with the UN diplomatic community, including with members of the Friends Group, UN Missions of the Security Council’s Permanent Five, the GA Second Committee, and other critical stakeholders in the selection process. Our advocacy is also having an effect. As the U.K. Ambassador to the UN, Matthew Rycroft, noted “if we had to eliminate half of the world’s population, we would considerably reduce our chances of finding the best secretary-general.” WomanSG has also reached out to other organizations whose missions align with

its own. In April, Jean was invited to participate in a panel on the SG selection process at the International Peace Institute. In late September Core Planning Group members met with members of The Elders to discuss ways forward and possible collaboration. And WomanSG collaborated with the retirement fund, TIAA-CREF, and Goldman Sachs to sponsor an event held in mid-October featuring women private sector leaders and two Permanent Representatives of UN Missions to discuss women’s economic and political empowerment.

Moving into its next phase of programming, WomanSG plans to continue to build awareness of the wide range of qualified women UNSG candidates; advance both the spirit and letter of GA Resolution A/RES/69/321; and complement official UNSG selection process initiatives.

The world has changed markedly since Trygve Lie was appointed in 1946 as the first UN Secretary-General, and the striking bias that characterizes the selection process today is no longer acceptable. As noted in a recent Foreign Policy article, “The U.N. has arguably done more than any other body to advance the cause of women and girls across the world. It will, however, miss a huge opportunity to go one step further if it fails to appoint a woman to the

top role.” WomanSG holds that the international community has before it a special opportunity to redress this gender inequity and imbalance and build the momentum in favor of the selection of a qualified woman for the position of chief global diplomat.

The time is now.

* Jean Krasno is a Lecturer in the Department of Political Science. She also holds the position of Director, Multilateralism and International Organization Initiative at the Colin Powell Center for Policy Studies. Dr. Krasno has been authorized by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to organize his papers for publication. She is also a Distinguished Fellow at the Center for International Security Studies at Yale where she has taught courses on the United Nations, UN peacekeeping, and International Organization. She holda a PhD from CUNY Graduate Center.

* Melissa Labonte is Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences as well as Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Fordham University. She received her AB in International Relations from Syracuse University and her AM and PhD in Political Science from Brown University. In 2013, Dr. Labonte was the recipient of the Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in the Social Sciences, and the Fordham Undergraduate Research Journal’s Faculty Mentor Award in the Social Sciences.

Continued from previous page >

9 A C U N S . O R G 5 A C U N S . O R G S i g n u p f o r o u r E > U P D AT E b y b e c o m i n g a m e m b e r !

A C U N S S E C R E TA R I AT > Wilfrid Laurier University, 75 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3C5

ACUNS/ASIL SUMMER WORKSHOP ON INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION STUDIESCALL FOR APPLICATIONS

SWIOS16STUDY

OPPORTUNITY

Supporting States’ Implementation of International LawOctober 1 - 12, 2016 O.P. Jindal Global University | Sonipat, India

ONLINE APPLICATIONS

Visit: http://acuns.org/workshop16/ Applications must be completed by Monday, May 9, 2016.

Questions? Please email admin@acuns.org or call (1) 226.772.3121

TIME TO STEP FORWARDAN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY FOR THE UN TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS.

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A C U N S Q U A R T E R LY N E W S L E T T E R > I S S U E 4 > 2 0 1 5 A C U N S . O R G 1 0

QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER Issue 1 > 2016

Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) Quarterly Newsletter is published four times a year with the support of the Department of Communications, Public Affairs & Marketing (CPAM) at Wilfrid Laurier University.

We welcome and encourage your feedback. Opinions expressed in ACUNS Quarterly Newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of the editor, ACUNS or the host institution.

© ACUNS 2016. All rights reserved.

Publisher: Alistair Edgar, Executive Director, ACUNS

Editor: Brenda Burns, Co-ordinator, ACUNS

Contributing Writers: Vesselin Popovski, Jean Krasno, Melissa Labonte, Alistair Edgar and Brenda Burns

Design: Dawn Wharnsby, CPAM

Imagery: Thinkstock.com

Send address changes and feedback to:

Gwenith Cross, Administrative Assistant, ACUNS

E > gcross@acuns.org T > 226.772.3121

ACUNS SECRETARIAT

Wilfrid Laurier University 75 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON, Canada N2L 3C5

T > 226.772.3142

F > 226.772.0016

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A C U N S S E C R E TA R I AT > Wilfrid Laurier University, 75 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3C5 > T 226.772.3121 > F 226.772.0016 A C U N S . O R G

APPL ICAT ION PROCEDURE

Submissions: To submit an individual proposal or a full panel proposal, you will be required to upload full contact information, the paper/panel title(s), abstract(s) of no more than 200 words, biographical note(s) of no more than 200 words, and biographical notes of no more than 250 words.

Proposals: Proposals will be accepted and evaluated, and panel spaces will be allotted, on a first-come rolling basis subsequent to the issuance of this Call. Once all panel spaces have been filled, a waiting list will be established for any subsequent proposals that are received.

Registration: Once your proposal is accepted you are required to register for the 2015 Annual Meeting at acuns.org/am2016

Registration Fees are available online at acuns.org

ANNUAL MEETING THEME

Meeting the Challenges of Development and DignityThe Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) is now accepting workshop paper and panel proposals for presentation at 2016 Annual Meeting. Proposals on the Annual Meeting theme – “Meeting the Challenges of Development and Dignity” – and on the subthemes and issues raised in the introductory note, in addition to other topics relating to the UN system and the broader mandate of the Council, will be considered.

Current ACUNS members in good standing (including new or newly-renewed members) will be given priority consideration for their proposals, but non-members are welcome to submit proposals.

NB In order to present at the AM16 workshops, Council membership will be required: this includes all persons participating in a full panel team proposal.

The deadline for uploading your proposals is Thursday, March 31, 2016.

QUESTIONS? > Please contact the ACUNS Secretariat at admin@acuns.org or 226.772.3121

For general questions about the Council and its activities, please contact: Dr. Alistair D. Edgar, Executive Director, ACUNS, Wilfrid Laurier University T 226.772.3167 E aedgar@wlu.ca

2016 marks a critical time for the United Nations, Member States, and civil society as together they address the early challenges of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and as they look to agree upon the aims of the World Humanitarian Summit being held in May 2016 in Istanbul.

These hallmark efforts, as well as others recently undertaken by the UN system, reflect both the spirit and letter of the UN Charter’s Preamble, which emphasizes and reaffirms “faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small.” Alongside these aims, the promotion of justice, social progress, and better standards of life in larger freedom are critical facets of ensuring that the global development and humanitarian agendas are “fit for future”, and that the UN itself will be “fit for purpose”.

The full text of the Call for Papers is available at acuns.org/am2016

16-18 JUNE, 2016 Fordham University | New York City

We will be filling workshops on a rolling basis. Once all spaces are filled there will be a waiting list

for spaces.

ACUNS ANNUAL MEETING CALL FOR PAPERS - WORKSHOP PANELS AM16

TIME TO STEP FORWARD

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ACUNS memberships are based on the January to December calendar year. If you join mid-year, you will receive back issues of Global Governance and the ACUNS quarterly newsletter. If you have any questions regarding joining mid-year, please contact the Secretariat at admin@acuns.org.

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