Small island states are pushing for the implementation of a UN-backed international climate agreement aimed at keeping global temperature rises to below 2 degrees Celsius; that’s according to the Minister of Environment and Energy in the Maldives archipelago.
Food production in war-torn Syria has hit a record low and has left nine million people wondering where their next meal will come from, the United Nations has said.
More than five years of civil conflict and unfavourable weather conditions in parts of the country have made it increasingly difficult for farmers to get access to their land, or farming supplies, or to get any food they do produce to market.
“Pop-up public spaces” combined with what have been described as “democratic three-dimensional tools” are proving an effective way to engage poor communities in urban design.
That’s the view of Pontus Westerberg, of UN-Habitat, the UN programme for sustainable cities.
He is the manager of the Block by Block initiative, a collaboration between UN- Habitat and the makers of the videogame Minecraft.
Collaboration between developing countries, or south-south cooperation as it’s known, has been hailed as “a powerful way” to support vulnerable nations.
That viewpoint has been expressed by the senior UN official who is galvanizing global action to bring about a more sustainable future for all.
Dr David Nabarro is the Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which has been described as a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity.
This year is “very likely” to be the world’s hottest year on record according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Preliminary data released by the UN agency shows that 2016’s global temperatures are approximately 1.2 Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Petteri Taalas is the Secretary-General of the WMO.
Daniel Dickinson asked him how concerned he was by the new figures, which were released as the international community met for climate talks in Morocco.
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A team from the UN’s mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has been selected as finalists for the annual Secretary General Awards, after carrying out an emergency life-saving operation.
The mission’s Protection of Civilians and Humanitarian Liaison section carried out the operation in February 2013, in response to inter-communal violence in the troubled North Darfur region.
The team members are finalists for the Courage award, for staff who uphold UN values “in a physically dangerous environment.”
Children, whose gender cannot be defined as male or female are often forced by their parents to undergo surgery in an attempt to “normalize” their bodies, according to a UN official.
Charles Radcliffe, head of the UN Free & Equal Campaign, said that this medical procedure could leave “terrible scars”, such as incontinence, loss of sexual sensation and mental illness.
The UN is calling for a ban on “unnecessary” treatment for children with no clear gender also known as intersex children.
Despite a decade of impressive economic growth in Paraguay, 10 per cent of citizens there are facing hunger and malnutrition.
The warning comes from UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Hilal Elver, who added that the nation of seven million also produces enough food for almost nine times its population.
Ms Elver has just completed her first official visit to the South American country.
She told Jorge Miyares that inequality is a root cause of the problem.
Indigenous people across the world have made “contributions” to help mitigate climate change by conserving forests and high biodiversity areas.
However, according to the UN Special Rapporteur for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, governments often do not “recognize” their efforts.
She added that their rights to maintain their property and practice their beliefs are often violated because of the interests of private business sectors.
A new political will by countries across the world to include oceans in initiatives to fight climate change has emerged in the last year; that’s according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The UN agency says oceans are fundamental to sustaining life on earth as they act as a major carbon sink, absorbing heat, and producing half the oxygen we breathe.
The international community is currently meeting in Morocco at the latest UN talks on climate change mitigation.
