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From BTS, K-Pop heroes, to net zero: 5 things to look out for at UNGA76

The 76th session of the UN General Assembly is due to begin on 14 September, and it will be very different from 2020’s fully virtual gathering. UNGA 76 will still be overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but that won’t stop leaders (some of them in the Assembly Hall) from addressing urgent global challenges. Here are five things you should know about 2021’s “hybrid” event.

76th General Assembly gets underway at UN Headquarters in New York 

The COVID-19 pandemic has proved to be the most challenging period the world has seen since the Second World War, said the UN Secretary-General on Tuesday – as the 75th session of the General Assembly gave way to the new – deepening inequalities, decimating economies and plunging millions into extreme poverty. 

Gender equality ‘champion’ Sima Sami Bahous to lead UN Women 

Secretary-General António Guterres described Sima Sami Bahous of Jordan, as “a champion for women and girls”, announcing on Monday her appointment to lead the UN’s gender equality and empowerment entity, UN Women. 

Pandemic increasing risk factors for suicide, UN health agency warns

Suicide prevention must be prioritized after 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Americas office of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day, commemorated annually on 10 September. 

The future of international cooperation: Time to think big, urges Guterres

Celebrating the UN’s 75th anniversary last year, prompted major internal discussion about its future, and a new direction away from the post-World War Two consensus of its early days. These reflections have resulted in Our Common Agenda, a landmark new report released on Friday by the UN Secretary-General, setting out his vision for the future of global cooperation.

Protecting education, means ‘we protect the future’: UN chief 

The global community needs to say with one voice that “attacks on schools must stop”, the UN chief urged a virtual event on Thursday commemorating the International Day to Protect Education from Attack.  

 

No Denying It episode 3: Dia Mirza Introduces Aditi Mayer

In the third episode of the UN climate action podcast, No Denying It, Bollywood actor and UN Goodwill Ambassador Dia Mirza introduces sustainable fashion advocate Aditi Mayer, who explains the links between the fashion industry, the climate crisis, and colonialism.

General Assembly President calls for halt to nuclear tests

The President of the UN General Assembly, Volkan Bozkir, on Wednesday called for an end to nuclear tests, as ambassadors gathered to commemorate the International Day against Nuclear Tests, observed annually on 29 August.

 

National ownership critical, once guns fall silent, Security Council hears

Although UN peacekeeping missions can help put a country on the right track following conflict, only a commitment from national governments can keep it there over the long term, UN Secretary-General António Guterres told a Security Council meeting on Wednesday to examine support for the transition towards lasting peace.  

From locusts to cyclones: The human cost of interlinked disasters

Many extreme environmental events have a devastating effect on people’s lives, and a new UN report reveals that many of them are linked by the same underlying causes. On the day the study is released, we look at the impact of a locust swarm on a Kenyan farmer, and the ways that Cyclone Amphan affected an Indian worker.