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The African grey parrot, one of most trafficked birds in the world.
Photo: CITES

Major reports on biodiversity, ecosystem services to be launched at UN-backed meeting in Medellin

With our planet’s flora and fauna facing unprecedented threats, science and policy experts are set to gather next week in Medellin, Colombia, for a United Nations-backed meeting to consider five landmark reports aiming to inform better decisions by Governments, businesses and even individuals on biodiversity, and issues of land degradation and restoration.

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Venezuelans arrive in Pacaraima, border city with Venezuela, and wait at the Federal Police, the entity responsible for receiving Venezuelans seeking asylum or special stay permits in Brazil, 16 February 2018.
© UNHCR/Reynesson Damasceno

UN agency issues refugee protection guidance for thousands of Venezuelans fleeing crisis-torn country

As deepening economic woes force thousands of Venezuelans to flee the crisis-gripped country, the United Nations on Tuesday issued guidance on treating the population as “refugees,” while the head of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned that the outflow into neighboring countries such as Colombia constitutes a “humanitarian disaster.”

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Actor and activist Danai Gurira (left); Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women; and actor and activist Reese Witherspoon (right) take part in the celebration of International Women's Day at the UN Headquarters.
UN Women Twitter

On International Women’s Day, UN celebrates the power of activism to bring change for ‘sisterhood of humanity’

The drumbeat for women’s rights and empowerment reached a crescendo on Thursday as the United Nations celebrated International Women’s Day with a number of powerful events, where global activists joined top UN officials calling for the recent momentum generated by grassroots movements against discrimination and harassment to tip the scales towards lasting change.

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Rural produce can boost urban nutrition. Fruit vendors unloading pumpkins at the market in Maradi, Niger.
FAO/Giulio Napolitano

In crisis-torn Sahel, UN anti-drugs and crime agency helps bolster justice system

Africa’s vast Sahel – plagued by humanitarian crises, armed conflict and terrorism – is now witnessing improvements in its criminal justice system thanks to a special programme by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which assists Governments in the region to come together to fight corruption, and human and drug trafficking.

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HIV positive Monica and her granddaughter sit at home on a bed in their village of Makuzeze, Zimbabwe.
UNICEF/G. Pirozzi

On ‘Zero Discrimination Day’ UN urges tackling everyday biases; ask yourself ‘what if...?'

To mark Zero Discrimination Day, the United Nations agency coordinating the global effort to tackle HIV/AIDS is challenging people to recognize where everyday discrimination takes place and take action to stop it by asking themselves simple questions: ‘What if the person you bought your vegetables from was living with HIV? Would you buy tomatoes from him?’

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Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Yemen, briefs the Security Council.
UN Photo/Loey Felipe

UN can help, but Yemen’s warring parties must make concessions, commit to peace – outgoing UN envoy

A destructive pattern of zero-sum politics has plunged Yemen into ever deeper poverty and desolation, the United Nations envoy for the war-torn country said Tuesday, emphasizing that while the UN and the wider international community can try to bring about a favourable environment for a path to peace, Yemeni decision-makers must stop the fighting and bloodshed.

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