WAGGGS' UN teams around the world

WAGGGS has six teams of UN representatives in

Geneva
Nairobi
New York
Paris
Rome
Vienna

Each UN team consists of up to seven WAGGGS’ representatives at the UN and trainees.

What is it like to be a UN representative? Read Martina Rentenberger’s story

The role of the UN teams is to represent WAGGGS and its interests at UN meetings and during UN activities. They attend relevant UN meetings and events, and speak on behalf of girls and young women.

The UN teams are also members of non-governmental organization (NGO) committees, which often address UN issues at the same time as the member states. NGO committees ensure that items of concern are added to the UN’s agenda.

WAGGGS has also installed a WAGGGS ECOSOC liaison person (WELP) in Bangkok. In the Europe Region WAGGGS is represented by an External Representatives Pool on European Level.

Would you like to become a WAGGGS’ representative at the UN?

UN team, Geneva

The UN team, Geneva includes:

Sue Lake - team coordinator

The UN has a major office in Geneva and the UN team, Geneva works closely with the many UN agencies based there.

The offices of several major programmes and funds are based in Geneva including:

UNHCR – Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
UNAIDS - Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS

Two specialized UN Agencies are based in Geneva:

WHO – World Health Organization
ILO – International Labour Organization

The Human Rights Council is also based in Geneva through the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The UN team, Geneva also works closely with:

Conference on Non-Governmental Organizations (CONGO),
which has also has offices in New York and Vienna
NGO committee on the Rights of the Child

UN team, Nairobi

The UN team, Nairobi includes:

Catherine Nyambala - team coordinator
Anne Onunga
Claudia Kabui
Mutinta Munyati
Trixie Ogot
Pauline Onunga Akello

The UN has a major office in Nairobi, concerned with environmental issues.

UN team, Nairobi works closely with:

UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
UN Centre for Human Settlements (UN-Habitat)

UN team, New York

The UN team, New York includes:

Anita Thomas - team coordinator
Pat Scharlin
Diane Paravazian
Mary Jane Meconi - trainee
Scarlette Elizee - trainee

The UN team, New York works closely with the many UN agencies based in New York and with the Division for the Advancement of Women.

The UN Headquarters are in New York and meetings of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council are held here.

The offices of several major programmes and funds are based in New York including:

UNDP – United Nations Development Programme
UNIFEM – United Nations Development Fund for Women
UNFPA – United Nations Population Fund
UNICEF – United Nations Children’s Fund

The UN team, New York also works closely with the Division for the Advancement of Women and attends meetings of the following functional Commissions, which are based in New York:

Commission on the Status of Women
Commission for Social Development
Commission on Sustainable Development

UN team Paris

The UN team, Paris includes:

Cecilia Grimaldi - team coordinator
Marie Leclerc
Brigitte de Panthou
Marie-Louise Cusack - trainee
Fatma Khorchani - trainee

The UN team, Paris works closely with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to establish a permanent partnership.

The UN team, Paris also attends meetings of the:

UNESCO’s Commission "Education for all"
Programmatic Commission on Youth

The UN team, Paris aims to participate in all major UNESCO events and to invole young women in consultation processes.

UN team, Rome

The UN team, Rome includes:

Masha Volodina - team coordinator
Noemi Ruzzi
Anna Rappazzo
Massimo De Luca
Giusi Cavallaro
Olivia Graham - trainee
Daniela Roggero - trainee
Millie Kneeland - trainee
Alessandra Tasca - trainee

The UN team, Rome works closely with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), which is based in Rome.
The UN team, Rome also works with the International Alliance against Hunger, a group of international organizations, food consumers, farmers, scientists etc, all working together to eradicate hunger.

The UN team, Rome has an on-going joint collaboration with the following FAO divisions/departments:

Nutrition and Consumer Protection
Gender and Population Divison
Legal Office
Technical Co-operation Department
International Allience against Hunger
Feedings Minds Fighting Hunger Initiative
Tele Food

The UN team, Rome works closely with the International Alliance against Hunger, created as a follow-up to the FAO World Food Summits of 1996 and 2002. The FAO was able to reunite the efforts of all the UN Rome-based agencies dealing with the issues of food and nutrition, namely:

WFP (World Food Program)
IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development)
IPGRI (International Plant and Genetic Resources Institute)

The UN team, Rome has also contacts with the above-mentioned UN Agencies.

The team collaborates with civil society organizations by attending meetings of the Ad Hoc Group of International Non Governmental Organizations (INGO) representatives at the FAO and has contacts with the International NGO Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty (IPC).

UN team, Vienna

The UN team, Vienna includes:

Jutta Mosbach - team coordinator
Ketevan Siradze

The UN team, Vienna attends meetings of the UN office for drug control and crime prevention, which runs the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) and the Centre for International Crime Prevention (CICP).

The UN team, Vienna also works closely with:

NGO Committee on the Status of Women
NGO Committee on Peace
NGO Committee on the Family

WAGGGS ECOSOC liaison person (WELP)

Since WAGGGS has general consultative status with the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) the WELP ensures a productive and stable cooperation. WAGGGS plans to install WELPs in each of our regions.

WELP for the Asia Pacific Region:

Valaikorn Phromyothi

The WELP works closely with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia ant the Pacific (UNESCAP) in Bangkok.