This page has been set up to keep you informed about the planning of the UN Studies-related workshop series in Vienna in June 2010 prior to and in connection with the ACUNS 2010 annual meeting.

You are highly welcome to contribute with comments, ideas, suggestions!

Date and Venue

University of Vienna, Workshops on “The UN, Diversity and Global Understanding”, May 31 - June 2, 2010.

Title:

The UN, Diversity and Global Understanding 

Summary

We seek to bring together researchers and practitioners with an interest in the issues and challenges of diversity in a globally active organization.

Our objective is to deepen the international debate on questions relating to cultural diversity, particularly its effects to the working environment of the UN organizations and UN peace operations.

In our workshop series, we will seek to explore the full range of what diversity means for the UN's working procedure and explore the modes of diversity in real-life situations of working together on the ground.

Potential project partners

This project has been set up to become a joint undertaking of TermNet, UNSA, ACUNS, Centre for Translation Studies of the University of Vienna and the Institute of Educational Science at the University of Heidelberg. 

It will be specifically designed to engage the diverse members of all organizations and facilitate an open and cross-disciplinary dialogue on an issue of mutual concern.

Background

To learn more about the topical background, please click here.

As a result of our initial brainstorming, we decided to focus on the issues of diversity and global understanding in UN peace operations.

Draft Program

On the first day workshops will cover more theoretical ground asking questions such as: What is the role of language and terminology for a better communication in the UN system, and UN peace operations in particular? What is the state of research on how to pursue effective diversity management and cross-culture communication in UN peace operations? 

The second day is dedicated to a practical training on how to implement cross-cultural dialogue. We will start by taking the broader global education perspective,  before we will focus on new ways of communication. The opportunities offered by new social media will be presented and trained.

For a very first draft programme, please click here.

Next steps

We will consult with ACUNS and the Universities of Vienna and Heidelberg and will get back with further information about possible ways of implementation and how to particularly engage ACUNS and UNSA members.