Side Event to the 54th Commission on the Status of Women

Wednesday, March 10th, 10am – 12pm
Bahai’i International Community, New York
The food, environmental and economic crises have challenged civil society organizations (CSOs) and the communities they serve. A broad-based survey was undertaken in 2009, financially supported by the United Nations Secretariat, that measured the impact of the crises on the operating capacity of CSOs around the world and their expectations as they look ahead. This study examines the current situation of CSOs as indicated by responses from 640 civil society organizations worldwide. It also asks what strategies they are undertaking to cope with a drop in revenue and how they plan to strengthen social-service delivery capacities of CSOs during crisis periods.

Program

Side Event to the 48th Commission for Social Development

+++POSTPONED due to inclement weather+++

New date: Friday, February 12th, 1:15pm – 2.45pm
Church Center for the United Nations, New York
The food, environmental and economic crises have challenged civil society organizations (CSOs) and the communities they serve. A broad-based survey was undertaken in 2009, financially supported by the United Nations Secretariat, that measured the impact of the crises on the operating capacity of CSOs around the world and their expectations as they look ahead. This study examines the current situation of CSOs as indicated by responses from 640 civil society organizations worldwide. It also asks what strategies they are undertaking to cope with a drop in revenue and how they plan to strengthen social-service delivery capacities of CSOs during crisis periods.

Program

Executive Summary: “The Global Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Civil Society Organizations and Their Constituencies”

UN Inter Press Service (IPS) Article – “Grassroots Aid Groups Struggle to Stay Afloat”

Friday, December 17, 2010, 1:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
New York, UN Private Dining Room 1-3

The new year will start with a bang in Sudan.  The people of Sudan’s South will vote in a referendum on 9 January 2011 to determine the region’s future status, with independence widely seen as a probable outcome.  The UN Mission in Sudan is gearing up to prevent an immediate violent break-up of Sudan after the referendum, but the risk of renewed violence – whether among competing factions in the South or in Darfur – is real. For what contingencies should the international community be prepared?  What and who can sustain a new, independent state in South Sudan in terms of development, infrastructure, and public administration?  Politically, what challenges will other African states and the African Union face if the referendum leads to new state formation? On December 17, FES New York and the Century Foundation organized a luncheon discussion to explore the imminent contingencies and long-term consequences, and to discuss the various options for UN action to prevent the outbreak of further violence.

Program

FES Publication “Sudan and Somalia – Linchpins on the Horn of Africa”

Meeting Notes

December 13, 2010, 10am-2pm

New York, Roger Smith Hotel

In response to recent economic crises, an increasingly large group of high-ranking economists, political advisers and think tanks in the US and the United Nations are seriously re-evaluating economic theory as well as policy. In Europe, Social Democratic Parties and leaders are also debating how to restructure the economy and society in order to better deal with the economic, social and environmental challenges of the twenty-first century, which transcend national borders.
Therefore the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) New York office organized a small and informal roundtable meeting and working lunch where alternatives to mainstream economic models and new thinking about economic policy were discussed.

Program

Friday, December 3, 2010, 12:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
New York, The German House

Timely, coherent and sustainable funding remains an ongoing challenge for the international community when helping countries to establish lasting peace. This discussion, organized by FES New York and the Permanent Mission of Germany, aimed at developing an understanding of where and how the PBC’s and the World Bank’s comparative strengths are to be captured in mobilizing resources and coordinating policies for sustainable peace-building. By revisiting some of the joint experiences of the first five years of the existence of the PBC, the debates also lead to the formulation of some practical suggestions for the PBC’s years ahead.

Program

Meeting Notes

Monday, November 15 – Friday, November 19, 2010
New York

Also this year, FES New York hosted its annual Fall Academy. 17 young policy analysts from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East came to New York to learn hands-on about the work of the United Nations. Throughout the week, participants met with UN diplomats, Secretariat, and NGO experts to discuss the UN’s work on peace and security issues, the MDGs, and the organization’s most recent reform initiatives.

Program

October 29-30, 2010
Tarrytown, New York

Since 2005, the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)  has undergone substantial changes in its modalities, which will be reviewed by the General Assembly during its 65th session. This review, together with current trends towards an increasingly complex global economic and social development environment, requires a re-evaluation of the role of ECOSOC in global economic governance. Towards this end, a high-level debate with participants from the UN Missions, Secretariat, and officials from the G-20 took place at this year’s ECOSOC Retreat.  It was hosted by the FES New York, the UN Department of Social Affairs and the Permanent Missions of Germany, Malaysia, Mauritius and South Korea.

Program

Background Note

Speech by Werner Puschra

President’s Summary

Wednesday, October 27 2010, 1:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
New York, Presidents’ Room, Harvard Club of New York City

Next month, the Group of 20 summit in Seoul will bring the leaders of the world’s largest national economies together, once again, to chart and coordinate international economic policy. Since the debut of G-20 summits two years ago, debate has raged about whether the grouping makes a substantive contribution to economic policymaking – and about whether it should enlarge its competence to begin dealing with other issues as well. The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and The Century Foundation hosted a discussion of these issues, led by three exceptional practitioner-analysts of diverse views.

Program

Tuesday, October 26 2010, 1:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
New York, The Century Foundation

Three decades of grinding war in Afghanistan have had a common denominator: a long, porous border with Pakistan. Today, those borderlands have become the spawning ground for Islamic militants challenging the governments in both countries. To explore the complex relationships among Afghan and Pakistani Taliban and governments, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and the Century Foundation organized a luncheon discussion with an exceptional panel.

Program

Tuesday, October 19, 2010, 1:15 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
New York, Baha’i Conference Room, 866 UN Plaza, First Floor

In recognition of numerous diplomats and civil society leaders coming to New York for the First Committee, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung and Global Action to Prevent War organized a lunch-time panel to build on these high level discussions. This event helped to explore responses to the current problems and opportunities of the Conference of Disarmament, including a review of alternative settings for negotiating disarmament agreements.

Program

Report

Wednesday, October 6, 2010, 3:00 p.m.  – 5:00 p.m.
Washington D.C., IMF

Program

Presentation “Multidimensional Poverty Index: A new approach to Global Poverty” (by Sabina Alkire)

Presentation “World Financial Crisis: Possible Futures” (by Manuel Montes)

Working paper: “Who are the MDG Trailblazers? A new MDG Progress Index” (by Benjamin Leo)

Friday, September 17, 2010, 1:00 p.m.  – 3:00 p.m.
German Mission to the UN

As a preparatory event for the September 2010 MDG Summit, FES New York, Global Policy Forum and Social Watch convened a high-level luncheon panel to discuss alternative measures and models of development and link them with political discussions about the concrete actions needed to achieve progress in economic and social development.

Highlights from the panel:

· “The present model of development is not working – even for the countries that created it!”
–Roberto Bissio (Coordinator, Social Watch)

· “We advocate investment in women and girls because of the multi-generational multiplier effect.”
–Helen Clark (Administrator, United Nations Development Programme)

· “The development of a new paradigm is not something that can be imposed top down, but has to be the product of a consensus in the country.”
–René Ramírez (National Secretary of Planning and Development, Republic of Ecuador)

· “The Financial Transaction Tax combines the interests of those in developing countries with those in developed countries-that is why it is so important.”
–Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul (Member of Parliament, Germany)

Program

Report

FES Publication “Steps Out of the Global Development Crisis. An Agenda for Change” (by Jens Martens)

September 1 to 2, 2010
Seoul, South Korea

In the beginning of September, former Presidents and Prime Ministers from the Club of Madrid exchanged their views with the Korean G20 Presidency ahead of the G20 Summit which will take place on November 11th and 12th in Seoul. The world’s largest forum of former democratic political leaders presented a set of key recommendations focusing on the strengthening of global governance besides further efforts in the financial crisis management.

Recommendations and Press Release

Paper “What Role for G20?” (by Werner Puschra)

Wednesday, June 23, 2010, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Park Hyatt Toronto, Queens Park South conference room, Toronto, Canada

This dynamic, day-long program took place prior to the G20 summit in Toronto. The event attracted more than 300 attendees and had two high-profile keynote speakers: Paul Martin, the former Prime Minister of Canada and first chair of the G20, and Jomo Kwame Sundaram, ASG for Economic Development. The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, the Munk School of Global Affairs and the Centre for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (CERES) at the University of Toronto invited the broadest possible participation from governments, academia, think tanks, trade unions, and civil society in this day of round-table discussions during a week of alternative G20 Summit events.

Program

Presentation “The Spirit of BrettonWoods and Global Governance Reform” (by Jomo Kwame Sundaram)

Speech by Klaus Barthel

Event Summary

Tuesday, June 22, 2010, 7:00 p.m.  – 9:00 p.m.
Courtyard Marriott Downtown, 475 Yonge Street, Spadina A&B Room

Program

On the occasion of the fourth G20 Summit in Toronto, June 2010, the FES launched two new volumes:
“Canadian Perspectives on Global Economic Governance and the G20 “
FES New York, International Policy Analysis, June 2010

Download

“The G20: A Global Economic Government in the Making?”
FES Berlin, International Policy Analysis, June 2010

Download

Monday, June 21, 2010, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
The Palm Too Restaurant, 840 Second Avenue, New York (Between 44th & 45th St)

The current financial has driven Europe into a severe political turmoil. Challenged by public sector deficits, high unemployment, and slow economic growth, European governments make policy adjustments at the expense of social spending. At stake is not only whether Europe will be able to sustain social cohesion, but also, whether Europe’s global commitments will suffer, for instance preventing a second dip global recession, contributing to the Millennium Development Goals, or combating climate change. To address such topics, FES New York hosted a debate with former and current members of European social democratic governments and with distinguished academics that provided an outlook on Europe´s future position in the world.

Program

Wednesday, June 16, 2010, 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, The Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, and Global Policy Forum
Church Center for the UN 777 UN Plaza (44th street), 10th Floor Meeting Room, New York

This half-day conference, co-hosted by FES New York, The Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation and Global Policy Forum, considered the current state of UN financing.  Against the backdrop of the current global economic crisis, this event was looking ahead to discuss proposals towards a world institution that is better equipped with addressing future global challenges.

Program

May 27 – 28, 2010
Faculty House, 64 Morningside Drive (between 116th and 117th Streets), New York

The financial crisis of 2008/09 has brought about a wide range of policy measures, and these measures have helped to circumvent a major global recession. The crisis has also reinforced the need for structural reforms—especially in the banking and financial services sector—that still have to be addressed by governments. In addition, the crisis has shown the need for policy coordination on a global level: prudent regulation and supervision on a national level alone is not sufficient to ensure that we lay the groundwork for a sustainable growth path.This conference, co-hosted by FES New York and the Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Center for Leadership and Ethics brought together the latest academic research and industry best practices on corporate governance and compensation in the financial industry as well as the latest proposals for reform and regulation of these practices.

Program

Governance, Executive Compensation and Excessive Risk in the Financial Services Industry

Wednesday, May 5, 2010, 1:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and the Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN
Conference Room, 22nd floor, Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN, 871 United Nations Plaza
This side event to the NPT Review conference provided the opportunity for an off-the-record exchange between the Bundestag’s leading parliamentarians on nuclear disarmament –representatives of government as well as opposition faction– and participants to the Review conference. UN Missions, nuclear disarmament experts, and non-governmental organizations addressed a number of key challenges for nuclear disarmament and Germany’s potential role towards that end.

Program

Thursday, April 22, 2010, 9 am – 11 am

Spring Meetings Civil Society Forum
CSO Room A, World Bank Main Building (1818 H Street NW)

The financial crisis that began in the fall of 2008 came on the heels of great turbulence in the energy sector, with increased global demand for oil pushing prices to record highs.  The burden of mitigating and adapting to climate change complicates matters further in terms of financing a green recovery.  These inter-related crises show that the global economy needs a new paradigm for growth, one in which better financial regulation and green-jobs creation can ease the impact of the financial crisis while at the same time enabling policies to promote investment in sustainable and efficient energy systems for countries at all levels of development.  This panel discussion provides a report-back from key figures involved in the April 21, 2010 FES/Brookings Institution experts roundtable on governance challenges in financing green and sustainable energy policies and offers the opportunity for dialogue with members of civil society gathered for their policy forum prior to the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings.

Program

Event Summary

Governance Challenges in Financing Green and Sustainable Energy Policies

Friday, April 16, 2010

United Nations/The Century Foundation

To globalize the transatlantic debate, this year’s delegation of “Global Atlanticists” – comprising 25 representatives from the various political German factions in Parliament – for the first time came to the United Nations in New York.  Discussions with the UN secretariat, member state diplomats, and policy experts, revolved around the UN’s current role in two key challenges for international cooperation:  The global economic crisis and Afghanistan.
Program IX. Annual Meeting of the Global Atlanticists

List of Participants

Monday, March 29, 2010
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and The Century Foundation
New York, Harvard Club
This day-long conference focused on the challenges for nuclear disarmament on three levels: First, the implications of the current review of NATO’s strategic doctrine for the role of nuclear weapons. Second, the continued value attached to nuclear weapons by political and military circles in nuclear-armed states, both inside and outside the NPT regime. And third, the effectiveness of the NPTand international treaty regimes towards global nuclear disarmament.

Program

Side-Event to the Fourth High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development

Tuesday, March 23, 2010, 1:15 pm – 2:45 pm
New York, United Nations Headquarters
In the run-up to the Fourth High-Level Dialogue on Financing for Development, the FES and the Chilean Mission host a panel discussion on the impact of the global crisis on CSOs worldwide and the constituencies that they serve.  This survey, supported by the UN-Department of Economic and Social Affairs, was undertaken in 2009 to assess the impact of the crisis on CSOs around the world and on the constituencies that they serve.  Altogether, 640 CSOs worldwide contributed to the study, which provides new insights into regional differences in response to the crisis, and–for those experiencing drops in revenue–strategies they are adopting in order to cope.  The study also reveals different strategies to strengthen the social-service delivery capacities of CSOs during periods of crises.

Program

Wednesday, 17 March 2010
New York, German Mission to the UN, 871 United Nations Plaza
This expert-level roundtable discussion addressed whether the U.S. administration’s Nuclear Posture Review and NATO’s revised role for tactical nuclear weapons could turn into a window of opportunity for nuclear disarmament. Participants from the UN Secretariat, Member States and the expert community had the opportunity to discuss the effects of these strategy reviews for the NPT Review Conference in May 2010.

Program
FES-SIPRI Publication

Thursday, February 10, 2010, 1:15—2:45 p.m.
New York, UNHQ—Delegates Dining Room

We are threatened with a perfect storm of global crises, so intimately connected they cannot be resolved separately. The ecosystems on which we absolutely depend are being degraded at an alarming rate; humanity is grossly overusing the resources of the planet; rising stress on water and productive land, compounded by the effects of climate change, is reducing food security; levels of hunger, poverty and deprivation are again increasing; the global economic and financial systems have proved to be unstable and inequitable; the division between rich and poor is widening; millions cannot find employment; and, in this complex and dangerous situation, it is estimated that an additional 2.3 billion people will arrive on this planet by 2050. Humanity is in the midst of a systemic crisis. The underlying root causes are our current concepts of growth, development and globalization, which must be changed.On the occasion of the 2011 Commission on Social Development, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung is sponsoring a high-level panel discussion on the challenges to multilateralism and the role of the UN in global governance.

Program-Draft

2 February 2010, 10am – 5pm
New York

2010 marks the 15th anniversary of the Commission for Social Development at the UN, which took place initially in Copenhagen in 1995.  This Forum showcases civil society’s views on  issues such as  social exclusion and integration and aims to create an atmosphere of social inclusion through interactive panels and breakout sessions.  Featured speakers include Commission Chairperson, Ambassador Leslie Christian, Permanent Representative from Ghana, as well as representatives of the Club de Madrid’s Shared Societies Project, FES NY Director Werner Puschra.  The event also features a presentation of survey results from a recently completed study co-sponsored by DESA-DPSD, the FES, the NGO Committee on Social Development and UN-NGLS to determine the impact of the 2007-2009 financial crisis on Civil Society Organizations.

Program

1 February 2010, 6 – 8pm
New York

In Anticipation of the 48th Commission for Social Development, the NGO Committee for Social Development, the Bahá’í International Community and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung host a Welcome Meeting for speakers and facilitators of the forum to share expectations and strategize for the forum.