United Nations 101: How can I keep up with UN-sponsored dates and events?

August 15, 9:30 AMPhoenix Progressive ExaminerDebbie Jordan

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Logo of the UN General Assembly

You’ve probably heard of World AIDS Day, but do you know on what day it’s observed? And what are some things being done to recognize the importance of dealing with this modern-day plague affecting so many people around the world? Then there’s the International Day of Peace? When is that observance held? And what events are scheduled for the day?

Since both observances, and many others like them, are sponsored by the United Nations, or organizations under the UN umbrella, you can find the information online in one or more of several United Nations calendar pages: International Days and Weeks; International Years; International Decades; United Nations System Calendar of Media Events; and the page in the UN website dedicated to Conferences, Meetings, and Events.

UN CALENDAR OF DAYS AND WEEKS

The UN Calendar of Days and Weeks lists annual observances that occur on a single day or over a period of a week to focus attention on various issues of concern to member nations. If you go down the list, you’ll find that September 21 is set aside as the International Day of Peace, and December 1 is World AIDS Day.

As you scroll down the list, you’ll find that there are days set aside in every month of the year, more in some than in others. If you click on many of these event names, you’ll be linked to another page or website that explains the reason for the event, and sometimes, how it’s being observed. Some pages or sites even offer ideas for how people can hold an event in their hometown to bring attention to issues surrounding these observances.

UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM CALENDAR OF MEDIA EVENTS

If you’d like to know more about what’s going on with UN-sponsored events, you can go to the website for United Nations System Calendar of Media Events. While the annual calendar page lists the major days and weeks set aside for special observances in a one-page list, the system calendar is arranged so that each month falls on a separate page.

While many of the events listed in the system calendar coincide with events on the annual calendar page and vice-versa, others do not. For instance, September 16, International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, is on both calendars. But the Launch of UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2009 on September 17 can only be found on the system calendar, and the International Day of Peace, September 21, is only listed on the annual calendar for days and weeks. So, it can be useful to keep up with both calendars.

CONFERENCES, MEETINGS, AND EVENTS

The system calendar also features various meetings, seminars, and conferences held at or by the United Nations or its affiliate organizations. And there’s also a third site that offers more detailed information on Conferences, Meetings, and Events, including a paragraph or more of information about each event listed.

Like the other two, some events are only listed on the Conferences, meetings, and Events page, and not the others. For instance, this is the only page listing September 15 as the Opening Day for the 64th Session of the UN General Assembly. And if you’re interested in the General Debate, you can see that it will be held on September 23 to 26 and 28 to 30 of this year. So, if you want to keep up with everything going on at the UN or UN-related events, you’d have to check all three of these sites pretty often.

There are also two other types of calendar events to keep up with: UN-observed years, which are almost always called International Years; and special Decades set aside for observances that last a full 10 years.

UN CALENDAR OF INTERNATIONAL YEARS

Most observances of International Years coincide with the calendar year, but one that we’re in the middle of right now, International Year of Human Rights Learning, runs from December 10 (Human Rights Day), 2008, to December 10, 2009. At the same time, all of 2009 is also known as International Year of Reconciliation, International Year of Natural Fibres, and International Year of Astronomy. The year 2010 will be observed as International Year of Biodiversity and International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures, then 2011 will be the International Year of Forests.

UN CALENDAR OF SPECIAL DECADES

Finally, the United Nations gives attention to special causes by assigning full decades to these themes. For instance, right now we’re in the next-to-last year of three special decades that ran from 2001 to 2010: International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World (which followed the 2000 International Year for the Culture of Peace); Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism; and Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa.

Last year, 2008, marked the beginning of the Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty, observance to continue through the year 2017. Next year, 2010, marks the beginning of the United Nations Decade for Deserts and the Fight against Desertification, which will continue through the year 2020.

For more info:

International Days and Weeks

International Years

International Decades

United Nations System Calendar of Media Events

United Nations Conferences, Meetings, and Events