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Abbreviation | UNIS Vienna |
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Formation | 1984 |
Type | United Nations Information Centre |
Legal status | Active |
Headquarters | Vienna, Austria |
Head | Director Martin Nesirky |
Parent organization | United Nations Department of Global Communications |
Website | www.unis.unvienna.org |
Politicsportal |
The United Nations Information Service Vienna (UNIS Vienna) is part of a 63-strong network of United Nations Information Centres spanning the globe, which are part of the United Nations Department of Public Information. They share a common goal: to help fulfill the substantive purposes of the United Nations by communicating the activities and concerns of the organization to the public.
UNIS Vienna plays a dual role: as UN Information Centre it serves four client countries – Austria, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia. By serving as the local voice of the UN in these countries, the Information Service aims to promote an informed understanding of the work and goals of the UN, by reaching out to media, government, academia, schools and civil society organizations. Furthermore, it provides public information support and promotional services to the substantive programmes of the United Nations based in Vienna. It acts as Secretariat to the UN Communications Group in Vienna. [1]
UNIS Vienna's Visitors Service runs daily guided tours of the UN in Vienna for some 50,000 visitors per year. The UN Office at Vienna is one of the four global UN headquarters, along with the UN Headquarters in New York, the UN Office at Geneva and the UN Office at Nairobi. Tours are offered in more than a dozen languages. The Visitors Service also organizes lecture programmes about the UN and the work of its organizations based at the Vienna International Centre (VIC).
UNIS Vienna issues annual accreditation to bona-fide representatives of the media who are writing on UN system issues, on the basis of certain criteria. Accredited journalists to the UN receive access to the Vienna International Centre, information on the happenings in the UN world in Vienna and beyond, invitations to events and press briefings being organized at the VIC.
Over 1,500 civil society organizations with strong information programmes on issues of concern to the UN are associated with the UN Department of Public Information, linking the UN with people around the world. The NGO liaison service of UNIS Vienna maintains a distribution list of approximately 400 local NGO representatives, research institutes, political think tanks and initiatives of civil society.
UNIS Vienna produces a wide range of information products on the work of the UN and current international issues, including German-, Hungarian-, Slovak- and Slovene-language versions of press releases, backgrounders and the UN Secretary-General's statements, as well as information on the work of the Vienna-based organizations in English and other languages. All publications are available on UNIS website.
The UNIS library is a repository of information from all over the UN System. Reference documents, Security Council resolutions, the latest sales publications, the latest UN reports and more are available in the library, along with UN posters and handout material on a variety of subjects. The UNIS reference library in Vienna is open to visitors, journalists and students (upon prior appointment) and to all UN staff members. A wide range of reference material on all aspects of the UN System is available, especially on issues dealt with by the Vienna-based UN organizations dealing with drugs control, crime prevention and outer space affairs. Information and promotional material (handouts, reports, posters) as well as sales publications in limited quantities are available free of charge. The UNIS library can also help interested individuals and institutions to find a UN document.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is a department of the United Nations Secretariat that works to promote and protect human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. The office was established by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 December 1993 in the wake of the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights.
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization, specifically in regards to the fifteen specialized agencies, the eight functional commissions, and the five regional commissions under its jurisdiction.
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in humanitarianism or the social sciences; they can also include clubs and associations that provide services to their members and others. NGOs can also be lobby groups for corporations, such as the World Economic Forum. NGOs are distinguished from international and intergovernmental organizations (IOs) in that the latter are more directly involved with sovereign states and their governments.
The United Nations System consists of the United Nations' six principal bodies, the Specialized Agencies and related organizations. The UN System includes subsidiary bodies such as the separately administered funds and programmes, research and training institutes, and other subsidiary entities. Some of these organizations predate the founding of the United Nations in 1945 and were inherited after the dissolution of the League of Nations.
The consultative status is a phrase that has been in use since the establishment of the United Nations and is used within the UN community to refer to "Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council". Also some international organizations could grant Consultative Status to NGOs. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) could grant Consultative Status in the form of "Researcher-in-residence programme" : accredited representatives of national and international NGOs are granted access to all records and to numerous topical compilations related to OSCE field activities.
The Vienna International Centre (VIC) is the campus and building complex hosting the United Nations Office at Vienna. It is colloquially also known as UNO City.
The United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV) is one of the four major office sites of the United Nations where numerous different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the Vienna International Centre, a cluster of several major international organizations. UNOV was established on 1 January 1980, and was the third such complex to be created.
The United Nations Office at Nairobi in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, is one of four major United Nations office sites where numerous different UN agencies have a joint presence. Established in 1996, it is the UN's official headquarters in Africa.
The UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) is an Office of the United Nations Secretariat established in January 1998 as the Department for Disarmament Affairs, part of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's plan to reform the UN as presented in his report to the General Assembly in July 1997.
The United Nations Regional Information Centre (UNRIC) is one of 63 United Nations Information Centres (UNICs) around the world. Their main task is to spread the UN message, raise awareness and create understanding of issues relating to the United Nations' objectives. UNRIC serves the Western European Region by providing and disseminating UN information material, UN reports and documents, press kits, posters, fact sheets and brochures. The intention is to reach out to all segments of society and therefore the UNRIC Reference Library is open to all inquiries about the UN via telephone, e-mail and post. UN documents and publications are available in English, French and Spanish, but some material is also available in other European languages.
The Harvard International Relations Council(HIRC) is a non-profit organization that seeks to promote awareness of international relations based out of Harvard University. As several semi-independent but centrally funded programs, the IRC focuses on a number of different outreach areas in an attempt to engage and inform people on international issues and policy-making. Programs within the IRC include:
United Nations General Assembly resolution 60/7 on Holocaust remembrance called for the establishment of a programme of outreach on the subject of the "Holocaust and the United Nations" and measures to mobilize civil society for Holocaust remembrance and education, in order to help to prevent future acts of genocide. Since its establishment by the Department of Public Information in January 2006, the Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme has developed an international network of civil society groups and a multi-faceted programme that includes: innovative online educational products, youth outreach, DVDs, seminars and training programmes, a film series, book signings, a permanent exhibit at United Nations Headquarters in New York City, and the annual worldwide observance of the International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.
The NGO Committee on the Status of Women, New York (NGO/CSW/NY) is one of three women's committees of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the UN (CoNGO). Established in 1972, it provides an open forum for women's voices to be heard at the United Nations. The NGO/CSW/NY assists girls and women of all ages to advocate and organize for the implementation of global agreements, including the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies, Beijing Platform for Action, UN Security Council Resolution 1325, the Millennium Development Goals and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The committee works in cooperation with the NGO Committees on the Status of Women in Geneva and Vienna.
The United Nations Department of Global Communications (DGC) is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nations. It is tasked with raising public awareness and support of the work of the United Nations through strategic communications campaigns, media and relationships with civil society groups.
The United Nations Association of Slovenia (UNA Slovenia) was established in 1951, supporting the United Nations in its role as a keeper of global peace and stability. Following the Slovene Declaration of independence on 25 June 1991, Slovenia was accepted as the 176th member state of the UN. Soon thereafter, on 6 November 1992, UNA Slovenia was accepted into the circle of United Nations Associations as a member of World Federation of United Nations Associations.
The United Nations Information Service at Geneva is part of a network of United Nations Information Centres across the world working to promote greater public understanding of the aims and activities of the United Nations.
Maher Nasser is the Director of the Outreach Division in the United Nations Department of Global Communications. He oversees varied communication initiatives and campaigns along with a number of partners, and supervises the library and bookshop. He also serves as Chairman of the Publications Board. He plays a key role in promoting the role of the UN in the world.
The United Nations Non-Governmental Liaison Service is a programme of the United Nations mandated to promote and develop constructive relations between the United Nations and civil society organizations. UN-NGLS operates autonomously across the United Nations system and with civil society constituencies and social movements on cross-cutting and emerging issues on the UN agenda. For example, UN-NGLS currently focuses on the UN General Assembly preparatory process for negotiations of a global compact on migration, and high-level events organized by the President of the UN General Assembly. UN-NGLS advises civil society organizations on opportunities to engage with the UN and facilitates their participation in various UN processes and events. UN-NGLS has offices at UN headquarters in New York and is part of the United Nations Department of Global Communications.
International Year of Volunteers was designated for 2001 by the United Nations General Assembly. The initiative aimed at increased recognition, facilitation, networking and promotion of volunteering, to highlight the achievements of the millions of volunteers worldwide who devote their time to serving others, and to encourage more people globally to engage in volunteering.