Canada

• July 23, 2020

BUFFALO, N.Y. — In the middle of a recent Zoom meeting with colleagues, I commented about the presence of United Nations flags on international borders, like the ones that flew, some until recently, on certain bridge border crossings between Ontario, Canada, and New York State in the United States, over Lake Erie and the …

Covid-19, US Foreign Relations

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COVID-19

India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Norway to Join the UN Security Council

Stéphanie Fillion

• June 17, 2020

An almost empty General Assembly Hall, masks of all types and colors and diplomats rejoicing to see their colleagues that they probably have seen only on their computer screens for months marked this year’s General Assembly elections at the United Nations. On June 17, Norway and Ireland won the two open seats on the …

Covid-19, General Assembly, Security Council, US-UN Relations

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COVID-19

Canada, Ireland and Norway Wrap Up Their Campaigns for Security Council Seats as New Voting Methods Are Proposed

Stéphanie Fillion

• May 4, 2020

CHICOUTIMI, Canada — The Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, Marc-André Blanchard, told a Canadian newspaper in March “now is not the time to campaign for a Security Council seat,” as world diplomacy is being disrupted by the coronavirus and the United Nations headquarters remains physically closed for now. But the reality is there …

Covid-19, General Assembly, Security Council

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O, Canada, Where Are You at the #UNGA?

Stéphanie Fillion

• September 25, 2019

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has made a point of bringing Canada back to the international stage at the United Nations to win a coveted nonpermanent seat on the Security Council for the 2021-22 term. But amid Trudeau’s re-election campaign and an international scandal around his use of blackface, Canada has sent a low-level delegation …

General Assembly, Security Council

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Together, the Caribbean Confronts a Major Problem: Climate Threats

Barbara Crossette

• March 11, 2019

GOSIER, Guadeloupe — The Caribbean islands, though culturally and linguistically diverse and differing government systems, are coming together to confront the climate changes that threaten their rich tropical environment and the livelihoods of their people. Seas are warming and acidifying, reducing fish catches, while on land water shortages are being recorded in recent droughts. …

Caribbean, Climate Change

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GEOPOLITICS

Why Isn’t Canada’s Trudeau Speaking at the Main UN Forum This Year?

Stéphanie Fillion

• September 23, 2018

MONTREAL — When he took office in 2015, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised, among other things, to bring Canada back as a leader on the world’s stage. “Canada is back,” he said after signing the Paris accord on climate change, in 2016. He addressed the last two United Nations General Assembly since then, but …

General Assembly, Geopolitics

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TOPIC: WOMEN

As Sweden and Canada Push a ‘Feminist Foreign Policy,’ Others Resist the Label

Stéphanie Fillion

• February 12, 2018

After years of civil war, Somalia is beginning to build democratic institutions with support from the West, even as horrific violence repeatedly strikes the capital, Mogadishu. Help from foreign countries and regional groups — such as the European Union, Italy and the United States — was provided in Somalia’s 2016 election, where electoral processes …

Caribbean, Governance, Latin America, Women

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The Vancouver Principles, New Steps to Help UN Peacekeepers Stop Child-Soldier Use

Julie Vanderperre

• November 13, 2017

The one sure announcement to emerge from the annual United Nations peacekeeping defense ministerial conference this week will be the adoption of the Vancouver Principles, a set of rules aimed primarily at preventing the recruitment and use of child soldiers. The conference, being held Nov. 14-15 in Vancouver, British Columbia, will feature more than …

Child Soldiers, UN Peacekeeping

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GEOPOLITICS

Canada Is Still Wavering in Its Pledge to UN Peacekeeping

Julie Vanderperre

• April 20, 2017

Although Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged in a splashy way right after his 2015 election to “renew Canada’s commitment to United Nations peace operations,” the country’s contribution to peacekeeping remains at an all-time low. Since Trudeau’s seemingly impetuous campaign promise a year and a half ago, allies and UN member states have anticipated a …

Africa, Geopolitics, Security Council, UN Peacekeeping, US-UN Relations

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Justin Trudeau, Self-Described Feminist, Wows the UN Crowd

Laura E. Kirkpatrick

• March 17, 2016

“Because it’s 2015,” Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada and self-proclaimed feminist, said simply, using the vernacular of his generation to reinforce his position on gender equality as he spoke at the United Nations recently during an “armchair conversation.” Trudeau, who is 44, was addressing a large audience at an event presented as …

Gender Violence, Women

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Starting From Scratch as a Non-Western Immigrant in Canada

Divya Kaeley

• June 10, 2015

WINNIPEG, Canada — Every new immigrant to Canada has to live through the three stages of acculturation, which for most people is not easy. First comes the thrill and joy of exploring a new land, then feelings of marginalization and hostility toward the host country and, finally, acceptance. The numbers of non-European immigrant women …

Health and Population, Migration, Refugees, Women

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Canadian Native Groups Vow to Fight on for Land Rights

Lorraine Boissoneault

• February 7, 2013

The sounds of drums and chanting outside the United Nations in New York battled to be heard over traffic recently. In a continuation of rallies and demonstrations held in front of the UN earlier in January, seven Native American protestors gathered behind a large purple banner to show their solidarity with the Idle No …