News

Child casualties in Ukraine have hit a “tragic milestone”, the head of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday, as the UN human rights office (OHCHR) released its latest report on rising numbers of deaths and injuries in the country since Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The global transition to renewable energy will require greater investment in integrated weather and climate services, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Monday. 

A periodic exhibit at the Seoul Art Centre in the Republic of Korea features dozens of artists living with autism while reframing some of their developmental disabilities through the fresh perspective of empowerment.

Syrians whose lives have been upended by a 12-year civil war and a catastrophic earthquake are looking to return home and rebuild their lives.

A razor, nail polish, and beads are part of the new Unbox Me campaign, launched by UNAIDS to raise awareness among parents, teachers, and the wider community about gender identity during childhood, as the world marked International Transgender Day of Visibility on Friday.

Almost two months after deadly earthquakes struck Türkiye and northern Syria, a large-scale humanitarian operation is underway for which funding is still desperately needed, the UN Humanitarian Affairs coordination office (OCHA) said on Friday.

The planet is literally drowning in garbage, and it is high time to clean up, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Thursday, at an event in the General Assembly Hall marking the first-ever International Day of Zero Waste. 

The UN General Assembly will seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on countries’ obligations to address climate change, following the adoption by consensus of a resolution on Wednesday. 

Urgent support is needed to prevent a slide into poverty and an increase in child labour and hand-to-mouth jobs, following the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria in February, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Tuesday in new assessment reports.

Urgent support is needed to prevent a slide into poverty and an increase in child labour and hand-to-mouth jobs, following the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria in February, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Tuesday in new assessment reports.

UN food and atomic energy agencies are readying to reap the rewards of a ground-breaking ‘astrobotany’ investigation, announcing on Monday that seeds sent to space in 2022 are now poised to return to Earth.

The head of the UN atomic energy agency on Monday met with Ukraine’s President to discuss safety issues at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, as UN Goodwill Ambassador Orlando Bloom concluded a visit to the country, calling for an end to the war so children can “regain their childhoods”.

UN agency chiefs issued a call on Monday for global action to balance and optimize the health of people, animals and the environment, as part of a new “One Health” approach.

Conservation jobs are scarce in the leafy village of Toraut, Indonesia, so when 27-year-old Fadlun Arrayan Bonde returned from university, she answered a call for women to help to patrol the neighbouring national park. She ended up forging a dynamic new career path to protect nature while transforming her community.

The UN 2023 Water Conference closed on Friday with the adoption of the Water Action Agenda, a “milestone” action plan containing almost 700 commitments to protect “humanity’s most precious global common good”.

Without urgent action, millions in Yemen could face ever greater risks of hunger and malnourishment, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Friday.

As water scarcity and the potential for conflicts between countries over resources increase, the UN is urging more nations to sign up to the Water Convention, designed to reduce tensions and improve international cooperation.

Global trade slowed down in the second half of 2022, but demand for environmentally friendly goods stayed strong, the UN Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD, said on Thursday. 

Global trade slowed down in the second half of 2022, but demand for environmentally friendly goods stayed strong, the UN Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD, said on Thursday. 

On the penultimate day of the United Nations Water Conference, two UN agencies announced several potentially game-changing commitments that could enable countries to quickly gather data on the state of their water resources, and boost efficiency of water use for more sustainable agriculture practices. 

A growing crisis is pushing a higher number of people into hunger in Haiti, the UN food agency warned on Thursday.

Southern African countries hit hard by tropical Cyclone Freddy are reeling from disease outbreaks, with health services stretched to the limit, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.

Renewed diplomatic attention on Syria, and the suffering of its people following the recent deadly earthquake, create new obligations and opportunities to forge lasting peace, UN Special Envoy Geir Pedersen told the Security Council on Thursday. 

UN Secretary-General António Guterres attended an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, seeking support for action on climate change, sustainable development and addressing the ongoing challenges linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Humanity is facing a “difficult truth” the UN chief said just ahead of World Meteorological Day, marked on Friday – the damage already being caused by climate change is “making our planet uninhabitable.”

The UN Water Conference has been hailed as an opportunity to ramp up international cooperation to address water issues and avoid a looming crisis. Experts and UN officials agree that stronger partnerships are key to finding lasting solutions.

A lack of clean water is threatening the well-being and “cultural identity” of the people of Samoa and other Pacific Island nations according to the UN’s most senior representative across the region.

Glaciers are “critical to all life on Earth”, the UN chief reminded the UN 2023 Water Conference on Wednesday, warning that unless the rise in sea level due to global warming is reversed, “the consequences will be catastrophic.”

The world’s precious water resources are “in deep trouble” and leaders are meeting at UN Headquarters this week to address what has become a multifaceted global crisis, before it is too late. 

On the morning of the 2023 UN Water Conference, ultra-marathon runner Mina Guli has completed a year-long, campaign to run 200 marathons, raising awareness of the world’s water crisis. She completed her last run at UN Headquarters, the location of the major event, the first of its kind in almost half a century.