On December 15, 2021 the Unitarian Universalist Association’s office at the United Nations (UU@UN) hosted an event on “Human Rights and Policing Through a Global Lens.” This event was created to educate people on current global policing policies and how those policies affect those in...

December 18 is International Migrants Day, an occasion to recognize and mobilize around protecting migrants’ fundamental human rights. In the face of climate chaos, we must advance just, compassionate policies.

Below is a record of the journey and process involved in reorganizing the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU) and the Unitarian Universalist Partner Church Council (UUPCC) to form a new organization with a mission to carry forward the shared values of international...

In honor of Human Rights Day, UU@UN Director reflects on the human rights priorities of the UUA Office at the UN, expressing gratitude for the generosity of supporters which sustains the office’s work.

We are excited to share an update about the UUA Office at the UN’s upcoming Intergenerational Spring Seminar, “Displacement and Human Rights: All In for Climate Justice.” Programming for the 2022 Intergenerational Seminar will be offered fully online, April 22 – May 1, 2022. The online...

In honor of those whose land and lives have been stolen, the UUA holds space to reflect on the atrocities of colonization, and affirms our solidarity with those who continue to fight for Indigenous sovereignty. We honor the missing and murdered Indigenous women and children. We uplift Indigenous...

Was COP26 a success? Or a failure? I believe it’s most accurate, if unsatisfying, to answer “both” – and “neither.” Each year since the Convention was adopted in 1994, the secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has convened a Conference of Parties (COP),...

Hello to the UUA Community! I am Pierre Candelon, and here at COP26 I co-coordinate a network of stakeholders (practitioners, activists, decision-makers, academics) called the Loss and Damage Collaboration.

As a child, I could not tell that day by day, I was growing. Instead, my father marked my height every year so we could see how much I had grown. October 24, 2021 is the 76th birthday of the United Nations. The UN Charter was signed in 1945 by the representatives of 51 nations. (All those...

Beginning in 1993, the UU Partner Church Council (UUPCC) helped establish nearly 200 partnerships between North American congregations and congregations & organizations in Romania, Hungary, India, Philippines, England & Wales, Burundi, Czech Republic, Kenya, and Uganda.Global partners experienced...

Introduction The visual that circulated in September 2021 of U.S. Border patrolmen chasing Haitian asylum seekers on horseback made many who saw it think of the slave patrols that roamed the Southern U.S. states before emancipation....

This post was originally sent out on September 24 via a monthly email message from Director Bruce Knotts of the Unitarian Universalist Association Office at the United Nations. Subscribe to the UU@UN email list....

India is now emerging from Covid’s devastating second wave. After months of frantic searches for oxygen and overflowing hospitals, infections are declining. But the trauma of so much loss still cuts deep. Every family was touched in some way by the crisis. As we learn more of what happened on the...

In a few days, the UN will convene people virtually from around the world for a Food Systems Summit aimed at transforming food systems globally to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2015, the UN set 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable...

On the 20-year anniversary of September 11th, UUA President Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray reflects on the costs of America's response and spiritual strength of choosing love.

This post was originally sent out on August 23 via a monthly email message from Director Bruce Knotts of the Unitarian Universalist Association Office at the United Nations. Subscribe to the UU@UN email list. I’m a cancer survivor. Those who know about cancer know that early detection and action...

Human-made climate change has contributed to global displacement of tens of millions. An international approach, prioritizing human life over political and corporate power, is the only effective solution.

This post was originally sent out on July 23 via a monthly email message from Director Bruce Knotts of the Unitarian Universalist Association Office at the United Nations. Subscribe to the UU@UN email list. We are faced with what looks like a dilemma but isn’t really. Calls to defund and...

Introduction In September of 1990, the Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders adopted the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials....

The world seems to be witnessing a growth in authoritarian governments. Especially during difficult times, we must work to hold human rights violators accountable.