Peace and Security
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Meeting with Ambassador Viotti of Brazil
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Global Policy Forum follows closely the work of the Security Council. As in past years, GPF worked to inform the public about the Council's work, focusing on how economic interests and geo-strategy affect the conflicts on the Council's agenda. In 2010, we organized 32 policy meetings between key NGO representatives and a Security Council ambassador or a high UN official. We followed certain conflict zones especially closely, particularly Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti, Israel/Palestine, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. We also worked on thematic issues, including Council reform, peacekeeping, the arms trade, and private military companies. We continued to be especially interested in the link between natural resources and conflict - how diamonds, timber, gold, oil and other resources fuel wars and the breakdown of governments and democratic practice. During the year we commented critically on the doctrine of "protection of civilians," which has led to increasingly violent approaches to UN peacekeeping. We invited Council members to consider non-violent alternatives for peacekeeping and to focus more on civilians' social and economic needs. A policy luncheon on private military companies (mercenaries) raised a warning about the UN's increasing use of these violent and lawless warriors.
Iraq
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| Delegates confer before a Security Council meeting |
GPF continued to work actively on Iraq, because the conflict remains so central to global politics, international law, and competition for natural resources. GPF maintained its excellent website section on Iraq. We examined the evolving legal status of the Iraqi government and the promises of US withdrawal. While the number of occupation forces diminished during the year, they remained at about 60,000 along with a large number of special operations forces, intelligence operatives and foreign military contractor personnel. In the late fall, the Security Council closed many Iraq-related resolutions and procedures in what seemed to be a positive closure process.
Social & Economic Policy
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Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food
Olivier de Schutter & Jim Paul
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During 2010, GPF worked on the world economic crisis and the food & hunger crisis. Our NGO Working Group on Food & Hunger was very active, bringing together a number of NGO partners in New York and beyond for information-sharing, public education and joint advocacy. With more than a billion hungry people on the planet and rising world hunger, the need for action is urgent. In the summer, food prices again began to rise markedly, reaching record levels by year-end. We organized thirty-nine WG meetings and advocacy events, as well as public meetings on food issues for the UN community. We urged attention to the unsustainable system of industrial agriculture and the alternative options available. During the year, we further enlarged our network of connections to NGOs, scientists and UN officials. On the economic crisis, we analyzed the policy implications of new regulation, stimulus programs, austerity measures, and other government initiatives. We also looked at the destabilizing effect of offshore financial centers and the broad issue of tax evasion and the consequent de-funding of governments and public activities. Our Bonn colleagues at GPF Europe took the lead in an important initiative on alternative measures of economic well-being.
UN Reform
GPF continued to provide analysis and information about UN reform, emphasizing that the world body is constrained by the outlook and interests of its most powerful member states. Reform cannot by itself solve global problems, but it sometimes can help. GPF's UN Reform site covers reform of the UN organs, and the role of new actors, such as NGOs and business. UN Reform tends to be faddish, as enthusiasms rise and fall, without much fundamental thought about the institution and where reform proposals may be headed. GPF looks beneath the surface and seeks to understand how national interests drive the different reform proposals. During 2010, GPF took up specific reform issues, including the reform of the UN Security Council, the reform of peacekeeping, and the reform of UN management and finance.
United Nations Finance
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| Table showing the percentage of US vs. total debt to the UN budget |
The UN must have adequate financing if it is to fulfill its mission, yet its budget is comparatively small and its finances poorly-understood. Nations wrangle endlessly over every detail of the UN's budget with little constructive result. GPF's program on UN finance seeks better funding and a more imaginative approach to the budget process. In 2010, we continued to develop our world class series of tables and charts on UN finance, under the overall direction of GPF Senior Research Fellow Klaus Huefner. In June, in partnership with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, we held a major conference on UN finance, attended by fifty participants from 27 countries. We also continued to advocate for alternative sources of funds for the UN. Taxes on financial transactions, for instance, offer significant new funding that could provide the organization with the resources it needs.
NGOs & Global Governance
We continued our active research and advocacy on the worldwide NGO movement, pushing in particular for greater NGO access at the UN. NGOs contribute much to the United Nations through their information, ideas, advocacy and attentive monitoring. While the UN is more open to NGOs than it used to be, it still remains far too closed and restrictive. NGOs should not be idealized, though, and there are many questions to be asked, especially about "astroturf" NGOs formed by governments and by businesses. Even large and respected NGOs are subject to multiple pressures for political conformity and integration into the military-security system. In 2010, we continued to work in partnership with others and we took a leadership role in the NGO Working Group on NGO Access at the UN.
Nations & States
During the year, GPF continued its analysis of the role of "Nations & States" in a globalized world. We looked at how the global economy - through export processing zones, dollarization, tax havens and transnational corporations - has transformed state sovereignty and undermined state financing. We also provided information on political integration, "failed states," emerging states and claims by groups to autonomy and national independence. The world economic crisis showed the continued importance of states as economic managers and creditors of last resort, but the crisis also spotlighted the weakness of states in contrast to global financial companies. States appear to be at risk of collapse if they cannot assure their citizens of food, water, education and social peace.
International Justice
In 2010, we provided analysis and information on many key aspects of international justice. We covered the proceedings of the International Criminal Court and the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia. Further, we looked at the application of universal jurisdiction and the Alien Torts Claim Act, and we made available information on the discussion about "peace versus justice." We welcomed the adoption of a consensus definition of the crime of aggression by the ICC review conference.
Media
In 2009, we gave 48 interviews to media outlets all over the world, including radio, television, newspapers, magazines and websites. Among the many media were Deutsche Welle, al-Jazeera, Le Monde, Australian Broadcasting, BBC, USA Today, InterPress Service and the New Statesman. The topics of the interviews included the UN Security Council, energy and oil, the global food crisis, Iraq and UN reform. This media activity enabled GPF to reach many millions of people with our information and analysis.
Website/Newsletter/Blog/Twitter
GPF hosts one of the world's largest NGO sites on the UN and global policy. During 2010, we continued to build our new website. The site continued to attract a large number of visitors - about five million for the year as a whole. Our monthly electronic "Update," launched in December, provided news about GPF activities while our weekly newsletter now reaches subscribers in more than 130 countries. We continued posting to our blog and building our presence on Twitter and Facebook.
Conferences, Lectures and Meeting Participation
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Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill presents at GPF's event on PMSCs
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In addition to 32 meetings of the NGO Working Group on the Security Council and 37 meetings and events of the NGO Working Group on Food & Hunger, GPF organized several other public events during the year, including the conference on Financing the UN and an event on the role of Private Military and Security Companies.
Internships and Volunteers
In 2010, we hosted three teams of interns in our New York office - a total of nineteen persons from twelve different countries. We gave them training in UN diplomacy, website management, writing, research and international policymaking. We wrote numerous recommendation letters and gave career support to current and former interns. We organized many special luncheons, putting the interns in touch with members of the UN community - NGOs, diplomats, Secretariat officials and other UN staff. In September, we organized an alumni dinner for former interns in London, with another scheduled for the spring in New York.
Staff / Senior Fellows / Advisors
Lou Pingeot joined GPF's staff as program coordinator in November. Barbara Adams served through October, stepping down after two years as Senior Fellow with work on economic policy . Klaus Huefner worked as Senior Research Fellow from Berlin, with a special focus on UN finance. His data series in this area is well-known to all scholars and policy experts. Céline Nahory actively engaged with GPF on a variety of issues as Senior Advisor from Mumbai.
Budget & Fundraising
In 2010, GPF's headquarters budget was $270,000. About half of this sum came from donations from individuals. The remainder came from foundations, partner organizations, fees and other sources. GPF Europe had a budget in 2009 of €180,000. Most of its funding comes from partner organizations and foundations, with the balance from individual members. With a consolidated budget total of only about $500,000, GPF accomplished a remarkable amount. We thank all the donors and friends whose support makes this work possible.
