UNITWIN Staff and Message from Sonia Bahri, UNITWIN Director - UNESCO, Paris

From left to right: Inga Nichanian, Hassmik Tortian, Sonia Bahri, Milena Caceres Valderrama, and Carmen Piñán.

From Dr. Sonia Bahri, Director of UNITWIN: There will be no sustainable development without women's empowerment. Higher education Institutions and universities have a key role to play as think-tanks and as bridge-builders between academia and local communities, and between research outcomes and decision making, in the field of gender equality.

Today, UNITWIN has 617 UNESCO Chairs and 60 UNITWIN Networks in 125 Member States. There are 11 Chairs plus one UNITWIN Network established in Gender issues.

Dr. Brenda Gael McSweeney Awarded Order of Merit First Class from Federal Republic of Germany

Dr. Brenda Gael McSweeney pictured here with the Lady Mayor of Bonn, Baerbel Dieckmann, on the occasion of the Award Ceremony in Bonn.

Brenda was awarded the Order of Merit First Class, decided by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, for her work in development with the United Nations and support of the creation of the 'UN City, Bonn.'

She was invited to give a lecture entitled "Making UN History in Bonn" to the development community in Bonn on the occasion of the award ceremony. The lecture focused on work accomplished by the UN Volunteers in the arena of gender and the environment globally, with specific reference to programs in Burkina Faso and India, and an accent on steps the development community in Bonn might take next.

UN Volunteers Article on Brenda's Award


Photo by Dr. B. Murali

University of Bonn Students preparing for the Model UN, New York

Model United Nations participants from the University of Bonn, Germany pictured with Brenda Gael McSweeney

Brenda met up on October 22nd at the Old Town Hall in the UN City of Bonn with a team of University of Bonn students who will be participating in the 2009 National Model UN delegation. This was on the occasion of the event, "Making UN History in Bonn", co-sponsored by the City of Bonn and the Foundation for International Dialogue of Sparkasse Bonn.

The UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture and Development is currently exploring affiliations with the University of Bonn and Sparkassenstiftung, Bonn.

Photograph by Hee-Sun Helene Won