The sector is essential for improving food security and social livelihoods in Kazakhstan (Photo: UNDP Kazakhstan)

Agricultural Innovations for Food Security and Well-Being

Kazakh National Agrarian Research University, a UNAI member institution in Kazakhstan, recently hosted the 5th International Agrotechnological Summit, organized with the support of the United Nations Information Office (UNIC) in Kazakhstan. The focus of the event was the study of the recent trends and challenges in the field of sustainable agriculture and climate change around the topic of “Innovative Development of the Agro-industrial Complex in the Context of Economic Globalization.”

University students in Kabul listen to a lecture (Photo: UNDP Afghanistan)

Advancing Women's Higher Education in Afghanistan

During the COVID-19 pandemic, universities have sought to keep students engaged remotely and Lynn University, a UNAI member institution in the United States, has used its Social Impact Lab to empower students to continue contributing to their communities while studying away from campus.   

Partnering with Women Forward International (WFI) and through its University Client-based Research and Implementation Lynn University became involved in a project with the Afghan Institute for Learning (AIL) to design a women’s only university curriculum in Afghanistan.

Disability & Higher Education: Workforce Preparedness for Students with Disabilities

Disability and Higher Education: Workforce Preparedness for Students with Disabilities

According to the United Nations Development Programme, the global literacy rate for adults with disabilities is as low as 3 per cent, and only 1 per cent for women with disabilities. The 1 billion people with disabilities are the world’s largest minority, accounting for about 15 per cent of the global population. Therefore, it is imperative that they are fully included in society, starting with having equal access to quality education.   

Disability and Higher Education: Better Architectural Choices for Inclusive Campuses

According to the United Nations Development Programme, the global literacy rate for adults with disabilities is as low as 3 per cent, and only 1 per cent for women with disabilities. The 1 billion people with disabilities are the world’s largest minority, accounting for about 15 percent of the global population. Therefore, it is imperative that they are fully included in society, including having equal access to quality education.

From Many Languages One World to Data Analyst: Yelyzaveta Dovhinka

The Many Languages, One World (MLOW) essay contest, co-hosted by ELS Educational Services and United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) from 2014-2017, challenged university students worldwide to write an essay examining global citizenship, cultural understanding and the role of multilingualism in fostering both. The essay had to be written in one of the six official languages of the United Nations (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish), but not in the student’s first language or primary language of instruction. Winners of the contest were invited to United Nations Headquarters for the Global Youth Forum, where they created and presented action plans for the UN’s Sustainable Development Agenda.

Many Languages One World: Mark Harris

From Many Languages One World to Global Learning Network: Mark Harris

The Many Languages, One World (MLOW) essay contest, co-hosted by ELS Educational Services and United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) from 2014-2017, challenged university students worldwide to write an essay examining global citizenship, cultural understanding and the role of multilingualism in fostering both. The essay had to be written in one of the six official languages of the United Nations (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish), but not in the student’s first language or primary language of instruction.

“But You Don’t Look Disabled": Legitimizing Invisible Disabilities

Disability and Higher Education: “But You Don’t Look Disabled": Legitimizing Invisible Disabilities

According to the United Nations Development Programme, the global literacy rate for adults with disabilities is as low as 3 per cent, and only 1 per cent for women with disabilities. The 1 billion people with disabilities are the world’s largest minority, accounting for about 15 percent of the global population. Therefore, it is imperative that they are fully included in society, starting with having equal access to quality education.   

Disability and Higher Education: Inclusivity in an Increasingly Technologically Inclined Academic World

According to the United Nations Development Programme, the global literacy rate for adults with disabilities is as low as 3 per cent, and only 1 per cent for women with disabilities. The 1 billion people with disabilities are the world’s largest minority, accounting for about 15 percent of the global population. Therefore, it is imperative that they are fully included in society, starting with having equal access to quality education.  

Replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources like wind is one of the measures needed to tackle the climate emergency, Thomas Richter/Unsplash

What Combating COVID-19 Can Teach Us About Tackling The Climate Crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic can be seen as a “stress test” for global society, with far reaching impacts across education, economic, health, agricultural, transportation and other sectors. Experts from the University of Zurich (Switzerland), a UNAI member institution serving as the SDG Hub for Goal 13: Climate Action, have studied these impacts from a sustainability perspective to determine what lessons we can learn from the pandemic and how they can be applied when dealing with climate change.

Jan R. Baiker, Nadia Castro, Veruska Muccione, Christian Huggel, Simon Allen and Fabian Drenkhan, from the Research Group on Environment and Climate in the Department of Geography, summarized the effects of the pandemic using the three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social and economic. 

Small-scale farmers face several challenges (Photo: Kristu Jayanti College)

A Pandemic and Changing Demographics: Supporting Farmers in India

Amidst the measures imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of scholars from Kristu Jayanti College (India), a UNAI member institution also serving as the Hub for Goal 1: No Poverty, visited small-scale farmers in the state of Karnataka to analyze the impact the pandemic is having on their livelihoods and other challenges faced in this area.

Hospital staff bring in a new patient during the COVID-19 outbreak (Photo: UN Photo/Evan Schneider)

Rising to the Challenge: Medical School Alumni Respond to COVID-19

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge worldwide, citizens are looking for different ways to cope with fear and uncertainty, protect their loved ones, and forge ahead while frontline healthcare workers are boldly risking their own health and safety to help care for others.

American University of Antigua College of Medicine (AUA), a UNAI member institution in Antigua and Barbuda, has many alumni serving in healthcare fields. The university is committed to supporting underserved communities and addressing the impending physician shortage with an emphasis on primary care and training the next generation of healthcare professionals to respond to global healthcare needs.

A view of the United Nations Secretariat Headquarters Building and the flags of UN member states on First Avenue in New York City.

UN75: Shaping Our Future Together

2020 marks the 75th Anniversary of the founding of the United Nations.  To commemorate this milestone, United Nations Academic Impact has asked academics, educators and leading figures in the fields of science, technology and innovation to share their views on the multilateral experiment born of war to foster peace, and what they see as the role of the organization in the 21st Century and beyond.

From Many Languages One World to UN Volunteer: Bahati Ernestine

The Many Languages, One World (MLOW) essay contest, co-hosted by ELS Educational Services and United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) from 2014-2017, challenged university students worldwide to write an essay examining global citizenship, cultural understanding and the role of multilingualism in fostering both. The essay had to be written in one of the six official languages of the United Nations (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish), but not in the student’s first language or primary language of instruction. Winners of the contest were invited to United Nations Headquarters for the Global Youth Forum, where they created and presented action plans for the UN’s Sustainable Development Agenda.

Shattering the Glass Ceiling for Indigenous Women

There are an estimated 476 million Indigenous peoples in the world, living across 90 countries. They speak an overwhelming majority of the world’s estimated 7,000 languages and represent 5,000 different cultures.

COVID-19 has posed a grave threat to Indigenous peoples around the world, who already lack access to healthcare and other essential services. Yet, Indigenous peoples are seeking their own solutions in their own languages, using divergent knowledge, practices and preventive measures to fight the pandemic.

In the We Are Indigenous series, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) speaks with Indigenous academics, activists and community leaders to learn how the global Indigenous community’s contributions are building a healthier and more sustainable future for us all.

From Many Languages One World to Pediatric Doctor: Sammy Duncan Musungu

The Many Languages, One World (MLOW) essay contest, co-hosted by ELS Educational Services and United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) from 2014-2017, challenged university students worldwide to write an essay examining global citizenship, cultural understanding and the role of multilingualism in fostering both. The essay had to be written in one of the six official languages of the United Nations (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish), but not in the student’s first language or primary language of instruction. Winners of the contest were invited to United Nations Headquarters for the Global Youth Forum, where they created and presented action plans for the UN’s Sustainable Development Agenda.