The New York
Office represents UNEP at UN Headquarters. It serves as a
vital link with Governments (through their Permanent Missions
to the UN and their delegations to various
intergovernmental meetings in New York), with agencies,
funds and programmes of the UN system, and with departments
of the UN Secretariat, notably the Offices of the Secretary-General
and the Deputy Secretary-General. The Office ensures, through
its participation in intergovernmental meetings, that UNEP’s
voice and guidance on environmental policy issues are taken
into account in the deliberations and recommendations of the
General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council and its
subsidiary bodies, as well as in other special UN summits
and conferences, including the World Summit on Sustainable
Development (WSSD). The Office also provides guidance and support
to UNEP’s Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment
Forum (GMEF), through the preparation of key policy documents
and by providing substantive support to intergovernmental
processes, such as that on international environmental governance.
UNEP’s role in the coordination of
UN system-wide activities in the field of the environment
is ensured by the New York Office’s participation in
major inter-agency meetings (particularly
the UN System Chief Executives Board (CEB) for Coordination
and the UN Executive Committees), and the work of the Environmental
Management Group (EMG). The Office develops strategies and
specific policy initiatives and proposals in this regard.
The Office also undertakes substantive collaborative initiatives
with partners in the UN system, for example with the United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health
Organization (WHO) in the field of children’s environmental
health.
With the role and influence of civil society
greatly expanding within the international community, the
New York Office has a key role in developing and maintaining
active contacts with UN-affiliated non-governmental organizations
(NGOs), foundations, private sector corporations, academic
institutions and others. Through various outreach
initiatives and products, the Office builds support among
such groups for the work of UNEP, providing them with scientific
and substantive information, and facilitating the transmittal
of their views and information to other substantive units
within UNEP. The Office maintains a network of media contacts
within the region and at the United Nations in an effort to
ensure that environmental issues and problems, and the UN’s
role in their solution, are featured appropriately and targeted
to the right audiences. The Office also serves as the focal
point for UNEP contact with the UN Department of Public Information
(DPI), works closely with the Office of the Spokesman for
the Secretary-General, and organizes environment-related special
events and exhibits at UN Headquarters. |
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