Engaging with the UN Workshop Series

Carmen Capriles, whose home is in La Paz, Bolivia, became involved with the United Nations as a young adult.  With academic expertise in agriculture, she set out to learn about and then engage with the UN on climate and land use policies.  Almost twenty years later, she generously offered to teach us in IWC how to make the same journey from learning to influence, in the crowded world of advocacy at the UN.

 

The four sessions of presentations and dialogues begin with a thumbnail history of the world, including a fascinating history of pandemics and wars, demonstrating the need for a United Nations.  The UN began in the 1940s as a forum for debate and action among governments.  It wasn’t until the 1960s that “Civil Society” - the people of the world - began to look for ways to influence the UN.   In the later sessions, Carmen offers road maps for navigating the complexities of UN advocacy.

Session I on engagement with the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms, recorded on August 5, 2021:

Session II on engagement with the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms, recorded on August 12, 2021:

Session III on engagement with the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms, recorded on August 19, 2021:

Session IV (bonus session) on engagement with the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms, recorded on August 26, 2021:

As a founding member of Reacción Climática, Carmen Capriles works to advance the participation of Bolivian youth to find solutions to climate change. She is also the coordinator of WECAN (Women’s Earth & Climate Action Network, International) for Latin America and the Caribbean. Carmen has extensive experience in advocacy at the local level as well as organizing and participating in regional and international campaigns, forums, trainings, dialogues, and policy briefs.