Diego Salama joined UNU-MERIT in May 2013 as Research Assistant to the Education Director, and since 2015 he has worked as Communications Officer. In February 2022, he assumed the role of Acting Head of Communications. In September 2022, Diego became Partnerships & Liaison Specialist. He supports the Director with responsibilities encompassing strategic partnerships,  programme and project management, liaising with UN System, institutional governance and reporting to the UNU Council and the host country. 

Diego concluded his PhD in History of International Relations at Leiden University. His dissertation focuses on UN Peace Operations and the history of the UN.  

Diego holds a BA in International Relations from University College Maastricht and an MA in International Relations (cum laude) with an emphasis on History from Leiden University. 

	Selected publications by Diego Salama
Conference contributions
Merkle, Ortrun & Diego Salama, 2017, Operation Peace: Challenges to Peacekeeping in the 21st Century, Organizer of the Breakout session: “Operation Peace: Challenges to Peacekeeping in the 21st Century” at the Future Force Conference 2017; Organized by the Dutch Ministry of Defense;, More information
Other (editorship, media appearance, keynote, etc.)
Salama, Diego & Ortrun Merkle, 2018, Bystanders for 7 years – is the UN ready for a peacekeeping mission in Syria?, Strife Series on United Nations Peacekeeping; Strife Blog, More information
Merkle, Ortrun & Diego Salama, 2017, U.N. Peacekeeping Cuts Could be a Disaster for Women and Girls, NewsDeeply Women & Girls, OpEd, More information
Merkle, Ortrun, Diego Salama & Khalid Koser, 2016, Challenges to Peacekeeping in the 21st Century: New Series, UNU-MERIT Blog, More information
Salama, Diego, 2016, UN Day 2016: New Tools, New Views, But Same Ideals, UNU-MERIT Blog , More information
Salama, Diego, 2016, António Guterres: An SG for All Seasons?, UNU-MERIT Blog , More information
Salama, Diego, 2016, Is Hybrid Peacekeeping a Model of Success? The Case of UNAMID, UNU-MERIT Blog , More information
Merkle, Ortrun & Diego Salama (eds.), 2016, Challenges to Peacekeeping in the 21st Century, UNU-MERIT Blog Series, Peacekeeping is one of the cornerstones of the United Nations and was, is and will be an essential tool for creating lasting peace in war-torn societies. The international system has changed in many ways since the first deployment of peacekeepers in 1948; new actors and challenges have emerged and mandates have evolved. The 21st Century brings enormous challenges to the international community’s peace and security – and peacekeeping will have to address many of these challenges. This series, culminating on International Day of UN Peacekeepers, 29 May, will bring innovative analysis and offer solutions to some of the most pressing issues facing peacekeeping today, More information
Salama, Diego, 2015, Education is the Measure and Premise of Progress - UNU Global Goals Series, This post discusses the challenges the UN 2030 Agenda will face with regards to education. The article also looks at the transition from MDGs to SDGs, More information
Salama, Diego (ed.), 2015, The UNU Jargon Buster App, In our interconnected world, global discussions rely on a shared understanding of key concepts. To this end, the United Nations University (UNU) has developed a glossary app — the ‘UNU Jargon Buster’ — that clarifies hundreds of social, political and economic terms. This fulfils one of the main missions of UNU: to act as a bridge between academia, UN agencies and the general public, More information