By Josh Tendai, Alumni Officer at UNU-MERIT Last Friday (12 April), we held the ‘Careers Beyond Borders’ hybrid career event at UNU-MERIT in collaboration with the United Nations Student Association (UNSA) Maastricht. Aimed at students aspiring to make a difference in the world, this event illuminated the pathways to fulfilling careers within international organizations. The event drew strong interest, with over 50 students attending in person – including participants from our MSc in Public Pol...
A guest post by Anna Cherevko, Ukrainian national and current student in our 2023-2024 MPP cohort The UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 – encompassing peace, justice, and strong institutions – happens to sit at the bottom of the list of the SDGs, and can therefore sometimes be seen as less important or crucial than some of the other goals. However, I can say from my personal background that experiencing war in one’s native country results in a completely different perspective on the...
A student’s reflections on an inspiring week By Anna Cherevko, current student in our 2023-2024 MPP cohort On 13-15 February 2024, a group of fellow students and I had the unique opportunity to visit Geneva – a city that is not only home to multiple United Nations entities, but also boasts the world’s highest density of international organizations, think tanks, and NGOs per capita. Organised by DEMOS (the student association of our Public Policy and Human Development master’s programme) and the ...
UNU-MERIT master’s students take their global development studies to the EU’s heart A guest post by Louis Géneau de Lamarlière, current student in our 2023-2024 MPP cohort and Communications Officer of DEMOS Many of us know Brussels as the heart of the EU, home to the European Parliament, European Council and Council of the EU. However, another lesser-known but no less significant role of the Belgian capital is its housing of many UN agencies and institutions. Last week (on 8 February), I had t...
Last month, the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth ran a campaign to celebrate International Youth Day (which falls on 12th August every year). This initiative was aimed at showcasing young people’s resilience, resourcefulness and leadership to create a better world for all under the theme of “Celebrating Ways Youth Lead as Agents of Change for the Global Goals”. Ahmed Hussain – a student of our MSc in Public Policy and Human Development (MPP) programme – was one of the young leaders featured in...
The Dutch Minister of Defence, Kajsa Ollongren, tells UNU-MERIT how the Netherlands seeks to support United Nations operations in Europe and abroad Given its small population (17.5 million) and geographical footprint (with one-fifth the land area of an average U.S. state), the Netherlands has outsized military power, ranking 39 in the GlobalFirepower Index. How is the nation using its strength, both in Europe and beyond? Appointed in 2022, Dutch Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren has pol...
Covering climate change to green tech, here are the key findings from this year so far! We’re halfway through our self-set timeline to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and fast approaching the 2030 deadline of the framework put forth in the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, so it seems that now is the right moment to reflect on the following questions: 🟢 Where do we stand? 🟢 What opportunities are there to overcome our challenges and grow in new directions? 🟢 Where do we go fr...
United Nations University – MERIT · Director´s Corner Podcast – Nov 2022 In this episode of the Director’s Corner Podcast, Director Bartel Van de Walle chats with Kathleen Hopewell, new Student Ambassador of the MPP Programme. In this conversation, Bartel shares with Kathleen insights gained from his career as a young academic through to the benefits and challenges of being director of UNU-MERIT. He answers students’ questions and gives his thoughts on making the...
United Nations University – MERIT · Director’s Corner – Oct 2022 In this episode of the Director’s Corner, Prof. Bartel Van de Walle in conversation with Keith Burnet, Senior Advisor in Communications at UNU-MERIT, discusses how the institute’s Computational Innovation Lab – our new center of expertise on data, artificial intelligence and computational modelling – will help UNU-MERIT, the broader UN family and other policy-makers understand global trans...
UNU-MERIT · Director’s Corner – Sept 2022 In this month’s episode of the Director’s Corner, Prof. Bartel Van de Walle welcomes staff and students to the institute after the summer break and outlines his plans for the autumn. In conversation with Keith Burnet, Senior Advisor, Communications, he explains why research and education at MERIT is a two-way process and flags the benefits of working and studying in Maastricht. ...