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Articles by Michael Stopford
The UN’s power lies in its international staff and partners
One of the greatest privileges of a UN career is the opportunity to work with remarkable colleagues and partners. Looking back on some wonderful assignments, this was, for me, the highlight of my own UN experience. To begin on a lighter note: as Chef de Cabinet to the talented UNOG Director-General Jan Martenson, he would gleefully inform me before breakfast how he had already landed me in trouble.
Can young people have faith in the international system?
As readers of UNToday will be all too well aware, today’s uncertain international situation is beset by what some commentators have termed polycrises: interconnected challenges to peace, security and well-being that feed on each other in a menacing cycle of instability and devastation. We face this acutely in the Middle East, in the Ukraine/Russia conflict, in the lingering threats of the pandemic and the shadow of climate change hanging over us all.
Is there a (professional) life after the UN?
Is there a (professional) life after the UN? For those considering a career change from the international civil service, what are the obstacles and challenges to overcome? The UN is a wonderful place to work. I recall my excitement when I first crossed the 59th Street Bridge into Manhattan, about to start an assignment in the Secretary-General’s Office – having just resigned after a few years with the UK Foreign Service.
Big Issue North's Digital Inclusion Appeal INCLUDE
You can probably certainly agree that since the pandemic, we are living through the biggest digital shift our country has seen in years. I’m sure you can relate to carrying less cash? Adopting more online shopping? Utilising digital banking and contactless payments? 85% of payments are now made digitally, meaning that Big Issue North vendors are a part of 4.7 million adults in the UK who are currently ‘digitally excluded’ and unable to use technology required to go cashless.
Human rights: a scathing scorecard
Human rights: a scathing scorecard A sober personal assessment of where we stand today on the achievement of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights The 10th of December is Universal Human Rights Day, the anniversary of the 1948 signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). What a magnificent affirmation of the human spirit is expressed in its first article: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
Language, culture and a global mindset
Language, culture and a global mindset Languages hold riches expressing the wealth of human culture: multilingualism is an expression of international understanding and respect When mankind became too pushy, you may recall from the biblical story, they were thwarted in their ambitions by the divine imposition of multiple languages. So, they could no longer understand each other and the Tower of Babel collapsed, together with humanity’s reach for the heavens.
Influencers, social media and trust
Influencers, social media and trust In today’s information and data maelstrom, how do we find the truth? Imagine you were back just a few decades, before the internet, emails, mobile phones and social media. There was the nightly news broadcast on television — or before that, just on the radio (the wireless, as my parents used to call it when we sat down to hear the BBC Ten O’Clock news every evening).
Are global rankings any use?
Are global rankings any use? The online world has given us rankings for everything – colleges, companies, countries “Google Search is fundamentally an online rankings system,” that’s what the Editor of US News Best Colleges suggested to me recently.
Continuing education isn’t new but it still matters
Continuing education isn’t new but it still matters With the exponential rate of tech-driven change all societies are facing today, continuing education is essential to stay ahead of the curve Adult education, continuing education, lifelong learning, further education…it seems that we are made to feel thoroughly inadequate today if we do not constantly rejuvenate our brain cells and equip ourselves with the new knowledge needed to survive in the current competitive economy and society.
Neutralidad: ¿un concepto cambiante?
El logo de las Naciones Unidas durante la Asamblea Nacional (Reuters) ¿Sabías que la Asamblea General de la ONU (AGNU) ha declarado el Día Internacional de la Neutralidad? Presentada por Turkmenistán, la Resolución 71/275 de 2017 declara el 12 de diciembre como el Día Internacional de la Neutralidad - e invita a todos los Estados miembros a marcar su observancia.
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