GPF Annual Highlights
2002
We monitored the work of the UN Security Council and published extensive information about the world's conflicts, their causes, and efforts to prevent them. We covered sanctions, peacekeeping, negotiations, rivalry between powerful states, economic sources of conflict.
Iraq Crisis
We devoted increasing effort to the Iraq crisis during the year and greatly enlarged our coverage of the topic on the GPF web site. We drew on a network of scholars and experts to produce policy papers and track down key documents. We gave many public speeches and media interviews and coordinated with partner NGOs for advocacy and public mobilization.
NGO Advocacy Meetings on Security Council Issues
We organized 45 advocacy meetings (nearly one each week), bringing key NGOs together with Security Council ambassadors, with top UN officials, and with two foreign affairs ministers.
NGO Advocacy Luncheons with the Iraq Sanctions Committee
On May 15 and October 15, we organized advocacy luncheons between NGO partners and diplomat members of the Security Council’s Iraq Sanctions Committee. Gerard McHugh, of Save the Children UK, called on delegates to meet their humanitarian responsibilities and to lift the sanctions that have harmed innocent civilians.
Hans von Sponeck Visit and Lecture
We helped organize in May a week-long advocacy visit to New York by Hans von Sponeck, former UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq. Von Sponeck resigned in 2000 after a 32-year career at the UN to protest the sanctions’ harm to innocent civilians. His visit highlighted the humanitarian crisis in Iraq and the danger of war. On May 20, GPF organized a public lecture by von Sponeck that attracted a large number of NGOs, delegates and media representatives.
Paper on Iraq Sanctions
We published a major policy paper on “Iraq Sanctions: Humanitarian Implications and Options for the Future,� produced with several partner NGOs and released on August 6, exactly twelve years after the sanctions were first imposed by the Security Council. Released to the press in Paris, Berlin, London and New York, the report attracted a great deal of favorable media attention and readership on the web reached 10,000 per week. An Arabic translation appeared in October.
Israel/Palestine Crisis
In response to the acute crisis in the Middle East, we drafted and organized a joint letter that eighteen major NGOs sent to the Security Council on April 10. We urged the Council to enforce Resolution 242 of 1967 calling on Israel to withdraw from all occupied territories. Throughout the year we continued advocacy on this urgent issue.
Media and Lectures
We gave two dozen lectures at college campuses, public forums and other events, including a Congressional briefing in Washington on Iraq. We also gave 162 media interviews (more than three per week) to such outlets as the BBC, CNN, Canadian Broadcasting, Africa Radio, Norwegian Radio, ZDF German TV, and dozens of radio stations across the United States.
Web Site
We posted nearly 3,000 pages of material to the GPF web site. The site attracted eighteen million hits from 2.5 a million visitors, more than double the rate of the previous year. More than five thousand sites around the world have established links to the GPF site, including the BBC, the Washington Post, the Guardian (UK), Yale University and the United Nations.
Natural Resources in Conflict
Natural resources such as oil, diamonds, timber and water often fuel civil wars and security crises. We have established exceptional materials for analysis and information on this topic, with specialization on diamonds in African conflicts. Recently, we added substantially to this information and broadened the range of topics and analytical materials, including information about oil and the Iraq crisis.
UN Finance
We continued our respected work on the financial crisis of the United Nations. In spite of substantial payments of arrears by the United States in 2001 and 2002, the crisis continues and the UN’s budget is hopelessly inadequate. Our extensive information and tables serve as standard references.
NGOs
We circulated information on NGOs and global policy, including the NGO role at the United Nations. We worked with key partners to enlarge NGO access to UN meetings and to gain access to the UN’s document database and we participated in a committee that met regularly with UN officials to improve access and address special problems.
Paper on “Global Taxes for Global Priorities�
We published in March a policy paper on global taxes, authored by Jim Paul of GPF and Katarina Wahlberg of Stockholm University. Such taxes can help to slow global warming and reduce destructive currency speculation, while the revenues could fund global needs, including reduction of poverty and funding the UN.
Globalization/Global Justice Movement/G-8 Summit
We gave attentive web site coverage to the Global Justice Movement and its critiques of harmful and antidemocratic aspects of globalization. GPF correspondent Jason Garred, sent daily dispatches from the G-8 Summit and its counter-events in Calgary, Canada, June 24-28.
Transnational Corporations
We followed TNCs and their role in global policy. During the year, scandals engulfed a number of major companies that had falsified financial records, abused offshore accounts, evaded taxes, and obstructed justice. GPF published information on these issues to underscore the need for global democratic oversight, public accountability and economic justice.
US Unilateralism
We focused special attention on US unilateralism, which poses an increasing threat to the UN, to multilateral policy making, and to global accountability. We opposed Washington’s attempts to undermine global consensus on the International Criminal Court, the climate change Kyoto Protocol, disarmament agreements, women’s health and more.
Internship Program
We hosted 19 interns from 11 countries –Argentina, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Germany, India, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and the United States. We organized a luncheon series for interns, we wrote letters of recommendation, and we kept touch with our alumni through a bi-annual electronic newsletter.
New Staff
Katarina Wahlberg joined the GPF staff after completing a Master’s degree from the University of Stockholm. Katarina coordinates our work on social and economic policy and takes on fund-raising responsibilities. Sara Spånt, also a University of Stockholm Masters graduate, joined the staff on a temporary basis from August-December. From October, Sara worked exclusively on the Iraq crisis.
Memorial for Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen
On November 7, we organized a memorial event for our friend and founding board member Ruth Steinkraus-Cohen. Her lifelong support for the United Nations inspired us and her advice and leadership helped GPF to prosper.
Fund-Raising Growth
Our fund-raising continued to grow, as donors supported our efforts to broaden and strengthen GPF programs.
Global Policy Forum is supported primarily by contributions from generous individuals who join as members. GPF also receives grants from foundations and partner institutions. GPF is incorporated in the State of New York, registered as a charitable organization and recognized by the US Internal Revenue Service as a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the revenue code.
