By: Luisa Hofmann For over 80 years, Courtroom 600 in Nuremberg has been a place of reckoning, remembrance and courage. It is where the world said ‘never again’ in the language of law, and where it first insisted that even the most powerful be held accountable for their crimes. The room has witnessed the worst of what human beings can do to one another, and it has heard the law answer back. Nuremberg is regarded as the birthplace of modern international criminal justice and h

By: Nicholas Estée 10 October, 2026 We are pleased to share a report authored by Nicholas Estée reflecting on his attendance, on behalf of UNHS, to the 2026 UN Global Compact SDG Roadshow in Glasgow. The report explores key discussions on sustainable urban development, circularity, investments, skills, and cross-sector collaboration. Nicholas’s analysis highlights practical opportunities to advance the 2030 Agenda and offers plans to strengthen local SDGs implementation acros

By: Leen Shoura An interview for From Syria, With Love It is August in Damascus, and the heat is relentless. Hassan Akkad is sitting at Nash bakery with a Spanish latte in front of him. Outside is the city he has left, returned to, filmed, defended, criticised and continued to call home through several different versions of himself. Teacher. Filmmaker. Refugee. NHS worker. Artist. Activist. Ask Hassan which of those identities describes him today, however, and he reaches for

By: Sophie Gleisner Date: 27 August 2026 Speakers: Katie Hagmann (MSP) – Host Andy Sirel (JustRight Scotland) Bronagh Andrew (TARA) Joy Gillespie (SOHTIS) Summary: Introduction: Human trafficking is best understood as an exploitation of vulnerability. It currently exists within all 32 local authorities in Scotland, and impacts both Scottish and non-Scottish (such as immigrants) citizens alike. The following industries in Scotland contain prevalent links to human trafficking a

On 15th June 2026, UN Interns Annie Lieberman, Magali Courades, and Taisha Sharma attended the Scottish Parliament's Holyrood 2026 event on the Big Issues in Scottish Parliament ahead of August's Festival of Politics. Please read their full report below.

This April our Beyond COP team hosted representatives from across media, policy, and academia to discuss the role of technology and AI within the context of misinformation in ongoing climate change discussions. The team have created a useful summary of key findings and recommended actions. We are grateful to our speakers and organisers who have agreed to make this discussion public via our YouTube channel. Full report by The Beyond COP Team also accessible below. https://www.

Our UNHS Summer social was held on Wednesday 10th June to celebrate the work of all teams at UN House Scotland. Thank you to all in attendance and to Gari for hosting a wonderful event.

By Elena Kerr 16/03/2026 CSW70 Parallel event: Authoritarian Power, Gendered Body, and Politics of Autonomy Today I attended this informative and very important event moderated by Hafza Girdap representing Advocates of Silenced Turkey. This event brought together an impressive panel of experts: Rachel Miner, Dr Shilan Fuad Hussain, Cindy Morris, Prof Manisha Desai, and Sevinc Ozarslan. Rachel presented data regarding the core issue genocide, which occurs approximately every 2

By Elena Kerr Week 1 at the UN CSW70 12/03/2026 CSW70 Parallel Event – Reconceptualising Justice at Work: Structural and Cultural Transformation Today I attended this empowering event discussing what justice means at the workplace. The panellists discussed topics such as women’s experiences at the workplace, changes, industrial segregation, and action points for improvement and inclusion. The panel included the expert speakers Gillian Unsworth, Tamara Thermitus, Zarin Hainswo

By Leen Shoura This time my story is different. It’s not about memories, not about the past, I’m writing about a fear I felt with my own skin, a fear I thought I had buried forever. On July 16, Damascus was shaken in a way I hadn’t seen in a while. Around 3 p.m., the sky cracked open with thunder that wasn’t thunder. Israeli airstrikes struck the very heart of the capital, Umayyad Square, a place so central that no Syrian can imagine Damascus without it. The targets weren’

By Hana Shono Please note that as the event was held in Japanese, some of the quotations included in this blog post have been translated or summarised for clarity and may not reflect the speaker’s exact wording. On 22 January 2026, at 3pm JST, Peace Boat marked the fifth anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) with a commemorative event featuring the voices of diplomats, activists and Hibakusha, survivors of nuclear violence. The event was both

On Thursday 5th February 2026, representatives from UnA Scotland and UNHS Scotland met remotely to share updates from all branches and departments, and discuss strategy and collaboration going forward. The meeting was facilitated by Dr Gari Donn, Chair of UNAS and Executive Director of UNHS, and minutes were recorded by resident intern, Magali Courades.

By Georgiana F Bugeag Eighty years ago, in January 1946, delegates from fifty-one nations gathered inside Methodist Central Hall Westminster for the inaugural session of the United Nations General Assembly. Emerging only months after the end of the Second World War, they met to define the purpose of a new international organisation founded on a radical ambition: to replace war with cooperation, and force with law. On 17 January 2026, I returned to this same hall on behalf of

This roundtable report brings together Scottish and Irish perspectives on global tensions and their implications for peace, security and international cooperation. The discussion reflects on shared challenges, regional viewpoints and the role of dialogue in an increasingly fragmented global context. (PDF available for download below.)

Today marks the 5th anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons ( TPNW). Find out what this treaty is about, what is has achieved and why it's important to push for its universal ratification. For more information and getting involved, visit the ICAN website .

I In September 2025, the Beyond COP team delivered a week-long project in Edinburgh involving UNAS Earth Ambassadors and engagement with schools, community organisations, Parliamentarians, and civil society. The week included school workshops, Model United Nations sessions, a roundtable at the Scottish Parliament, meetings with climate NGOs, and public events, all aimed at encouraging community-based climate action and global citizenship. This post presents the Ambassadors’ o

UNHS Blog Post Human Rights Day 2025 by Luisa Hofmann & Beatrice Hart-Brown On this Human Rights Day, the UN’s reminder that human rights are “our everyday essentials” is more than a theme. It is both a warning and hope because in today’s world these essentials often feel fragile, too distant, unachievable and something we increasingly lose appreciation for. We live in an age of multiplying conflic

Author: Georgiana F Bugeag UNHS Human Rights Team On this Human Rights Day, we highlight the essential role that human rights play in shaping a just and equitable future for all. This day offers an occasion for both commemoration and scrutiny. While the global human rights system continues to affirm the universality and indivisibility of rights, the lived experience of women and girls across all regions reveals persistent structural inequalities, systemic violence, and po

On Tuesday 11th December, 2025, UN House Scotland were delighted to host Ryan Conover's , a former United Nations House Scotland intern, for their seminar titled: “Playing Fast and Loose: A Critical Assessment of the United States’ Engagement with the International Human Rights Regime.” How much leeway does the United States have in shaping or bending the norms and principles of the International Human Rights Regime? Has it transgressed the norms, threatening the regime’s sta

Reducing Bias, Building Trust UN House Scotland is proud to highlight the work of our partner, May East, an international urbanist, consultant and educator, and Director of our Cities Programme. In her latest article, AI for All: Reducing Bias, Building Trust, May unpacks concerns about the social impacts of growing AI use, such as racial, disability, and gender bias. May outlines the importance and possibility of building trustworthy AI which not only serves humanity but he