Join us for an evening with
NATALIA GHERMAN
Former Foreign Minister and
Former Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova
JEAN KRASNO
WomanSG Campaign Chair
Professor, City College of New York
6:00 p.m. | Reception
6:30 p.m. | Program
7:15 p.m. | Q+A
Steelcase
4 Columbus Circle (58th Street and Eighth Avenue)
New York, NY
ADMISSION
UNA Members: $10
UNA Student Members: FREE
Guests and Non-Members: $15
NOTE: Diplomats may attend this event for FREE
(use the UNA Student Member option below when registering)
In the wake of Ban Ki-moon's campaign for gender equality, the stage may well be set for a decisive victory to install the very first woman in the UN Secretary-General's chair.
These coming months before the election of a new Secretary-General, at the end of 2016, provide a time for a fundamental consideration of women candidates for election to this role — a role which has become increasingly visible and important in world affairs. Our current era has witnessed the elevation of the importance of women and their place in society, with due respect for their rights, abilities and well-being, and especially their ascendence in global leadership.
Having just reached its 70th anniversary, which signifies a lifetime of work for the organization, this milestone moment for the United Nations offers a pivotal perspective from which to launch the momentum of a new lifetime. While the eight UN heads so far have represented multiple regions of the world, no woman has yet held this top position. In a world in which women make up half of its population, further incoming leadership of women at this time plays an essential part in our current paradigm shift.
In February 2015 a group of like-minded women came together to launch a campaign to elect a woman as UN Secretary-General when Ban Ki-moon steps down at the end of 2016. The working group represents women from academia and civil society with a long record of engagement with the United Nations. Through several discussions they decided the time had come for a woman to lead the organization, forming a core planning group to initiate the campaign.
Visit their website at www.womansg.org to look over some of the biographies of current women candidates — outstanding women who demonstrate the depth and richness of talent and experience in high-level positions from all regions of the globe. You will also see that the current pool of women candidates may likely come from the Eastern European block of countries.
Please come out and join us to welcome our special guest Natalia Gherman, the former Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova, who is a candidate formally nominated by her country. The other guest, Jean Krasno, professor of political science at City College of New York, will join her in discussing the strengths of women for the role, as well as highlighting some of the issues and changes involved in this upcoming UN-SG election, which is currently undergoing its own makeover, including a greater degree of transparency of the election process itself.
This event is our first in a series focusing on women candidates for UN Secretary-General.
NATALIA GHERMAN
Official Candidate for UN Secretary-General
Nominated by the Republic of Moldova
February 19, 2016
Natalia Gherman currently serves as Deputy Prime-minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Moldova. She is a career diplomat holding the diplomatic rank of Ambassador. In June-July 2015 she was Acting Prime-minister of the Republic of Moldova.
In March 2014, Ms. Gherman was among seven most impressive women leaders in the world, selected by The Guardian UK for the ranking "Seven women to watch in global politics who are leading positive change all over the world."
Ms. Gherman began her long career in service to her country as the Second Secretary for the Department of International Organizations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova from 1991-2; then First Secretary for the Department of European Organizations from 1992-4. From 1994-7, Ms Gherman served as Counselor and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Moldova to the OSCE and the UN Agencies in Vienna; from 1997-2001, becoming the Deputy Head of the Department of European Security and Political-Military Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova. Ms. Gherman served as Minister-Counselor of the Embassy of the Republic of Moldova in Brussels as well as Deputy Head of the Mission of Moldova to NATO from 2001-2. This led to Ambassadorships, first as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Moldova to the Republic of Austria as well as Permanent Representative to the UN Agencies in Vienna and to the OSCE. Representing her country to the OSCE in Vienna, Ms. Gherman has been a prominent contributor to the efforts of the Organization on identifying solutions to the unresolved conflicts in the OSCE area, at the same time mobilizing the potential of the OSCE community towards the resolution of the Transnistrian conflict in the Republic of Moldova in accordance with the International Law. From 2006-9, Ms. Gherman served as first resident Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Finland. For her merits in promoting relations between Sweden and Moldova, His Majesty the King of Sweden awarded Ms. Gherman the Royal Order of the Polar Star of the Kingdom of Sweden in the rank of Commander First Class.
As Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Moldova in 2009-13, Ms. Natalia Gherman was the Chief Negotiator on behalf of the Republic of Moldova for the Association Agreement, the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area and the visa liberalization dialogue with the European Union. For the successful negotiations of these crucial Agreements that paved the way for Moldova's European Integration, in 2014 Ms. Gherman was awarded the highest national distinction — the Order of the Republic of Moldova.
In 2013, Ms. Gherman was honored with dual role of Deputy Prime-minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration. She also served as Member of the Parliament in 12/2014 - 2/2015, being member of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and European Integration. Since 2/2015 when the new Government was sworn in as a result of the Parliamentary elections, Ms. Gherman resumed her current role as Deputy Prime-minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Policy and European Integration.
Ms. Natalia Gherman was born in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova. She received her BA from the State University of the Republic of Moldova and her MA in War Studies from London University's King's College.
She is mother to son Mircea Gherman and the daughter of Moldova's first President Mircea Snegur (1990-7).
JEAN KRASNO
Jean Krasno is a member of the faculty in the Department of Political Science at the City College of New York's Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. She is also a Lecturer and Associate Research Scientist at Yale University where she has taught courses on the United Nations, UN peacekeeping, and International Organization since 1995.
She was Executive Director of the Academic Council on the United Nations System from 1998 to 2003 when the organization was housed at Yale.
Dr. Krasno was authorized by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to organize his papers for publication, a five volume set, published by Lynne Rienner Publishers in March 2012.
Dr. Krasno received her Ph.D. from the City University of New York Graduate Center in 1994, where she wrote her doctoral dissertation on Brazilian politics.
Some of her other publications include: The United Nations: Confronting the Challenges of a Global Society, editor, (2004, Lynne Rienner, Publisher); Leveraging for Success in UN Peace Operations, editor with Don Daniel and Bradd Hayes, (2003, Greenwood/Praeger Publishers); The United Nations and Iraq: Defanging the Viper, co-authored with James Sutterlin (2003, Greenwood/Praeger Publishers); and Personality, Political Leadership, and Decision Making: A Global Perspective, Jean Krasno (author/editor) with Sean LaPides (Praeger Publishers, 2015).
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