Cool Biz of the Year 2008
UNU Rector Accepts Cool Biz Award for UN
UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder accepts a Cool Biz of the Year 2008 award from Hiroko Koshino. At right is actor Tetsuya Bessho who also received an award. Photo: Jeremy Hedley/UNU.
2008.10.07 • UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder accepted a Cool Biz of the Year 2008 award today on behalf of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for the United Nations' "Cool UN" initiative.
The award was given to the UN for its role in serving as a model for Cool Biz outside Japan. During the month of August the thermostat in parts of the UN Headquarters building was raised nearly 3 degrees celsius to 25°, reducing the building's carbon emmissions by an estimated 300 tons and saving $100,000 in electricity costs.
It was the first time for UN Headquarters to experiment with the Cool Biz concept, which was initiated in Japan by then-Minister of the Environment Yuriko Koike in 2005. Ms. Koike participated in the awards ceremony as representative of the Cool Biz Promotion Council.
Accepting the award from renowned fashion designer Hiroko Koshino, whose designs have embraced the Cool Biz concept since the inception of the campaign, Rector Osterwalder read a statement from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon which urged nations to put aside their country positions and face a global collective responsibility to our children and the generations of the future.
In Tokyo, where the summers can be particularly hot and humid, UNU Headquarters has been practicing Cool Biz since the beginning of the campaign 3 years ago, setting the building thermostat to 28° in the summer. Energy costs are likewise saved in the winter by keeping the thermostat low.
Climate change poses ‘defining challenge’ of our time, Ban says (UN.org)
Cool United Nations (OurWorld 2.0)
Cool Biz Campaign (Wikipedia)
Ageing into the 21st Century
The Wisdom Years
Master weaver Yasujiro Yamaguchi, 103 years old, works at his loom in this scene from The Wisdom Years.
2008.10.02 • The UNU is delighted to announce the launch of a new website devoted the topic of ageing in Japan. Produced in collaboration with the World Health Organization Centre for Health Development, the Wisdom Years project includes a video documentary and online case study that examines how scientific breakthroughs and a high quality of life are working to improve health and prolong the lives of our elders.
On 12 September, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare published a report today indicating that the number of Japanese aged 100 and over has increased to 36,276 in 2008. That is 3,981 more than last year. Also, as of March 2008, the number of people over the age of 65 has reached 21.6% of the population. This places Japan at the forefront of a global ageing trend. How Japan copes with this social transformation will have important lessons for countries across the globe.
The first public screening of the documentary in Tokyo took place at the UNU Peace and Creativity Salon on 26th September 2008.
Global University Network for Innovation
GUNI Interview with Konrad Osterwalder
Interview with UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder
(view larger video)
2008.09.26 • Earlier in the year UNU rector Konrad Osterwalder participated in the 4th International Barcelona Conference on Higher Education on "new challenges and emerging roles for human and social development" held at the Technical University of Catalonia.
Rector Osterwalder was interviewed by GUNI about the new approaches of UNU to strengthen developed and developing countries’ higher education and research and how to address issues such as globalisation and mass higher education, and a video of the interview has been posted.
Interview with Konrad Osterwalder
Hiroshima Peacebuilders' Center
Peacebuilding Trainees’ Coursework Begins at UNU
2008.08.25 • UNU welcomed the new trainees of this year’s Hiroshima Peacebuilders’ Center (HPC) “Pilot Program for Human Resource Development in Asia” at a Commencement Ceremony held at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo. The ceremony marked the opening of the six-week HPC Coursework for 2008, and featured addresses by State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Shintaro Ito, HPC Director Hideaki Shinoda, Hiroshima University Vice-President Akira Ninomiya, UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder, and JICA Vice-President Kenzo Oshima.
The trainees, who are from Japan and other Asian countries, have excellent prospects to become expert peacebuilders. During their coursework, they will develop practical peacebuilding skills through a series of lectures and workshops.
In addition to the ceremony, UNU and HPC are co-organizing two days of training at UNU Headquarters, in co-operation with other UN agencies including UNHCR, UNDP, UNICEF, UNV and WFP, as well as the International Organization for Migration. The UNU Peace & Governance Programme, which conducts extensive research and capacity development areas in the area of peacebuilding, will share its expertise with the trainees in order to facilitate their learning and help to develop the practical skills that will serve them in their future work as expert peacebuilders.
Congratulatory Address by Mr. Shintaro Ito, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs (MoFA website)
Nutrition Research and Policy
Food and Nutrition Bulletin Launches New Website
2008.08.20 • 
UNU is pleased to announce the launch of a new website for the Food and Nutrition Bulletin, an academic journal published quarterly by the International Nutrition Foundation for the United Nations University in collaboration with the United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN) and the International Union of Nutritional Scientists (IUNS).
The purpose of the journal is to highlight policy analyses, state-of-the-art summaries, and original scientific articles relating to multidisciplinary efforts to alleviate the problems of hunger and malnutrition in the developing world.
Visitors to the website can subscribe to the journal or search its comprehensive archives of back issues. For a limited time, full-text open access to articles and features from the current issue is also available.
www.foodandnutritionbulletin.org
Sustainability Joint Initiative
United Nations University and University of Tokyo Sign Partnership Agreement
UNU Rector Konrad Osterwalder (left) and University of Tokyo President Hiroshi Komiyama after toasting the signing of the agreement establishing the Sustainability Joint Initiative. Photo: Jeremy Hedley/UNU.
2008.07.16 • UNU and the University of Tokyo (Todai) today signed a memorandum of understanding establishing the Sustainability Joint Initiative within the Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science (IR3S).
The agreement was signed by Konrad Osterwalder, UNU rector, and Hiroshi Komiyama, president of Todai and executive director of IR3S, at a ceremony held at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo. Attending were representatives of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science & Technology, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Cabinet Office as well as recently appointed UNU vice-rector Kazuhiko Takeuchi, IR3S deputy executive director and a professor at the University of Tokyo.
Abdoulaye Wade Delivers 15th U Thant Lecture
Climate Change & African Initiatives
Abdoulaye Wade, President of the Republic of Senegal
After delivering the lecture, President Wade granted an interview to UNU in which he expanded upon some of the themes of the lecture.
2008.07.09 • President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal delivered the fifteenth U Thant Distinguished Lecture at UNU Headquarters, Tokyo yesterday. He spoke on climate change, and specifically on how African-led initiatives, such as la Grande Muraille Verte (the Great Green Wall) can contribute to combating desertification.
Joining President Wade to explain the project was Professor Abdoulaye Dia, director of the Earth Sciences Institute of Senegal and coordinator of studies for the Great Green Wall initiative.
President Wade delivering the 15th U Thant Lecture at UNU. Photo: Curtis Christophersen/UNU.
Estimates suggest Sahelian countries lose more than 1.5 million hectares of land to desertification each year, and a report last year by UNU's International Network on Water, Environment and Health stated that desertification is the "greatest environmental challenge of our time," with 50 million people at risk of displacement in the next ten years alone.
President Wade was in Japan to attend the G8 Summit in Hokkaido. He had agreed to deliver the U Thant lecture after meeting with Rector Konrad Osterwalder at the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) in Yokohama in May.
U Thant Distinguished Lecture Series
New from UNU Press
Making Choices about Hydrogen: Transport Issues for Developing Countries
Edited by Lynn K. Mytelka and Grant Boyle
As a disruptive technology, dominant designs for the production, storage and distribution of hydrogen have not yet been established. Nor have performance characteristics been achieved that would make hydrogen proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells competitive with the existing combustion engine. Yet, costs are coming down and the efficiency and durability of hydrogen fuel cells are improving. How to deal with competing arguments that push the hydrogen economy into the longer term (2050) and those that place its advent in a shorter-term perspective (2020) is one key issue for developing countries today as they explore their options for the design of national energy, environment and transport policies.
Download the UNU Press 2007-2008 catalogue
(1.8 MB PDF)
Global Seminar Series
UNU Global Seminars are held annually in Japan and abroad in an effort to increase awareness and enhance understanding of contemporary global issues and the role of the United Nations. This aim is achieved through close interaction of students and young professionals with scholars and experts working in the UNU's global networks.
International Courses
The UNU International Courses (UNU/IC) are organized annually for a select group of postgraduate students and professionals in various occupations in Japan and abroad who wish to pursue careers in international fields in public-service or private organizations
U Thant Lectures
The U Thant Distinguished Lecture Series is a forum through which eminent thinkers and world leaders speak on the role of the United Nations in addressing the challenges facing the world's peoples and nations in the twenty-first century.
UNU Library
The UNU Library plays a vital role in support of dissemination of the knowledge gained in UNU activities and assists learning and research through information resources.
UNU Video Portal
Tune in to UNU events as they happen, and on-demand. Recent additions to the UNU Video Portal:
- 15th U Thant Lecture by Abdoulaye Wade
- UNU G8 Sympsoium: Innovation in the Time of Climate Change
- G8 Dialogue with David Runnals: Climate Change and World Trade
Financial Assistance
The UNU Financial Assistance Programme is implemented by UNU with the generous assistance of the Government of Japan and JBIC which provides reimbursable funds to self-financed students from developing countries studying at junior colleges and universities in Japan.
◊◊◊
Page last modified 2008.10.08.
Francisco Santos Calderón on Shared Responsibility
Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
Achieve Universal Primary Education
Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
Reduce Child Mortality
Improve Maternal Health
Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other Diseases
Ensure Environmental Sustainability
Develop a Global Partnership for Development