UN Representives
Switzerland
Christophe Barbey (Representative at the United Nations in Geneva)
Chris is an “Eirenologist”, a lawyer (Master of law, University of Fribourg) and a poet. Eirene was the Greek word for peace, he is a “peace activator”. He does peace research and is one of the founders of APRED, participative institute for the progress of peace where he presently works as a coordinator and head of research. He works on new forms of democracy, on the inclusion of peace, peace policies and of the human right to peace in constitutions and legal texts. Since 1989, he has also been studying and monitoring the 26 existing countries without armies. He also works as a lawyer and a facilitator and in a legal clinic for soldiers and person doing civil service (www.infodroit.ch).
Hawai’i
Joshua Cooper (Representative at the United Nations in New York)
Joshua is an academic, advocate, author, analyst and activist based in Hawai’i, where he serves as Director of the Hawai’i Institute for Human Rights and lecturer at the University of Hawai’i. As a human rights advocate, he is engaged in global and regional mechanisms guaranteeing fundamental freedoms. He also serves as Co-Chair of the US Human Rights Network Universal Periodic Review Task Force and is an instructor for the University of New South Wales Diplomacy Training Program. Joshua advises major groups and other stakeholders in the UN Voluntary National Reviews for the High Level Political Forum and is mobilizing subnational initiatives such as Voluntary Local Reviews spearheaded by cities.
Finland
Elina Viitasaari (United Nations Gender Focal Point)
Elina has focused on Psychology and Criminal Justice as her undergraduate studies and on Peace, Mediation and Conflict Research at the graduate level. Human rights, peace and security are subjects very close to her heart, and she has been actively promoting women’s rights and gender equality both locally in Finland and globally, having represented CGNK at the Commission on the Status of Women. Her work has mainly concentrated on gender-based violence and as a chairwoman of the local UN Women, she has organized many events and fundraisers to end the violence against women and girls.
