No. 1| March, 2017 Dear Colleagues and Friends, Last year's election of the ninth UN Secretary-General witnessed an unprecedented level of transparency and inclusivity. Numerous challenges await António Guterres to make the organization more effective, democratic and accountable. Building a more inclusive UN and to see civil society as a partner on a wide spectrum of common interests is the core message of a recent report addressed to the new UN Secretary General, co-published by FES New York. Other important challenges loom large as the UN strives to fulfill its mandate with regards to international peace and security. In March, FES New York will therefore contribute to the preparations for the upcoming, first-ever negotiations on a treaty to ban nuclear weapons. And in April, we will co-host a debate on the African perspectives on an equitable partnership in peacekeeping. As always, we are pleased to share some information on our recent activities and look forward to receiving your comments and feedback. With kind regards, Bettina Luise Rürup Executive Director Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung- New York Office Upcoming Events (By Invitation Only)"Global and Regional Nuclear Orders in a Moment of Geopolitical Uncertainty"; Thursday, March 16, 2017 As recent geopolitical shifts continue to stress-test the existing regional and global nuclear orders, more than 100 UN Member States will gather in March 2017 to begin

negotiating a nuclear weapons ban treaty. In the run-up to these negotiations, FES New York and partners will bring to the UN timely insights and analyses from expert speakers about global nuclear policy challenges as well as an update on US policy debates from Washington. It is planned as an exchange of ideas among those who embrace the upcoming negotiations as a global effort to delegitimize nuclear weapons and others who see such talks as a distraction from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapon. Program (By Invitation Only)"African Directions: Towards an Equitable Partnership in Peace Operations"; Tuesday, April 11, 2017 FES New York will co-host a panel discussion and an expert-level workshop on the final report of the"The New Geopolitics of Peace Operations II" initiative, which was conducted by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute(SIPRI) in partnership with FES and the Foreign Ministries of Finland and the Netherlands. Findings of the initiative, and particularly the pathways to improve future collaboration between African and external actors, especially the UN, will be discussed with representatives from UN Member States and the New York peace operations experts community. New Geopolitics of Peace Operations Initiative Website SIPRI Report Publication "Strengthening Civil Society Engagement with the United Nations" February 2017 This new publication is a co-production of FES New York and three other founding organizations of the campaign'1 for 7 billion' committed to a democratic and transparent election of the Secretary-General. This publication features practical recommendations on how the new Secretary General and the UN can improve multilateralism between governments and also with community leaders, civil society organizations and activists. At the heart of all these recommendations, is a common message for António Guterres to build a more inclusive UN. The authors- ranging from youth activists, NGO directors and policy experts- call on the new Secretary-General to broaden and foster relationships with civil society on a

wide spectrum of common interests. Download here Recent Events "Expert group meeting and retreat on the reporting of the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development(IATF)"; January 12-13, 2017 All UN Member States as well as experts from the UN, IMF and World Bank secretariats were invited to attend this retreat on the work of the IATF, co-organized by FES New York and South Centre, to share their perspectives on the Financing for Development process, their expectations of the 2017 ECOSOC Forum on Financing for Development (FFD) follow-up, and the substantive contributions that the Inter-agency Task Force can make to the FFD Forum through its 2017 Report. In all more than 40 UN Member States took part in discussions of the preliminary report and the IATF work-streams on infrastructure investments and public-private partnerships, financing social protection floors, illicit financial flows, aligning capital markets with sustainable development, systemic issues& debt, as well as measuring international public finance. Summary Report "Social Protection, Including Floors: A preeminent strategy to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development for all"; January 30-31, 2017 In 2017 FES New York continued its long-term engagement with and support of the annual Civil Society Forum on the Commission for Social Development. This year's program featured discussions related to implementation of social protection, including and especially floors, at the national, regional and local levels. Program

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