UKNC logo small
Network Link - JUNE 2014
In This Issue
UK events
UNESCO events
UNESCO publications
Updates on our work
News from the Network
UNESCO News
Announcements
 
 
 
 UK Events

Upcoming events in the UK

  


After the MDGs: access to media and information in the post-2015 agenda:
Panel discussion with speakers from Guardian, BBC Media Action, Internews Europe, Article 19 -
Little Tichfield Street Campus, Westminster University
6.30pm - 8pm, 5 June

Norwich, UNESCO City of Literature, 16 - 20 June

UNA Forum: Can Britain still cut it on the world stage?
Central Hall, Westminster, 28 June

Southbank, London
12 - 3pm, 29 June

Shetland Nature Festival
5 - 11 July

The Best in Scotland: An exploration of Aberdeen City's Archives, the best preserved archives in Scotland.
The Tolbooth Museum, Aberdeen, Monday-Saturday , 10am - 5pm, 17 May - 9 August

 

Have news or an event you would like to include in the next Network Link?  

 

Contact: 

UNESCO Events

Key forthcoming UNESCO events 

15 - 25 June, Doha

 

First interregional meeting of National Commissions for UNESCO, 4 June, Kazakhstan      

 

UNESCO Publications

Selection of recent UNESCO publications
 
 

 
UK National Commission for UNESCO
Suite 98, 3 Whitehall Court
London, SW1A 2EL
 
Updates on our work
UK scientists rethink the 'S' in UNESCO
 
Some of the UK's leading scientists joined UNESCO's Assistant Director General (ADG) for Natural Sciences, the Vice-President and Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society and the UK Ambassador to UNESCO last month to consider what they think UNESCO should prioritise in the natural sciences.
Professor Martyn Poliakoff, Dr Wendy Watson Wright and Dr Beth Taylor at the Royal Society in London

Key figures from the UKNC's expert network agreed that international collaboration in science is required to respond to global challenges like climate change and water scarcity.
UK scientists at the Royal Society in London

As a multilateral organisation, with convening power and a specific mandate in the sciences, the scientists argued that UNESCO has the potential to play a key role in;
  • promoting and facilitating international collaboration in science,  
  • the integration of science in policy formation, and in
  • creating the conditions and frameworks required to allow science to prosper in its member states.
Insights from the town meeting will inform a new policy brief on the areas in which UNESCO could have the greatest impact in science. The UKNC plans to share this policy brief with UNESCO's incoming science ADG and Network Link readers later this summer.

What the implications of the post-2015 education agenda for UNESCO?    

 

The UKNC released its latest policy brief - on UNESCO's role in the post-2015 education agenda - to coincide with the Global Education for All Meeting (GEM) that took place in Doha last month.

The policy brief asks UNESCO a series of challenge questions that seek to prompt debate and action within UNESCO by focussing on the implications of the post-2015 Education for All (EFA) goals for UNESCO's policies and practices, processes and structures.

The brief was shared with UNESCO Member States and their National Commissions ahead of the GEM in order to contribute to discussions at this critical meeting, convened to assess progress towards EFA based on UNESCO's EFA Global Monitoring Report and regional reports.

UK Geoparks Forum convenes in Shetland     


The UK Geoparks Forum met last month on the island of Unst, the most northerly island in the British Isles, to share best practice and common experiences and discuss what more the UK network needs to do to further strengthen its connection to UNESCO.
� UK Geoparks Forum and partners at Norwick Beach, North Unst
Representatives from the UK's 7 existing and 3 aspiring Geopark Projects were joined by the British Geological Survey, Natural England, Scottish Natural Heritage, the Countryside Commission for Wales, Visit Scotland, and the UK National Commission for UNESCO at the meeting in Shetland, Scotland.

Geoparks aim to protect geo-diversity and to promote geological heritage to the general public as well as to support sustainable economic development of the area, primarily through the development of geological tourism.

Follow us 

 

The UKNC is now on Twitter!  


Follow us @UNESCOUK and send us updates on your work so that we can feature them in this newsletter and on Twitter.
News from the Network
UK Geoparks mark European Geoparks Week

Each of the UK's seven Geoparks will this month hold a series of educational events in their local communities to mark Geoparks' Week (23 May - 9 June); a European-wide festival aimed at raising public awareness and appreciation of geoconservation and the promotion and preservation of geological heritage.
� English Riviera Geopark. Walking in the English Riviera

Activities - which are open to all - range from fossil hunts in the English Riviera and otter spotting in Shetland to 'Geofoodology' in the Marble Arch Caves, wild food foraging in Anglesey and guided walks in the North Pennines, North West Highlands and Fforest Fawr.

As part of European Geoparks Week, Geopark Shetland is also taking the lead in preparing for the Shetland Nature Festival (5 - 11 July) which, in collaboration with RSPB, Scottish Natural Heritage and Shetland Arts Development Agency will celebrate all aspects of Shetland's natural heritage through a full programme of guided walks, family days out and evening talks. With nearly 24 hours of daylight in Shetland, there is plenty of time to make the most of it.
Edinburgh leads the way in introducing sustainable energy projects to historic homes 

Edinburgh has been commended in UNESCO's RENFORUS report for introducing clean energy technologies into its traditionally-built, protected properties, without compromising the quality and authenticity of their historical and traditional heritage.
� EWH. Renewables in a B-listed Georgian tenement - solar panels on a valley gutter roof

The RENFORUS (Renewable Energy Futures for UNESCO Sites) report, which promotes best practice among UNESCO's Biosphere Reserves and World Heritage sites in the sustainable use of renewable energy sources, looks to bring together good examples from around the world for others to replicate.

In the report, Edinburgh - which was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1995 - is described as "a worldwide reference in demonstrating that energy transition towards sustainable models in historic cities is possible".

Shortlist published for this year's L'Or�al-UNESCO UK & Ireland For Women In Science Fellowships 

The shortlist for this year's L'Or�al-UNESCO UK & Ireland For Women In Science Fellowships has been announced.

The L'Or�al-UNESCO For Women in Science Programme has been promoting women in scientific research on a global scale since 1998.
From this list, four outstanding female scientists will be awarded fellowships of �15,000 each at an awards ceremony, which is to be held at the Royal Society in London on 19th June. 

The final winners will be judged by an esteemed jury panel, which includes the UK National Commission for UNESCO's Natural Sciences Director, Dr Beth Taylor.

UK Scientists to get on their soapbox

 

Soapbox Science will hold its 4th annual London event on the Southbank later this month.

The initiative, which is supported by L'Oreal-UNESCO For Women In Science, gives UK female scientists the floor to talk to members of the public about their science and challenge gender stereotypes in the process.

LSE report sets out steps for improving UK's media literacy

The London School of Economics (LSE) presented a policy paper at UNESCO's first European Media Information Literacy conference that was held in Paris last week.

The paper, produced by the LSE and the Centre for Excellence in Media Practice (CEMP), examines the state of Media Studies across the UK and sets out recommendations on how to improve the quality of media education for all citizens.

Nobel Laureate supports Norwich, UNESCO City of Literature's World Literature Festival

Writers' Centre Norwich will host the tenth annual World's Literature Festival this month (10 - 16 June) which will bring the leading writers, translators and critics from around the world to Norwich UNESCO City of Literature.

Norwich became England's first and the UNESCO network's sixth UNESCO City of Literature in May 2012.
Throughout the week there will be a private and public discussions around literature, nostalgia, and the challenges the industry faces. Nobel Laureate JM Coetzee will be reading from
his work alongside Xiaolu Guo, Julia Franck and Ivan Vladislavić and celebrated critic John Carey will be discussing books, reading and the literary world with author DJ Taylor.
Memory of the World's 'Mappa Mundi' launches new interactive website

 

Explore the world largest medieval map through the Hereford Mappa Mundi's new interactive website
� Hereford Cathedral. Hereford; pictured as a small building on the river Wye. Recent scientific tests on the map's wooden frame suggest that the map was probably made in or near Hereford, Hertfordshire.
The Hereford Mappa Mundi, which was inscribed onto UNESCO's international Memory of the World register in 2007, displays not only geographic locations but also acts as a visual encyclopaedia with historical, anthropological, ethnographical, biblical, classical and theological information.

UNESCO's Memory of the World (MoW) programme promotes the preservation of and access to the world's archive holdings and library collections. Its register is a catalogue of documentary heritage of global significance and outstanding universal value.

Network Link readers will find out what has made it onto the UK Memory of the World Register when the UK Memory of the World Committee announces the fourth round of inscriptions onto its register later this month.
UNESCO News  
Global Water Partnership Consultations Reinforce Call for Dedicated Water Goal

The Global Water Partnership (GWP) has published a new report on national stakeholder perspectives on a dedicated water goal as part of the post - 2015 development agenda. 

The report reveals that there is a broad consensus that the proposed goal of 'Securing Sustainable Water for All' should be a fundamental feature to the post - 2015 agenda given that it is linked to many of today's global challenges.

The GWP brought together 1,200 participants from across 29 countries for the consultation who were from the environment, agriculture, planning, and infrastructure sectors. It is part of a broader UN strategy to engage with stakeholders worldwide, as well as through high level platforms, in developing the post - 2015 Sustainable Development Goals in order to secure
Safeguarding Timbuktu's legendary manuscripts


The European Commissioner for Development, and the Director of UNESCO's Bamako office, last month signed an agreement to fund the restoration of cultural heritage in Timbuktu, in Mali.
� Getty Images

More than 4,000 of the 40,000 ancient manuscripts kept at the Ahmed Baba Institute were lost during the conflict that took place in Mali between 2012 and 2013 and more than 10,000 remain in a critical condition. Fourteen of the sixteen mausoleums of Timbuktu inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List were destroyed by armed groups during the conflict.

� AFP
Mali's manuscripts, the oldest of which date back to the 13th century, range from scholarly articles to letters on subjects including astronomy, poetry, music, medicine and women's rights. They constitute a unique documentary collection that bears testimony to the history of Mali, Africa and perhaps of humanity as a whole.

Local communities secretly transferred more than 300,000 manuscripts to Mali's capital, Bamako. They are now conserved in conditions that are not optimal for their safeguarding.

With 500,000 euros provided by the European Union, UNESCO will coordinate the reconstruction of destroyed mausoleums, the rehabilitation of mosques and private libraries, as well as ancient manuscript conservation projects. Local personnel will also be trained to ensure lasting preservation.
 Announcements   
Contribute to open consultation on how BIS should invest in science and research     
 
The UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has launched an open consultation for proposals for its long-term capital investment in science and research.
 
The UK government has pledged to invest �1.1 billion in 2015-16 in science and research infrastructure. The ambition is to make the UK the best place in the world to do science and research.

BIS want to hear your views on what this money should be invested in.

To participate in the consultation click here.
 
Closing date is 4 July 2014
Register for Association for Learning Technology (ALT) conference      

The purpose of this 3-day conference (1 - 3 September, University of Warwick) is to help researchers, teachers, learning technologists and policy representatives from higher education, further education and schools keep up with learning technology innovation.   
BIS's Newton Fund 

The UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has launched the Newton Fund; a five-year, �375 million fund to support science and innovation partnerships with researchers in middle-income countries and emerging economies.

The programme will feature �75 million of UK funding per year for five years and the intention is that UK funding will be matched by selected partner countries. 


Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering   

Nominations for the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering (QEPrize) can now be submitted.

This international �1 million prize, aims to raise the public profile of engineering and inspire young people to take up the challenges of the future and become engineers.

Nominations are open to any individual who is personally responsible for a ground breaking innovation in engineering that has been of global benefit to humanity. Self-nominations will not be accepted.

Closing date is 14 July 2014
Read more...