United Nations System Staff College - UNSSC

This week, we kick-started the residential phase of our 2026 UN Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Career Booster Programme, a truly transformative learning journey for 15 diverse JPOs from 6 participating member states. 🌍

This year’s programme comes at a pivotal moment for international careers. As the world of work continues to evolve in response to technological change, global uncertainty, and shifting labour market demands, the 2026 JPO Career Booster is designed to help participants build the resilience, adaptability, and future-ready skills needed to thrive in a rapidly changing environment.

Building on decades of experience supporting talent across the United Nations system, is proud to offer a learning experience that empowers JPOs to navigate career transitions, strengthen their professional agility, and cultivate the networks and capabilities that will sustain their impact throughout their careers.

We hope they leave this week inspired, empowered by new knowledge and connections, and with a renewed sense of direction for the road ahead.

Welcome to the June edition of our Monthly Digest! 📩 https://mailchi.mp/eee8bae9c4bc/nelson-mandela-project-for-social-change-monthly-digest-june-6068001

This issue explores relevant updates on the Nelson Mandela Project, including:

• A call for applications for the second edition of the Global Academy for Social Change
• An insightful comment from Lina Abou-Habib (AUB) about the role of civil society in times of crisis.
• “Reflections on the UN’s next chapter”: a blog post from our own Chief of Academic Partnerships, Simona Costanzo Sow.

In addition, we feature insights, updates, and opportunities in the realm of social change!

To receive future editions, register here: https://unssc.us13.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=c22d86ca83cdae98c33f681aa&id=7f41f5481f

❓Does stress always deepen existing challenges, or can it become a starting point for cooperation and peace?
Find out in Episode 4 of Climate, Crisis and Courage 🎧 Out Now! https://open.spotify.com/episode/6xrDg2qi3iCbJvlRCcmDgZ?si=xf2d3ZamSC6CHcaL1i43Yw

In this episode, we travel to Iraq, where is not something people are preparing for: it is something they are already living with.

In conversation with Andrea Dekrout and Peshtiwan Al-Dawoudi, host Nazanine Moshiri explores how climate stress acts as a risk multiplier, quietly reshaping security, and how water can become a foundation for cooperation. 💧🤝

This podcast is produced through a collaboration between the Climate Security Mechanism at the United Nations and , with the support of the Berghof Foundation.

UN Environment Programme United Nations Development Programme - UNDP United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs United Nations Peacekeeping

Addressing requires both systemic shifts and responsible individual action.

For those committed to advancing meaningful climate solutions, this programme offers the tools, methodologies, and insights needed to translate ideas into lasting impact. 🌱

In collaboration with UN Climate Change's Programme, has developed a learning experience designed to strengthen climate action skills and contribute to sustainable transformation.

In this journey, you will explore:

🔍 How human behaviour and systems interact to influence climate outcomes
🌐Systems thinking methods to map complexity and design effective, system-level solutions
🛠️ Behavioural science tools that encourage sustainable choices
💡 How integrating both perspectives leads to impactful climate solutions‑thinking methods to map complexity and design effective, system‑level solutions

Let’s design smarter solutions.
Let’s accelerate climate action. 🚀🌱
🔗 https://www.unssc.org/courses/systems-change-x-behavioural-science-climate-action

Cities are on the frontlines of climate and disaster risk because urban systems are deeply interconnected: when one part fails, impacts cascade across sectors and regions.

This makes resilience not a single intervention, but a systems challenge involving governance, infrastructure, planning, finance, nature, and digital innovation.

So, how do cities move from responding to disasters to shaping resilience?

In ’s latest blog, we explore:

• Why urban systems are increasingly vulnerable
• How cascading risks amplify impacts beyond the hazard location
• What “systems thinking” means for urban resilience
• The role of governance, nature-based solutions, and digital tools
• How cities can shift toward risk-informed, adaptive development

Read the full blog here 🔗 https://www.unssc.org/news-and-insights/blog/breaking-cycle-urban-vulnerability-pathways-resilient-cities

If you are interested in learning more about building urban resilience, join the FREE self-paced learning journey on Securing Resilient Urban Futures: From Vision to Action 🔗 https://www.unssc.org/courses/learning-journey-securing-resilient-urban-futures-vision-action

What happens when UN professionals put Generative AI into practice?
As we celebrate the achievements of participants in the Spring edition of the UN Generative AI Professional Certificate, we explore how AI can be applied across three key domains: AI-enhanced campaigns, AI agents, and podcast creation. 👏

Participants were challenged to develop practical solutions relevant to their UN technical work, translating learning into real-world applications.
Their projects included:
• AI-Enhanced Social Media Campaigns supporting UN peacekeeping operations and the implementation of the UN Chemical Weapons Convention through AI-assisted report analysis, visual design, and video production.
• AI-powered Podcasts addressing challenges in climate change and humanitarian action through AI-supported research, scripting and audio.
• Custom AI Agents designed to support research, programme management, and HR policy guidance, tailored to their specific UN entity, context and datasets.

Interested in joining the next cohort?✨ https://www.unssc.org/courses/un-generative-ai-professional-certificate-fall-2026

is honoured to welcome the Global Meeting of the Pathfinding Global Alliance on Ending Violence Against Children to the UN Campus in Turin, in the presence of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children, Najat Maalla M’jid, and over 110 representatives from 38 countries.

This global meeting builds on the momentum generated since the Alliance’s official launch in November 2024, as well as on a year of rich regional and national consultations across different regions. Over two days, the gathering provides a space to take stock of progress, deepen peer learning, and strengthen collaboration among Member States and partners.

It will also foster discussions on the way forward, helping to strengthen and expand the Pathfinding Global Alliance while driving progress toward 2030 and beyond.

UNSSC, as the UN’s trusted interagency learning partner, is proud to support the Pathfinding Global Alliance by creating a knowledge-sharing platform for multilateral collaboration, convening the learning and transformation that Member States seek across the UN system.

We extend our sincere gratitude to Città di Torino and Mayor Stefano Lo Russo for their continued support to UNSSC. We also warmly thank the United Nations Office on Violence against Children for their trust and ongoing partnership.

Yesterday, the United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC) and the Government of Spain formalized a new partnership, marking an important step in strengthening the UN for the future.

At the heart of this collaboration is the establishment of a new UNSSC office in Madrid that will serve as a dynamic platform for learning, innovation, and strategic dialogue, supporting the United Nations system in responding to an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world.

Working in synergy with our UNSSC Bonn office in Germany and our headquarters in Turin, Italy, the new Madrid office will enable UN entities to translate transformation priorities into practical learning and action. It will act as a convening node, connecting UN priorities with local and global expertise, and fostering collaboration across partners and stakeholders.

This new strategic presence within the emerging Madrid UN hub in Spain, also closely linked to the Valencia UN Digital Hub, will strengthen UNSSC’s capability and efforts to foster a shared UN organizational culture grounded in agility, openness, collaboration, and continuous learning.

Through this partnership, Spain is playing a key role in strengthening the UN’s capacity to build practical capabilities and adapt to emerging global challenges.

We extend our sincere appreciation to the Government of Spain for its trust and collaboration.

La Moncloa Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores, Unión Europea y Cooperación de España

Join us at the Data for Peace Conference for an engaging online session on “Leveraging Data Analytics and AI for Early Warning and Conflict Prevention”!

🗓 17 June ⏰ 16:30-17:30 CEST
💻 Online, open to all and free of charge!

Co-facilitated by Ginevra Cucinotta and MinJi Song, this panel discussion brings together practitioners from , the United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, United Nations Peacekeeping, Build Up ^, and the United Nations Development Programme - UNDP to explore how data, analytics, and emerging AI approaches are shaping decision-making across prevention, crisis response, and peacebuilding.

Rather than asking whether AI is “good” or “bad,” the discussion will dive into:

🔹 Where trust in data systems is built or lost
🔹 How risks emerge across the data-to-decision chain
🔹 Challenges in data credibility, governance, and fragmented workflows
🔹 The role of forecasting and early warning systems
🔹 Balancing AI-supported insights with human judgment and responsible governance

The session will also highlight practical ways to turn data and analysis into timely preventive action and meaningful peace impact.

The Conference is hosted by the Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC), and AI for PEACE; and generously supported by the Complex Risk Analytics Fund (CRAF'd) and its partners, FBA (Folke Bernadotte Academy) and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

👉 Register now: https://luma.com/koywd0v1