On Tuesday May 24th Professor Anne Marie Goetz was invited by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation and the Norwegian Foreign Ministry to comment on a significant external evaluation of four iterations of Norway’s National Action Plans on women, peace and security, 2000 – 2020. At a public virtual event with 60 participants, Professor Goetz joined a debate with the Norwegian Special Representative for Women, Peace and Security, Signe Gilen, the Executive Director of EVE organization for Women’ Development, Rita Lopidia, the manager of the Norwegian Churches Association Maria Clara Osula. The debate was moderated by Antonia Potter-Prentice, Director, Alliance 2015. Professor Goetz commented on the world leadership role that Norway has played in promoting the Women Peace and Security agenda, and asked whether NAPs have outlived their usefulness, as their technical focus on training and inputs tends to mask, obscure, or worse, sideline what should be central: the significant work of diplomatic networking and advocacy that makes the difference when encouraging belligerent parties to bring women in their delegations to peace talks, or to engage with feminist civil society groups providing testimony as to the impact of conflict on women.
On June 16th Professor Goetz participated in the launch of a book on equality and diversity in the theory and practice of foreign policy-making. The book is ‘Untapped Power: Leveraging Diversity and Inclusion for Conflict and Development’, edited by Carla Koppell, Senior Advisor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Distinguished Fellow, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University. Professor Goetz co-wrote a chapter in this book with leymah Gbowee, the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winner. Other speakers were Sayed Ikram Afzali, Executive Director, Integrity Watch Afghanistan, and Judge Claudia Escobar, a former magistrate of the Court of Appeals of Guatemala and a respected legal scholar. The event was introduced by Assistant Secretary Anne A. Witkowsky.
Adjunct Assistant Professor Joshua Krasna published "A Tale of Two Normalizations: Israeli Normalization with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain – Part II", concentrating in Bahrain, with the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University.
Professor JenniferTrahan had two law review articles published in June: "Why the Veto Power Is Not Unlimited: A Response to Critiques of, and Questions About, Existing Legal Limits to the Veto Power in the Face of Atrocity Crimes,” 54 Case W. Res. J. Int’l L. 109 (2022), and “Dedicated Individuals who Motivate the Development of International Law and the Obligation to ‘Prevent’ Crimes Against Humanity,” 21 Wash. U. Global Stud. L. Rev. 93 (2022).
Professor Trahan additional spoke at a number of events.
On June 3, Professor Trahan spoke at the Strategic Meeting of the Parliamentarians for Global Action United Nations Advisory Committee and Executive Committee. The meeting was hosted by the Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations. She addressed the topic of Respecting the United Nations Charter.
On June 6, she spoke remotely at Jindal Global Law School (India) on The Future of International Criminal Tribunals. She spoke on an ad hoc aggression tribunal for Ukraine. Also featured on the panel were Professors Meg deGuzman, Milena Sterio, and Vesselin Popovski. The recording of the panel can be found at https://youtu.be/yGKRBMKVIsM.
On June 8, Professor Trahan spoke on a panel hosted by the Public International Law and Policy Group (PILPIG) for Ukrainian Civil Society on International Criminal Law - the Elements of Crimes. Professor Trahan spoke on the elements of the crime of aggression. Her co-panelists included a representative of Ukraine's Attorney-General's Office.
On June 9-10, Professor Trahan participated in an online, two-day, conference, the International Criminal Court Scholars Forum 2022. She was the discussant of a book chapter entitled "The Habre Effect: How an African Trial Shaped Justice Norms," by Professor and Judge Margaret deGuzman. On June 15-17, Professor Trahan participated in a cyber-conference in Washington DC entitled "The Evolving Face of Cyber Conflict and International Law: A Futurespective." She spoke on the panel on war crimes and IHL violations.
On June 22, Professor Trahan spoke at the Yale Club in a meeting sponsored by the Permanent Missions of Latvia and Liechtenstein on a proposed crime of aggression tribunal to be negotiated between the UN and Ukraine and recommended by the UN General Assembly. She was also the primary drafter of the White Paper on which the proposal was based. Co-presenters included Ambassador David Scheffer, Yale Law School Professor Oona Hathaway, and International Court of Justice Judge Claus Kress. In attendance were representatives of UN Member States, including the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN.
Dr. Sylvia Maier, CGA Academic Director and Faculty Head of the Global Gender Studies Concentration, led a Global Field Intensive (GFI) to the United Arab Emirates, titled "Gender and Sustainable Development in the Gulf: Abu Dhabi, Dubai and the Northern Emirates." In briefings and site visits, including to the EU Delegation to the UAE, US Embassy, UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government, Masdar, Dubai Foundation for Women and Children, Dubai Women's Museum, Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center, Dubai Youth Hub, and the Al Suwaidi Pearl Farm in Ras Al Khaimah, students gained real life insights on how women's empowerment (gender equity), approaches to sustainable development, and geopolitical priorities are being implemented by the government of the United Arab Emirates.
Dr Sylvia Maier was awarded a NYU Global Research Initiative (GRI) Fellowship and conducted field research on feminist and gender-inclusive urban planning and design in Tel Aviv in June.
Dr. Sylvia Maier was re-elected to the Executive Committee of the NYU Continuing Contract Faculty Senators Council (C-FSC.) She was also elected to serve as C-FSC Secretary for the academic year 2022-23.
