The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
On the eve of the 75th anniversary of the UN Charter, young researchers discuss the future of Sports, Culture and Tourism with top international officials
Around the world, the United Nations’ 75th birthday on the 26th of June is providing the backdrop for a global discussion about the future of the organization and the role multilateralism can play in resolving today’s challenges.
The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has brought a new urgency to this discussion, highlighting even more the benefits of cooperation across borders, sectors and generations but also the impacts it has on culture, sports and tourism – the focus of an event today in Geneva, the UN’s European hub, in which young researchers exchanged views with top representatives of the key international agencies in these areas.
“Multilateralism has always been an interplay of national and shared global concerns and it is increasingly so as we are now more interdependent, more interconnected than ever. Culture, tourism and sports, be it in different forms, have all served as inspiring expressions of national identity and pride, ” said Fabrizio Hochschild-Drummond, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General, addressed the audience in an inaugural video message.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has brought us to a pivotal moment. Although many are longing to get back to normal, now it’s precisely the time to end ‘business as usual’, he said.
“Now, it’s the time to put into practice the commitment to future generations that it is central to the UN charter and to make progress on the future we want. That is the spirit in which the UN75 anniversary is conceived of by the Secretary-General last year.”
The UN75 event was organized by UN Geneva, in cooperation with the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, the University of Geneva and foraus, the Swiss Think Tank on Foreign Policy. In addition to hosting many UN agencies, Switzerland is also home to a number of international sports organizations, such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Covid-19 had had a massive impact on large sports events, and has led to such as the postponement of the Olympic Games in Tokyo this year.
“This UN dialogue comes at an important and most appropriate time. The world is looking for new ways to better understand and to address the far-reaching consequences” said Thomas Bach, President of the IOC, in a video message in which he stressed sport as a school of life that can teach values.
“The first lesson we all learn from this crisis is: we need more solidarity. Solidarity within societies and solidarity among the nations of this world. Solidarity is at the heart of the Olympic games which unite the world in all our diversity. In these difficult times, we need the Olympic values of excellence, friendship, respect and solidarity more than ever,” Bach said.
In a post-Covid-19 world, the relationship with culture is being increasingly mediated through the digital interface. However, this relationship continues to be fraught with several socio-economic, as well as legal-ethical tensions.
For Paras Arora, a Master's degree candidate at the Graduate Institute “the virus has entered our cultures now, right. That is it ok for us, to attend for example the death of a very close relative, a Sunday sermon for that matter through Zoom. How is that impacting our religious engagement with, you know, ourselves? So, to treat cultural changes at this point of time as deeply ethical changes with herself is also extremely important. And that can only happen with a more multilateral engagement across borders and across levels of governance”.
Tourism, a complex sector of the economy was badly hit by the pandemic. Beyond a spectacular drop at the international and national scales, local impacts of the crisis are very difficult to quantify. For Raphael Languillon-Aussel, Researcher at the Université de Genève "it is difficult to synthesize the diversity of impacts that tourism has at the local level and it is true that local actors are a little invisible behind major events and large international groups that focus their attention on the media, they focus people's attention”.
Sports can work toward multilateralism in many aspects particularly through the Sustainable Devleopment Goals (SDGs). “If we think about multilateralism and also our SDG’s, actually I think it is number 5 and number 10 that are talking about gender equality and also to reduce all kinds of inequalities”, said Yalan Liu, Graduate Institute, Swiss Forum on Foreign Policy (Foraus). “We think sports can have a strong social impact for increasing this kind of social inclusion. We want to gather people, like both female and male of all ages, of all kind of race, to be together to have the strong solidarity to overcome this global health crisis and we believe sports can play a role in building back strong”.
- Wide shot: Auditorium at Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland
- SOUNDBITE (EN) – Fabrizio Hochschild-Drummond, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General: “Multilateralism has always been an interplay of national and shared global concerns and it is increasingly so as we are now more interdependent, more interconnected than ever. Culture, tourism and sports, be it in different forms, have all served as inspiring expressions of national identity and pride”.
- Close up, student listening
- SOUNDBITE (EN) - Fabrizio Hochschild-Drummond, Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General: “The Covid-19 pandemic has brought us to a pivotal moment. Although many are longing to get back to normal, now it’s precisely the time to end ‘business as usual’. Now, it’s the time to put into practice the commitment to future generations that it is central to the UN charter and to make progress on the future we want. That is the spirit in which the UN75 anniversary is conceived of by the Secretary-General last year.”.
- Close up: Student listening
- SOUNDBITE (EN) – Thomas Bach, President of International Olympic Committee (IOC): “This UN dialogue comes at an important and most appropriate time. The world is looking for new ways to better understand and to address the far reaching consequences”.
- Medium shot: Audience listening
- SOUNDBITE (EN) – Thomas Bach, President of International Olympic Committee (IOC): “The first lesson we all learn from this crisis is: we need more solidarity. Solidarity within societies and solidarity among the nations of this world. Solidarity is at the heart of the Olympic games which unite the world in all our diversity. In these difficult times, we need the Olympic values of excellence, friendship, respect and solidarity more than ever”.
- Close up: Cameraman
- SOUNDBITE (EN) – Paras Arora, Master's candidate & Hans Wilsdorf Scholar, The Graduate Institute, Geneva: “The virus has entered our cultures now, right. That is it ok for us, to attend for example the death of a very close relative, a Sunday sermon for that matter through Zoom. How is that impacting our religious engagement with, you know, ourselves? So, to treat cultural changes at this point of time as deeply ethical changes with herself is also extremely important. And that can only happen with a more multilateral engagement across borders and across levels of governance”.
- Close up: Young man looking at screen
- SOUNDBITE (FR) - Raphael Languillon-Aussel, Researcher, Université de Genève : « Il est difficile de synthétiser la diversité des impacts que le tourisme a au niveau local et c’est vrai que les acteurs locaux sont un peu invisibilisées derrière les grands événements et les grands groupes internationaux qui eux focalisent l’attention des médias, ils focalisent l’attention des populations ». "It is difficult to synthesize the diversity of impacts that tourism has at the local level and it is true that local actors are a little invisible behind major events and large international groups that focus their attention on the media, they focus people's attention”.
- Medium shot: Moderators in auditorium
- SOUNDBITE (EN) – Yalan Liu, Graduate Institute, Swiss Forum on Foreign Policy (Foraus): “If we think about this multilateralism and also our SDG’s, actually I think it is number 5 and number 10 that are talking about gender equality and also to reduce all kinds of inequalities. We think sports can have a strong social impact for increasing this kind of social inclusion. We want to gather people, like both female and male of all ages, of all kind of race, to be together to have the strong solidarity to overcome this global health crisis and we believe sports can play a role in building back strong”.
- Wide shot, auditorium
- Various shots, audience
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk addressed the 62nd Human Rights Council during the Interactive Dialogue on Ukraine.
1
1
1
Edited News | WMO
More blistering heatwaves and other weather extremes are increasingly likely across the world now and in coming months linked to strengthening El Niño conditions in the tropical Pacific, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk this morning addressed the 62nd Human Rights Council during the urgent debate on the human rights situation in and around El Obeid, in Sudan.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WHO
Venezuela earthquake aftermath: ‘breakdown of basic services’, disease risks and health workers missing – UN agencies
As search and rescue operations continue in Venezuela thousands of displaced people are struggling to find shelter while infectious diseases threaten to spread, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today addressed the 62 Human Rights Council and made the following remarks on the report on Venezuela.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office on Friday called for action to prevent more deaths in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, as well as for investigations and accountability.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , IOM , paho , UNHCR , OHCHR , IFRC
Aid agencies on Friday highlighted massive needs across Venezuela caused by a double earthquake disaster that has killed at least 235 people so far, with search and rescue for people trapped under the rubble still the top priority.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following remarks at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, on the latest report on sexual violence in the Sudanese conflict.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , IOM , IFRC
Ebola in DRC: first month of outbreak sees record number of cases – UN humanitarians
Ebola has been spreading at unprecedented speed in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), bringing risk and fear into people’s daily lives, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
Afghanistan in Crisis: Drought, Malnutrition, and a Worsening Humanitarian Situation
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , OCHA
After another deadly night of clashes in Lebanon, aid agencies issued a new alert for Gaza, where 265 Palestinian children have been killed since a ceasefire was announced in October 2025.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | IAEA
The head of the UN’s atomic energy agency on Thursday welcomed the signing of an initial Iran-US memorandum aimed at ending the war, before proposing “to sit down” with both parties to assist with concrete measures including verification of Iran’s nuclear programme, a critical sticking point.