The next government of Canada will need to do much more to support the important work of the United Nations.  Canada’s lack of engagement at the world body in recent years has contributed significantly to our diminished place in the world. However, important developments in the UN’s 70th anniversary year offer opportunities for improving Canada’s contributions to global governance.

According to Warren Allmand, President of the World Federalist Movement – Canada, “In the past Canada has shown leadership in supporting UN peacekeeping, development and human rights. This tradition should be enhanced and continued in a world that requires more, not less global governance and cooperation.”

The World Federalists today released a “Special Election Issue” of their flagship bulletin Mondial, which provides a series of expert commentaries on how Canada can get back in the game at the United Nations. Go to the Articles menu item and choose 2015. Alternatively, the link to download the pdf of the issue is in the right sidebar.

Today’s release follows the publication in 2013 and 2014 of “The United Nations and Canada: What Canada has done and should be doing at the United Nations.” These annual publications left Canadians with a deeper understanding of the need for their government to be more actively involved on a range of global issues at the UN.

John Trent, WFM – Canada Board Chair and Past-President of the International Political Science Association, adds that constructive engagement at the UN should also be accompanied by a dedicated effort to reform the world body. “A forward looking government of Canada should make ‘Rethinking the United Nations’ a central program of the Department of Foreign Affairs and give it the resources required to promote this quasi-constitutional process and to encourage other ‘like-minded’ countries to become partners.“

Articles in this Special election Issue of Mondial discuss the new Sustainable Development Agenda, UN peace operations, women’s rights, the Responsibility to Protect, the International Criminal Court, the UN Peacebuilding Architecture, disarmament, human rights, and reform of the UN System.