United Nations Library&Archives Geneva

Discover “The Temple of Heaven” (1984), a 2.75 m by 3.65 m offered by China in 1984, on display at the Palais des Nations. ▶️ https://tinyurl.com/56ymf346

This artwork represents the Temple of Heaven, or Tiantan in Chinese, which is the place where the rulers of China's dynasties worshipped heaven. It took six skilled weavers six months to complete it with fine wool yarns woven tightly by hand in 275 colors and shades. Fun fact: regardless of the angle of observation, the entrance to the temple always faces the observer!☺️

The Library & Archives manages all the of UN Geneva, and once a month, we introduce you to one of more than 1,300 artworks and artefacts in this collection!

✨ This week, we welcomed the Permanent Mission of Portugal in Geneva for an in-depth look at how the Library & Archives support diplomatic research. ✨

📜 We explored archival documents tracing key moments in the evolution of , materials showing the story behind major human rights milestones, and how the Mission can access resources recording ’s engagement in multilateralism over time.

🙏 Thank you to the Mission for the fascinating exchange of questions and ideas. These specialized for Permanent Missions are designed to help discover how our collections can support their work and . If you'd like to organise a session, reach out to us! ➡️ https://ask.unog.ch/library

En nome da Biblioteca e Arquivos, gostaríamos de agradecer a vossa visita. Foi um prazer tê-los connosco.

❓ Who should own and have a say on the next generations of AI systems underpinning our societies: a small number of tech firms, or the public?

🎙️ In our AI x Multilateralism mini-series, Joshua Tan of Metagov and Jacob Taylor from The Brookings Institution make the case for why Public AI - accountable, shared and open AI infrastructure - should be a new form of .

They explore how Public AI can help us to better reflect society's values, bring the benefits of to more people, and harness these powerful systems to solve local and cross‑border problems. They also argue why middle powers have the strongest incentive to unlock this model, and how an “Airbus for AI” approach can close rapidly widening capability gaps.

🎧 Listen on your favorite platform (links in the first comment below) ⏬

✨ C'est la Journée de la langue française !
It's French Language Day! ✨

Chaque année, le 20 mars, les Nations Unies célèbrent la richesse de la langue française, parlée par 3️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ millions de personnes à travers le monde et l’une des six langues officielles de l’ONU 🇺🇳.

Soutenir le est un volet essentiel de notre mission à la Bibliothèque et Archives. Pour explorer nos collections en français, commencez par notre Guide de recherche sur le multilinguisme, où vous trouverez un large éventail de ressources, de publications et de documents. - (voir lien dans le 1er commentaire)

Nos collections en français comprennent également des rares et historiques, qui témoignent du lien unique de la langue française avec les relations internationales, la diplomatie, le droit et la philosophie. Nous en partageons quelques-uns pour marquer cette journée !

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Every year on 20 March the United Nations celebrates the richness of the French language, spoken by 3️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ million people across the world and one of the six official languages of the UN 🇺🇳.

Supporting is a special part of our mission at the Library & Archives. To explore our collections in French, get started with our Multilingualism Research Guide where you'll find a range of resources, publications and documents. - (see link in the first comment below)

Our French collections also include rare and historical , marking the unique connection of the French language to international relations, diplomacy, law and philosophy. We're sharing a few of them to mark this day!

☕ A morning moment of shared conversation and shared purpose ☕

A snapshot of our team together with our new Director at the UN Library & Archives Geneva, Charlotte Lindberg Warakaulle.

We're excited for this new chapter and working together to better serve our users and partners through our mission: being a centre for research, and an instrument of international understanding.

Our team of librarians, archivists and more are here to help! If you need research support or have a question, reach out and Ask Us ➡️ https://ask.unog.ch

How can we leverage AI to help predict, respond to, and better recover from crises❓

In the latest episode of our AI x Multilateralism series, we're joined by Dr. Martin Waehlisch, Associate Professor of Transformative Technologies, Innovation and Global Affairs at the University of Birmingham, and member of the Crisis Computing Project, a global community of scholars and practitioners who are driven to put computation to better use.

Martin shares:
▶️ why he talks about “computational global affairs” rather than international affairs
▶️ what exactly crisis computing means, and the kinds of crises he hopes that AI can help us to address
▶️ the potential of crisis computing at the local, regional and multilateral level, and
▶️ what's still missing in the global debate when it comes to how we use AI individually and collectively.

Find links to this episode in our first comment below ⏬

🎙️ The state of multilateralism: crisis or renaissance?🎙️

Historian Alanna O'Malley joins us on The to explore a pressing question: is multilateralism in crisis, or are we witnessing the start of a renaissance for the United Nations and global governance?

In conversation with Amy L. Smith, Professor O’Malley reflects on how actors from the Global South have quietly but profoundly reshaped the UN over decades – and what their ideas can teach us about reimagining multilateral cooperation.

Drawing on her research on the “invisible history” of the UN and decolonisation, she discusses how the UN has served as a forum, a socialisation space and an actor in its own right, and why recovering these histories matters for navigating current fractures in the international system.

💡 This conversation emerged from our collaboration with META-UN and partners HUM:Global - University of Copenhagen and INNER_LEAGUE: University of Copenhagen, who are building a sustained science–policy dialogue between and the UN family on the future of multilateralism. It is part of our broader commitment to connect historical , critical and practitioners who engage with every day.

Find direct links to this episode in the first comment below! ⏬ Happy listening! ✨