The Bruin branch of the Roosevelt Institute will host a presentation today by William K. Davis, director of the United Nations Information Center.
Davis will lecture and take questions on U.S. relations with the U.N. and the U.N.’s response to the earthquake in Haiti. His presentation correlates with the institute’s purpose, which is to empower students to research and create public policy and to make them aware of political decisions across the globe, said Brent Gaisford, co-president of the think tank and second-year economics student.
As the main liaison between the United Nations and the U.S., its largest contributing member, Davis works in Washington, with the executive and legislative branches, the business community, the media and other organizations. For example, when Port-au-Prince was devastated two weeks ago, his job was to explain what was going on in Haiti to people in Washington, whether they were journalists or legislators.
“The U.N.’s work in Haiti is an unbelievable, unprecedented challenge for the Haitians and the international community,” Davis said. “The news there is relatively good ““ more people are getting the aid they need. With the U.N. leading the international community with the general support of the U.S., we can look past relief and build Haiti better than it was before.”
The U.N.’s actions in Haiti have ranged from providing food supplies through its World Food Programme to issuing a flash appeal for $575 million. Meanwhile, the U.S. has deployed over 15,000 military personnel to promote recovery.
“Under the Bush regime, the U.N. was so maligned,” said Robin Derby, an associate professor of history who was in Haiti last week doing research. “It’s important to hear how the Obama administration is taking the U.N. seriously, and one piece of evidence for the way it valorizes the U.N. is its commitment to Haiti’s relief and recovery.”
Still, questions remain about the extent of the international community’s involvement and how it should handle the situation.
“I would love to see (Davis) talk about how countries can help Haiti get everything rebuilt so it can stand on its own two feet,” said Justin Tang, a third-year international development studies student who plans on attending the presentation.
Davis said he may discuss other international issues, such as climate change, Security Council sanctions and U.N. peacekeeping efforts.
“I want (UCLA students) to gain a better understanding of what the U.N. is and isn’t,” he said. “Here we think of people speechifying at the headquarters in New York, but if you go anywhere else, it’s something very real. If you ask the people of Haiti about the U.N., they think about the World Food Programme distributing high-calorie biscuits.”
In addition to UCLA students, members from the United Nations Association of Southern California will come to campus to interact with Davis. Students at Brentwood High School have also expressed interest in the presentation, Gaisford said.
Although the institute will take donations for the U.N.’s operations in Haiti, fundraising is not the primary purpose of the event.
“It’s a great opportunity to hear about the general state of the world and what countries are doing to prevent future wars and disasters,” Gaisford said. “It’s important for us to learn about the best way to save human lives.”