Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Michael von der Schulenburg will speak about his new book On Building Peace – Rescuing the Nation-State and Saving the United Nations, based on a lifetime working in countries with wars, conflict and social disintegration. He argues that preserving a global order for the future will need what many thought to be outmoded or even dead: strong nation-states and a stronger United Nations.

About the speaker

Mr von der Schulenburg escaped communist rule, studied in Berlin, London and Paris and worked 34 years for the United Nations (and briefly for the OSCE) attaining the rank of Assistant Secretary-General. He has served in many of the world’s trouble spots including Haiti, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, the Balkans, Somalia, Sierra Leone and the Sahel. He participated in various strategic reviews of UN missions and UN reform initiatives, and has written extensively on sensitive political issues and the role of UN peace missions.