Southern
California Regional
Council of Organizations
Affiliated with the United Nations Association,
Southern California Division
The Southern
California Regional Council of Organizations (SCRCO), established
in 1993, is a body of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) formed
at the regional level. It corresponds to the
UNA-USA Council of Organizations, which is affiliated with the
United Nations Association
The SCRCO is a focal point for Southern California area representatives
of NGOs to collaborate in fostering a greater awareness of the
work of the United Nations and in building an informed and vocal
constituency for leadership by the United States in the United
Nations. The Council also encourages United Nations related
activities within each member organization.
The SCRCO meets on a monthly basis to encourage cooperation among
participating NGOs for the purpose of educating the public on the
role and organization of the United Nations and its agencies, and
for strengthening the United Nations. Participating NGOs
coordinate Council activities and share information with one another
regarding their own organizations and the purposes stated above.
Among its activities, the SCRCO:
Engages in advocacy to support responsible participation by the
United States in the United Nations
and in related multilateral international institutions.
Sponsors program meetings for the public and participating NGOs.
Promotes public education on the United Nations and supports
the understanding of global issues.
Seeks to increase participation by NGOs in the Council.
Membership is open to representatives of organizations that are
regional affiliates of the UNA-USA Council of Organizations. Other
regional organizations that are interested in helping to promote
better understanding of the United Nations also are welcome to
become members.
Suzanne Burger, Chair
February 2007
B’NAI B’RITH EXECUTIVE SPEAKS TO THE
SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA COUNCIL OF ORGANIZATIONS
On May 16, 2007 Dan Mariaschin, Executive Vice President of B’nai
B’rith International (BBI) addressed the Southern California
Regional Council of Organizations (a regional counterpart of the
United Nations Association, USA’s Council of Organizations). He
spoke as an up-close and long-time observer of the United Nations
and leader of BBI’s Human Rights and Public Policy Center
who had participated in numerous conferences in the United States
and abroad working for human rights reform, the end of anti-Semitism,
and the challenges that Israel faces.
At the outset he stated that B’nai B’rith representatives
were present at meetings which led to the creation of the United
Nations and that they have had consultative status on UN affairs
with ECOSOC, the UN’s Economic and Social Council, since
1947. His talk emphasized Darfur and Iran and his special
interest in the newly reorganized United Nations body, now called
the Human Rights Council. He said that B’nai B’rith
works closely with other non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
monitoring the Council’s actions, which, to date, he saw
as an “unbalanced approach.”
BBI would like to see NGOs commit to a united position with respect
to strong African relief…a hybrid peacekeeping force by
the UN…consistent protection…and assurances that
businesses won’t be “advantage takers.”
BBI has members in over 50 countries. The leadership of
the American Jewish community has been active in bringing pressure
on the government of Sudan to stop the genocide in Darfur. B’nai
B’rith has been active in supporting the divestment strategy
that has led grassroots efforts to keep world attention focused
on this atrocity.
With respect to Iran and nuclear weapons, he stressed that that
country’s actions would affect not only the Middle East,
but the wider world as well. He suggested that the Saudis
and Egyptians (“Power/Onward countries) could deal with the
Iranian situation regionally and efforts by the US and Europeans
could close off loans and guarantees from major banks. He
concluded by stressing the important role being played by the UN
Security Council.
by ReneWilson
Co-Founder, Southern California
Regional Council of Organizations,
affiliated with UNA-USA Southern California Division
and
Lyndia Lowy
Program Coordinator
B’nai B’rith Western Area Field Office
2007
UNA-USA CONVENTION – FRIDAY, MARCH 2 (3:45-4:45
PM)
SKILLS WORKSHOP: FORMING COALITIONS
REGIONAL & LOCAL COUNCILS OF ORGANIZATIONS
Southern California Regional Council of Organizations
SCRCO covers a geographical area from the Mexican border all the
way north through San Luis Obispo County. It would take you
a day of driving time to traverse. Los Angeles County itself
has a population of over 10 million. people. There are nine
counties all told making up Southern California with Los Angeles
as the hub.
SCRCO is currently composed of 29 regional non-governmental organizations
(NGOs), most of which have many local chapters or churches or units,
such as the YWCA of Southern California; League of Women
Voters of LA County; Zonta International, District 9; Presbyterian
Synod of Southern California and Hawaii; and the California Federation
of Business and Professional Women. Think of SCRCO as a circle
with 29 spokes sticking out from it, and at the end of each spoke
are 10 to 50 more spokes each representing a local unit.
The information flow from SCRCO goes to each Regional NGO Board
by way of their regional representative who attends regular monthly
meetings of the SCRCO Board in Los Angeles. Any information
that reaches the local chapter comes via their own regional NGO. Probably
90% of SCRCO’s member NGOs are regional counterparts of NGOs
who belong to the UNA-USA Council of Organizations. When
SCRCO does advocacy with its U.S. Congressional Representatives
or the US Administration, it can point to the fact that it represents the
total of individuals who belong to all the local chapters of each
regional NGO in support of a given UN-related position, which will
be thousands.
In November 1992 when I was in my third year as President of the
UNA-USA Southern California Division, I received a phone call from
the Executive Director of a Congressionally-mandated body, the
US Commission on Improving the Effectiveness of the United Nations,
asking if I would put together a coalition of NGOs who would put
on the Commission’s February 1, 1993, Public Hearings in
Los Angeles.
The Planning Committee of the 22-member Host Coalition enjoyed
working together so much that these nine NGOs became the nucleus
for a Regional Council of Organizations: American Association
of University Women; Bahai’s; Church Women United; Friends
of the UN; Alliance for Global Unity; Humanist Association; International
Association for Volunteer Effort; United Nations Association; and the
World Federalist Association. On May 5 they asked for formal
affiliation with the United Nations Association at the Southern
California Division level to correspond with the Council of Organizations
at the national level. The purposes would be to
- Educate the public on the role and organization of the United
Nations and its agencies and.
- Improve the effectiveness of the United Nations and strengthen
it.
Based on the receipt of letters signed by these organizations
affirming participation, the Division Board gave unanimous
approval July 31, 1993, with the Council Chair to become a voting
member of the Division Board. Subsequently, a special article
appeared in the Summer issue of the Division Newsletter. In
October, Guidelines were adopted by Regional Council representatives
that included this policy statement:
The Council may represent and promote officially adopted policies
and positions of the UNA-USA It may not adopt policy positions
or make policy statements on behalf of its members, their organizations,
or the UNA.
A Nominating Committee, chaired by the AAUW representative, presented
a report in January and the first officers were elected in February
1994. Advocacy and education have been our primary goals.
Some of the more interesting programs and projects we’ve
undertaken as a coalition are:
*For the UN’s 50th Anniversary in 1995, we celebrated with
monthly programs in various venues on the accomplishments
of individual UN agencies.
*In 1998 numerous NGOs purchased the recently completed 480-page
International Instruments of the United Nations, such as treaties,
conventions, charters, etc. adopted by the General Assembly of
the UN from 1945 to 1995 and presented them to public libraries. It
was edited by our own Regional Council representative and national
officer of Friends of the United Nations, Irving Sarnoff.
*Between May 1999 and December 2002 SCRCO provided no-cost subscription
to NGOs for Quarterly Newsletter Paragraphs on UN topical
issues.
*For five years beginning in 2000, with the cooperation of the
LA County School System, SCRCO invited high school students to
celebrate UNESCO’s Principles of the Culture of Peace through
student creations and performance. It was led by SCRCO’s
representative from the Society for the Psychological Study of
Social Issues, Paul Kimmel, supported in part by a Sages grant.
*On October 12, 2002, SCRCO held a one day Global Health Conference
for non-governmental organization members and the public. Collaborators
were the UCLA School of Public Health and the Charles R. Drew University
of Medicine and Science. Stephen Lewis, the Keynote Speaker,
was former Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations and UN Secretary-General
Annan’s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa. A UNA-USA
Web Exclusive carried the story. It was funded in part by
the California Wellness Foundation and the California Endowment. The
Better World Campaign underwrote a conference budget item.
*In 2004 SCRCO and the UNA Division invited UNA-USA President
Luers to Southern California where he spoke at separate events,
attended a special breakfast and had several small meetings to
acquaint him with local chapter representatives and various concerns.
A representative group of SCRCO advocacy communications have urged:
*US payment of financial obligations to the United Nations;
*Establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court;
*Ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child;
*Funding of Assessed Peacekeeping Operations;
*Ratification of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination Against
Women;
*US Re-entry into UNESCO; and
*Global education and information about the UN System in public
schools.
A month ago SCRCO held its most important retreat since
it was organized in order to re-think what our work is, how we
carry out our vision, what the role of the Board and that of the
Executive Committee should be, how decisions are made, how NGOs
want to be involved, and many matters about communications,
including our focus for advocacy, how to encourage new NGOs to
join, the value of brochures, and how to handle informational materials, We
don’t expect to re-invent ourselves, but we do want to re-think
how we are operating and to institute changes to renew our vigor
and value to the Southern California community on our two basic
purposes: educating the public about the UN and improving
the effectiveness of the UN and strengthening it.
Rene Wilson
Co-Founder,
Southern California Regional Council of Organizations
|
