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- Showdown looms over Palestinian UNESCO bid
The executive board of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on Wednesday granted initial approval of a bid by Palestinians for full membership in the organization, setting the stage for a vote later this month -- and a showdown with the U.S., which opposes the Palestinian initiative. Current U.S. law could mandate a stoppage of all dues and voluntary contributions to UNESCO -- accounting for some 22% of its budget -- if the Palestinian effort ultimately is successful. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (10/5), Bloomberg Businessweek (10/6)       | - U.S. bill would trim $50 million from UNFPA
Conservative lawmakers took aim at the United Nations Population Fund in a bill that would eliminate the $50 million budget request made by U.S. President Barack Obama for the agency. Republicans who backed the bill in the Foreign Affairs Committee said they were upset by UNFPA's work in China, which maintains a policy limiting the number of children each family can have, and said the UN agency was complicit in forced sterilizations and abortions. The committee's ranking Democrat, Howard Berman of California, said, "Don't hold the UN culpable for what a sovereign country does, as obnoxious as it is." The Washington Post/The Associated Press (10/5)  | - Mandy Moore: Retaining U.S. global health aid is "the right thing"
Singer Mandy Moore works on behalf of global health causes because of a "disconnect" she sees between the availability of consumer products in developing countries and the availability of health care. She writes that "sometimes the disconnect I see is truly striking: people can get cold Coca-Cola, but far too infrequently malaria drugs; most own mobile phones, but don't have equal access to pre-natal care." The Huffington Post (10/4) - Marching to provide cleaner cookstoves
 Volunteers in California have begun a march they're calling a woodwalk, imitating the search that women make in many developing countries to gather wood for fires and stoves -- smoke from which not only kills and sickens millions of women and children, but contributes significantly to global warming. The 10-day, 136-mile trek from San Diego to Los Angeles is part of the Paradigm Project's effort to draw attention to its effort to provide clean cookstoves to 5 million people. The New York Times (tiered subscription model)/Green blog (10/5) - Shipping could help fund climate change battle
Governments and activist groups are eying commercial shipping as a possible source of funding to help developing countries mitigate the effects of climate change. Shipping accounts for about 3% of global carbon gas emissions and a tax on those emissions could raise tens of billions every year. Google/Agence France-Presse (10/5) - Pakistan slams India-Afghanistan development pact
Pakistani authorities have reacted angrily to a pact signed by India and Afghanistan to enhance bilateral cooperation on a range of issues such as education, security and economic trade. Pakistan and Afghanistan have seen their relationship deteriorate recently as officials trade accusations Pakistani intelligence services are involved in supporting terrorist activities. Google/The Associated Press (10/6) - Top 11 in 2011 Innovators Challenge now accepting nominations
The mHealth Alliance and the Rockefeller Foundation have announced the Top 11 in 2011 Innovators Challenge, which is now accepting nominations on HealthUnbound.org (HUB). This Challenge will identify and award individuals who have used mobile technology in innovative ways to improve health systems and outcomes in even the most remote areas of the world. This is the first time these partners have come together to recognize pioneering mobile health (mHealth) professionals. Click here to read more from the United Nations Foundation.  | - UNA-USA premieres documentary
Students from John Adams High School are no stranger to conflict or big problems. But when they spent two days at the United Nations to tackle world conflict and global problems, it changed their lives forever. Decorum, a documentary produced by the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA), tells the story of how Dean/Teacher Michael Budhu used UNA-USA's Global Classrooms Model UN program to challenge, empower, and inspire these students. The film will premiere today at 4:30 p.m. at the Grand Hyatt New York, and will be followed by a discussion with Budhu and several of the students in the documentary. Click here to read more on the UNA-USA website.
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The money being spent in 98 countries to treat with antiretroviral drugs some 3.5 million people infected with HIV/AIDS would be more than offset by the worth recouped in human productivity, child rearing and end-of-life medical care, according to a study. 
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