| | "Whether they are ready or not, today Zimbabweans are going to the polls in what may be the most important election since the country's transition to majority rule in 1980. Not only will the election mark the final step laid out in the Global Political Agreement that created Zimbabwe's current Government of National Unity (GNU) following post-election violence in 2008, but it will also determine the country's relationship with the region, the West and the general international community." UN Dispatch (7/31) | | | Master of Arts in Public Policy (MAPP) The online MAPP program from New England College educates you on how to drive change in the public, private and community sectors by affecting public policy at the local, regional, and international levels. The program can prepare you to gain an understanding of the intellectual foundations for key public policy discussions and how the outcomes affect change in the political process. | | Polio is making a resurgence in Syria, could spread, EU official says The Syrian civil war is causing a resurgence in polio cases, with few doctors left to give vaccinations. If refugees are carrying the virus, there's a likelihood of the disease spreading. "This is not only a danger for the Syrians ... it is a danger for Lebanon and Jordan and Turkey and Egypt and the rest of the world because the refugees will bring it out," says Kristalina Georgieva, EU commissioner for international cooperation, humanitarian aid and crisis response. ForeignPolicy.com/Passport blog (7/30) Donors must make disability programs a requisite for funding People with disabilities haven't been targeted by the Millennium Development Goals or in early planning post-2015 goals, but donors can change that by making appropriate programs for the disabled a requisite for funding, says Rosangela Berman-Bieler of UNICEF. "It's [about] influencing the development agenda to make sure that accessibility and inclusiveness are included," she argues. Devex.com (free registration) (7/31) | Peacekeeping and Security | Israeli-Palestinian peace talks yield target date to end conflict Israeli and Palestinian representatives have agreed to spend the next nine months working on a "final status" to end conflict. "They are on the table with one simple goal: a view to ending the conflict, ending the claims," says U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. BBC (7/30) | Middle East Quartet praises resumption of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. UN Radio (7/30) | UN Wire is a free service sponsored by the United Nations Foundation which is dedicated to supporting the United Nations' efforts to address the most pressing humanitarian, socioeconomic and environmental challenges facing the world today. | | Contact the UN Foundation | Caleb Tiller Executive Director, Communications and Public Affairs United Nations Foundation 1800 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 400 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 887-9040 www.unfoundation.org | | Please contact one of our specialists for advertising opportunities, editorial inquiries, job placements, or any other questions. Mailing Address: SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004 | | |