The WHO Office at the United Nations in New York cordially invites you, your colleagues and NGOs interested in public health to a World Health Day observance on Monday, 10 April in Conference Room 1 at the United Nations in New York. We are organizing a briefing about the importance of the global health workforce, the crisis it is facing, and some solutions to these problems, i.e. innovative and effective ways to educate, suport and manage the health workforce, and encourage private-public partnerships. The programme begins with a film showing from 10:00-10:15 a.m.. The briefings will follow; then a Q&A at 12:15 p.m. Copies of the Executive Summary of the 2006 World Health Report will be distributed.

In recent years, WHO and its partners have moved health workforce issues up the political agenda. To give further momentum to efforts in this area, World Health Day 2006, and the World Health Report 2006 have been focused around the key theme of "Working Together for Health". We hope that this will encourage all stakeholders - policy makers, international donors, politicians, health professionals, academia, civil society, faith-based organizations, the media - to unite and work together to strengthen the health workforce.

To accept, please have everyone interested RSVP by Monday, 3 April 2006 to verano@un.org, (212) 963-6000 or (212) 9636004/5. For those who don't have it, a UN security pass can be obtained on Monday 10 April at the World Health Day registration desk, United Nations Public Lobby on First Avenue and 46th Street, New York City. Registration begins at 9:15 a.m.

We would be grateful if you could publicize the event to NGOs in your list and we look forward to having everyone interested participate.

For more information about World Health Day (celebrated annually on 7 April), please visit the WHO website at www.who.int and click to "World Health Day."

SubCommittee on Racism's Event next Thursday March 16 from 1:15 to 2:45 in Conference Room 6. Do join us!
World Bank/IMF/ECOSOC Meetings to take place in March and April, sponsored by the new NGO Committee on Financing for Development:

March 17, Conference Room 6, 10-1pm Roundtables on Supporting National Development Strategies for MDGs with experts from World Bank, AID, IMF and US Treasury

IHEU- Appignani Center for Bioethics
and Genetics Policy Institute
assisted by
The Alden March Bioethics Institute (AMBI)at the United Nations, New York City

present

Is There a Global Bioethics?
Moral, Legal, and International Norms in Bioscience
April 21 – 23, 2006


Cocktail Reception: Friday, April 21, 6:00 – 10:00 pm
Location: 821 United Nations Plaza, New York City, NY 10017

Many thanks to the Turkish Consulate General, Culture & Tourism Office for providing the beautiful space for our cocktail reception. UN missions will be invited. Our distinguished speakers at the cocktail reception will be:

Arthur Caplan is the Emmanuel and Robert Hart Professor of Bioethics, Chair of the Department of Medical Ethics, and Director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a renowned expert on biotechnology and bioethics, a frequent commentator on NPR, CNN and MSNBC, and an expert whose byline appears in The New York Times and The Washington Post.

Paul Kurtz is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, Chairman of the Council for Secular Humanism, and Prometheus Books, and editor-in-chief of Free Inquiry Magazine. He is also founder and chairman of the Center for Inquiry, Transnational and a former Co-President of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU).

Conference: Saturday 22 and Sunday 23, 8:30 am – 3:30 pm
Location: 777 UN Plaza, 2nd Floor, New York City, NY 10017

Taking a broad and cross-disciplinary approach to addressing medical and bio-technological issues in contemporary society, Conference topics include ethics and religion, humanist and ethical views on science and the public, and the development of biotechnology and its ethical implications.

Through paper presentations and panel discussions, the Conference will address such topics as: stem cell research, public policy of genetics and privacy, genetic engineering and human dignity, reproductive and sexual rights of women, the United Nations as a forum for bioethics, intellectual property in global bioscience, ethical issue in infectious disease control internationally and nationally, and the challenge of evolutionary theory.

Authors of accepted papers have the option of their work being peer-reviewed for possible publication in The American Journal of Bioethics. Virtual registrations will be also available for those unable to attend the Conference – this allows you to submit a paper for review and possible publication.

Registration fee for the general public, delegates, and UN representatives is $85, payable by April 15, 2006. Registration includes attendance at the Cocktail Reception (hors d'oeuvre and drinks to be served) and attendance at the Conference (refreshments to be served). Fee for students who attend is $35. The deadline for the abstracts is April 1, 2006 (post-mark). Inquiries should be directed to:

IHEU
Dr. Ana Lita, Ph.D. – Director of Center for Bioethics
Phone: (212) 687 3324; Email: analita@iheu.org
P.O. Box 4104 Grand Central Station New York, NY 10162

Registration forms and other details will be posted on:
www.iheu.org/bioethics

The IHEU-Appignani Center for Bioethics is a new initiative of the International Humanist and Ethical Union which holds a special consultative status with ECOSOC at the United Nations, a general consultative status with UNICEF and the Council of Europe as well as operational relations with UNESCO in Paris.

The Genetics Policy Institute (GPI) is a nonprofit organization that encourages funding and support for stem cell research and sponsors international projects and educational programs relating to the law and regulation of reproductive cloning, therapeutic cloning (SCNT) and stem cell research.

The Alden March Bioethics Institute (AMBI) is a multi-institutional bioethics research organization based at the Albany Medical College in New York. The Institute produces The American Journal of Bioethics and bioethics.net.