IPRA and the United Nations
For decades, IPRA has held consultative status at the United Nations, represented by a dedicated team working across disarmament, decolonization, and peace education.
How IPRA relates to the UN
IPRA has a long-standing relationship with the United Nations, registered as a non-governmental organization with the UN Department of Public Information, and holding special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for decades.
The organization’s fraternal ties with UNESCO trace back to co-founder Elise Boulding, and were recognized with the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education in 1989. With an ongoing New York-based UN Team working across UN priority areas, IPRA was singled out by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for its pioneering work on disarmament and nuclear abolition.
The IPRA UN Team
A Main Representative and several Alternate Representatives have served on the IPRA UN Team for decades. The team is currently headed by IPRA Secretary-General Matt Meyer.
Matt Meyer
IPRA Secretary-General
Leads the UN Team; works with the Fourth Committee on Special Political and Decolonization matters.
Cyril Obi
Program Director
Leads the UN Team; works with the Fourth Committee on Special Political and Decolonization matters.
Emily Welty
Director, Peace & Justice Studies
Pace University; former UN representative of the World Council of Churches; co-founder, ICAN (2017 Nobel Peace Prize). Works with the First Committee on Disarmament.
Garrett Fitzgerald
Assistant Professor, Peace
& Justice Studies
Pace University; scholar-practitioner at the Kroc Institute, Notre Dame; associate of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (1985 Nobel Peace Prize).
Francis Peterson
UN Team Member
Retired Professor, City University of New York.
Current & ongoing work
Of the UN’s six Main Committees, Emily Welty and Garrett Fitzgerald work primarily with the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), while Matt Meyer works with the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization). All IPRA representatives support the UN Sustainable Development Goals and promote peace education. Several current and recent IPRA Council Members also hold UNESCO Chair positions, including in China and South Africa.
At the United Nations
Meyer on screen, discussing decolonization with the GA President
UN Web TV screenshot of the same session
Meyer + President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande
2020–2023 team group photo (Obi, Molina, Boghosian, Odinga, Meyer)
017 team photo (Meyer, Peterson, Bolton, Welty)