International Understanding and the United Nations
Each September, the UN General Assembly turns New York into the most concentrated gathering of global decision-makers in the world. The John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding uses that window deliberately, co-hosting and convening substantive sessions alongside UN agencies, diplomats, governments, international NGOs, and peer institutions to bring Dartmouth scholarship directly into conversations about climate resilience, health systems, and peace and security.
This year, Dickey’s presence during UNGA and New York Climate Week spans three areas: Arctic resilience and circular innovation, the frontline health workforce, and renewable energy as a pathway to peace.
Arctic: Circular Innovation and Resilient Futures
Wednesday, September 23, 2026 | The Cornell Club, 6 East 44th Street, New York
Doors 1:30 p.m. | Program 2:00–5:00 p.m. | Reception to follow
Co-hosted by Dartmouth, UArctic, and the Consulate General of Finland in New York
Dickey Center contact: Melody Brown Burkins, Director, Institute of Arctic Studies
The Arctic is experiencing some of the world’s fastest environmental, economic, and geopolitical change. In response, Indigenous communities, businesses, researchers, policymakers, and investors are developing approaches that strengthen resilience while supporting sustainable economic growth. Circular Innovation and Resilient Futures: Insights from the Arctic brings Sámi and Indigenous leaders together with Finnish business, industry, and finance leaders advancing circular economy innovation.
The session’s premise is that long before the term circular economy existed, Arctic Indigenous peoples had developed knowledge systems grounded in stewardship, resource efficiency, and long-term thinking. Those principles are now complemented by advances in circular business models, clean technologies, sustainable finance, and policy innovation — with Finland emerging as a global leader in circular economy solutions and Indigenous leadership across Sápmi and the wider Arctic continuing to demonstrate the value of traditional knowledge. Drawing on real-world examples from Finland and across the Arctic, participants will examine how these place-based approaches can inform resilient, equitable, and economically vibrant communities worldwide.
Keynote address: H.E. Tarja Halonen, former President of Finland. President Halonen served as Finland’s head of state from 2000 to 2012 — the first woman to hold the office — and is globally recognized as a leader in sustainable development, human rights, social justice, and equality. A trade union lawyer by background, she co-chaired the UN Millennium Summit and the UN High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability, and continues her human rights work through the UN and other international networks.
The program opens with remarks from Barbara Will, Vice Provost for Academic and International Affairs at Dartmouth, and Jouko Niinimäki, UArctic Executive Vice President and former Rector of the University of Oulu. Melody Brown Burkins, Director of the Institute of Arctic Studies and UArctic Chair in Science Diplomacy and Inclusion, moderates two panel discussions bringing Indigenous leadership and industry leadership into the same conversation:
- Charitie Ropati (Yup’ik and Samoan), education and climate justice advocate, scientist, and water engineer, recently appointed Youth Climate Advisor to the UN Secretary-General
- Anders Oskal (Sámi), Secretary General of the Association of World Reindeer Herders and Executive Director of the International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry in Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino, Norway
- Tuuli Kaskinen, CEO of the Climate Leadership Coalition, which convenes Nordic companies, cities, and universities on climate and nature action
- Kati ter Horst, President and CEO of Outokumpu, a leading global provider of sustainable stainless steel
- Niila-Juhán Valkeapää (Sámi), member of the Youth Council of the Sámi Parliament and advocate for Sámi autonomy and self-determination
- Charlie Donovan, Professor at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, formerly Principal Economist at Impax Asset Management and founding Executive Academic Director of Imperial College’s MSc in Climate Change, Management, and Finance
Professor Donovan’s participation reflects a standing Tuck–IAS collaboration: he and Melody Brown Burkins co-lead the Tuck Global Insight Expedition (GIX) on governance and sustainable investment in the Arctic, a faculty-led immersive course that takes Dartmouth MBA students into the circumpolar North. The Climate Week panel brings that same pairing of Arctic scholarship and sustainable finance expertise to an international policy audience.
The afternoon closes with an audience Q&A and remarks from Outi Snellman, Secretary General of UArctic, followed by a reception.
The session reflects the Institute of Arctic Studies’ long-standing role as a convener across the circumpolar North and its partnership with UArctic, a network of some 200 universities, colleges, research institutes, and other organizations engaged in education and research in and about the North. It is part of a broader Dartmouth presence at Climate Week 2026, alongside the Climate Collaborative, the Sustainability Office, and the Irving Institute for Energy and Society.
Global Health: Building a Resilient Health Workforce
Tuesday, September 22, 2026 | Yale Club, New York | ~150 attendees
Working lunch 12:00 p.m. | Program 12:30–2:30 p.m.
Hosted by the Frontline Health Workers Coalition; Dartmouth Dickey Center as partner and venue host
Dickey Center contacts: Dawn Carey, Senior Associate Director; Professor Thomas Thesen
Health workers are the foundation of every health system. They deliver essential services, respond to emergencies, and provide the continuity of care communities depend on. When health systems face shock, whether from disease outbreak, natural disaster, or conflict, the strain is borne first and most heavily by the workforce itself.
Building a Resilient Health Workforce: Ensuring Continuity of Care amid Crises convenes ministers of health, multilateral leaders, implementing organizations, and journalists to examine how investments in decent work, retention, protection, and support strengthen health workers’ ability to sustain and restore critical services during and after crises. The premise is that a resilient workforce is both a cornerstone of universal health coverage and a prerequisite for global health security, and that the investments required are made before a crisis, not during one.
The Dickey Center joins as a convening partner alongside CARE, Global Communities, Johnson & Johnson, Smile Train, Operation Smile, Project HOPE, and Partners In Health. Professor Thomas Thesen, Faculty Director for the Global Mental Health Initiative at the Dickey Center, will serve as a panelist in the event’s main discussion on how health systems keep essential services and clinical training running under pressure and recover quickly when services are disrupted, joining colleagues from Operation Smile and Zanmi Lasante (Partners In Health Haiti). The program also includes high-level government speakers, a fireside chat, and a journalist panel on how crisis reporting shapes what policymakers treat as worth funding.
Powering Peace: The *Renewable Peace* Film Premiere
Wednesday, September 23, 2026 | Amali, 115 East 60th Street, New York
Reception 6:30 p.m. | Film preview and dinner discussion 7:00–9:00 p.m.
Co-hosted by the Stanley Center for Peace and Security, Energy Peace Partners, and the Dickey Center
Dickey Center contact: Victoria K. Holt, Norman E. McCulloch Jr. Director
During UNGA and Climate Week, the Dickey Center co-hosts the world premiere of Renewable Peace, a new short documentary film series demonstrating how renewable energy can help bring and sustain peace in conflict-affected communities. The films center human stories from the field: voices from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, and South Sudan, where renewable energy projects are supporting livelihoods, improving safety, expanding access to health and education services, and reducing dependence on costly and insecure diesel supply chains. Those vignettes are paired with expert perspective on how renewable energy can reduce insecurity, prevent conflict, and promote stability. In many of these places it is achieving results where years of conventional peacebuilding have fallen short.
The premiere reflects a sustained partnership between Dartmouth’s Dickey Center, the Stanley Center for Peace and Security, and Energy Peace Partners. This project builds on work by the Dickey Center and scholars at Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering led by Professor Vikrant Vaze, with PhD candidate Lilly Yang, Professor Steven Peterson, and graduate student Ryan Proulx.
Victoria K. Holt, Director of the Dickey Center, joins Stanley Center and Energy Peace Partners leadership in hosting the evening, which convenes leaders across government, finance, humanitarian, and energy sectors to consider how to collectively advance a renewable energy and peace agenda. Following the premiere, the films will be shared through additional Climate Week engagements and partner conversations to reach a wider audience.
Summary
| Area | Event | Date | Venue | Dickey Contact |
| Global Health | Building a Resilient Health Workforce | Sept 22, 12:00–2:30 p.m. | Yale Club | Dawn Carey; Thomas Thesen |
| Arctic | Circular Innovation and Resilient Futures | Sept 23, 2:00–5:00 p.m. | The Cornell Club | Melody Brown Burkins |
| Powering Peace | Renewable Peace premiere | Sept 23, 6:30–9:00 p.m. | Amali | Victoria K. Holt |
