11th May 2026
The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill: turning a global ocean agreement into UK law
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
9th April 2026
The Gulf, Berlin and the Commission on the Status of Women: building global alliances to advance women’s progress
26th February 2026
Different Memories, Shared Futures: Why Inclusive Remembrance Matters for Serbia and the Region
15th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Guest blogger: London 2012, a celebration of diversity in sports
Blog by Sally Wood-Lamont, President of the Romanian National Paralympic Committee I am delighted that the UK will host, for the third time in the history of the Olympic Games, an event that will keep the whole world connected through the values of fair competition and excellence in sports. That London 2012 has Paralympics at […]
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14th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
What I think about Ukraine
I’ve been blogging about Ukraine for a while now – over 170 entries, plus the web-diary I started in 2009 before the blog went live. It’s been a fascinating time and I hope readers have found the blogs interesting. Blogging is a good way to set out what I think about Ukraine on different issues. […]
14th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
أهمية الكرامة
كلمة "الكرامة" كلمة نسمعها كثيرا في العالم العربي في الوقت الراهن. سمعناها في تونس في شهر كانون الاول وفي ميدان التحرير في القاهرة في شهر كانون الثاني كما أننا نسمعها في ليبيا وسوريا الآن. الكرامة جزء أساسي من الثقافة العربية. و الكلمة في طبيعة الحال تحمل معنى مختلف لكل شخص، ولكنها كانت في قلب الأحداث […]
13th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Bolivia supports an end to cluster munitions
This week I want to congratulate Bolivia. On 8 April, the Chamber of Deputies of the Plurinational Assembly voted by unanimity to support the proposed law to ratify the Oslo Convention on Cluster Munitions. The Oslo Convention is the most significant arms control agreement of recent years. It came into force on 1 August 2010 […]
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13th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Importance of Dignity
A word we hear a lot in the Arab world at the moment is “dignity”. We heard it in Tunisia in December and in Tahrir Square in Cairo in January. And we are hearing it in Libya and Syria now. Dignity is a fundamental foundation of Arab culture. The word of course means different things […]
12th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Ukraine in Oxford… and Europe
I recently wrote about the centre of Kyiv turning British. So it’s good to find the centre of Oxford turning Ukrainian. The occasion is the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Programme Oxford Model Ukraine Conference “Ukraine’s Domestic and Foreign Affairs: Quo Vadis” (“where are you going”), held in St Anthony’s College and New College, Oxford from 6-8 April. […]
11th April 2011 New York, USA
A Community United on Both Sides of the Atlantic
Saturday 9 April was pretty ordinary for me and my family. We enjoyed the spring flowers during a walk in Central Park. My daughter found new ways to get mud on herself. For Nuala Kerr, it was far from ordinary. She was looking forward to enjoying the next day, mothering Sunday, with her family. Nuala […]
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11th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Sport for all
Három, kettő, egy (3,2,1)…and thankfully the gun goes off when I squeeze the trigger, starting the family race in this year’s Vivicitta Budapest. (Vivicitta is an international running event held in April in more than 50 cities to promote “sport for all”.) The competitors – including my colleagues Eva and Levi – surge forward. Among […]
8th April 2011
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Australian Climate Change Debate
The most controversial subject in Australian politics right now is climate change. The Labor government, with support from the Greens and some independents, is currently pursuing legislation aimed at introducing a carbon price leading to an emissions trading scheme. This is being heavily attacked by the Opposition coalition, who says it will increase the cost […]
8th April 2011 Toronto, Canada
The Royal Society: Knowledge, Networks and Nations
The Royal Society released an interesting report at the end of March, entitled Knowledge, networks and nations: Global scientific collaboration in the 21st century. Global scientific collaboration is excatly what the Science and Innovation Network is all about, and this report makes for encouraging reading. Here’s a quick summary: The scientific world is becoming increasingly […]
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