Kate Coy's United Nations Internship: One Month and More Knowledge Than Can Be Quantified...

The first thing that comes to mind when sitting to write this blog post is the gratitude I feel for being given the opportunity to have the experience of being an intern at the United Nations. After just a month, I find it’s hard to describe how much I've learned, and how my learning has taken place on so many levels...professional, academic, personal, social, and more.

I feel a little like an "insider-outsider" at this point. I've been part of the UN system long enough to have a basic understanding of what it means to hold a UN identification badge, but not nearly long enough to understand the vast intricacies of what it takes to make a career with the UN. I have the distinct privilege to work on a daily basis with individuals who, after even 20 years of UN employment, continue to exemplify the UN’s core values of integrity, professionalism, and respect for diversity. I feel proud to work at an organization whose core values are so closely matched with my own.

Something I think is important to point out is that although the United Nations Headquarters in located in New York, the UN is an international organization, not an American one. It’s a common misconception that the UN has American roots because it is headquartered on “American soil”. The physical location of UNHQ in Manhattan, NY is actually considered international territory; it is therefore not within the United States. The UN also has myriad locations around the world.

“Respect for Diversity” I would postulate is among the core values of the UN not only because we work toward equality for all humans on the planet, but also because we have the unique opportunity to work with individuals from each of the UN member states on a daily basis. I can’t say enough about how interesting and exciting it is to share an office with colleagues from all over the world. The cross-cultural environment normalized by the UN is like no other place I’ve worked. English is the working language of the UN in NY, but it’s common for professionals in my office to speak to colleagues in any number of languages – from French to Spanish, German to Arabic. The cultural diversity around here is like cool water in a desert.

I enjoy the diversity in large part because I feel as if there’s a new learning opportunity every time I turn around. In classes last quarter we discussed at length large scale cultural differences like individualistic versus collectivist. Additionally, one’s personality always comes into play. Because I’m interested in a social psychological approach to conflict resolution, I find myself paying particular attention to the interpersonal interactions between colleagues of differing countries of origin. Who chooses to speak up in a conference call? Who offers to be the note taker? Who opts to stay silent and just absorb what is being said? I find that my experiences working at the UN help to expand my cross-cultural experience on a daily basis, often serving to overcome stereotypes embedded in our American society.

Something I’ve often heard is that there’s some sort of unwritten rule that if you hold a Master’s degree in conflict resolution or the like, you should be able to effectively manage conflict in your own life. As if, once you achieve a certain level of education or experience you cease to be challenged by the common conflicts that occur in everyday life. In my humble experience, this is not the case. Conflict experts are still refreshingly human, and we still have to handle life’s stressors. It’s actually somewhat comforting to know that, even at the UN, conflict resolution professionals have to make an effort to manage conflict in their own lives. Problems don’t just magically disappear because our supreme goal is world peace. Being a good person takes effort every day of one’s life. I appreciate that my colleagues at the UN have helped reinforce this for me.

What does conflict mean to you? Does the word conjure up feelings of angst within you? It is something you go out of your way to avoid? There’s certainly reason enough for that. I’ve realized throughout my graduate school education that I see conflict as something different, respectively. I see conflict as opportunity. I have since I was young – perhaps the reason I felt drawn to this field. What better way to learn something about another person or group than when we disagree about something? What stops us from suspending judgment for even a few seconds – long enough to listen to what someone else has to say? What makes us “right”?

I accepted this internship at the UN because I’m curious about these questions and I felt that being part of the UN system would give me the opportunity to explore with an open mind the “rightness” of what my American culture has taught me. I can’t give you a definitive opinion about controversial topics like gun control or mandatory health insurance, but I can say without reservation that I believe killing humans is wrong under any conditions. But it's all about perspective, eh?

I believe that the sanctity of human life supersedes state sovereignty. In other words, independent nations shouldn’t have the “right” to kill their citizens, even if the international community is not being directly affected. However, we share this planet with sovereign governments who do believe it’s their “right” to respond to domestic threats with violence - murder included - if warranted. Thus, the critical question is raised – how to respond when basic human rights are being violated?

Despite our cultural and personal differences, the thing that unites me and my colleagues at the UN is that we hold true a common purpose – indeed the foundation upon which the United Nations was founded in 1945 after the horrific events of WWII. I believe in a system that seeks international development, security, law, progress, and yes, ultimately world peace. And, in my opinion, that means we should strive to facilitate conversation about the part you and I play in creating a more peaceful world. In fact, by seeing conflict as opportunity, we just might create a forum by which be become better conflict resolvers, and thus, better equipped to manage conflict in both our personal and professional lives.

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For those of you asking for lots of pictures, here are some I've taken of NY since my last post...