UNSC Incoming Five, Joint Reception at the United Nations
Overview
United Nations Headquarters, New York City. 2022.
On 9 June 2022, Switzerland was elected to the UN Security Council for the 2023–2024 term, some 11 years after presenting its candidacy and two years into actively running its campaign.
The previous evening, the five candidate countries (Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, and Switzerland) co-organized a joint reception on the North Lawn of the UN Headquarters in New York, bringing together 300 Ambassadors, UN Senior Officials, Ministers and Heads of State. The event was a deliberate signal, embodying the five incoming members' commitment to work together on the Council.
Context
The Security Council election campaign, run under Switzerland's "A+ for Peace" candidacy, had been years in the making, with the candidacy first announced in 2011 and the active campaign officially launched in New York in October 2020, in the middle of the pandemic. The final weeks were particularly intense, with bilateral outreach to undecided member states running in parallel with the last campaign activations and events. The joint reception was the closing act of that effort.
Process
As Advisor and Event Manager at the Swiss Mission, I co-led the organization of the event alongside the Mission's Election Officer, working in close coordination with the UN Special Events team and the four other permanent missions. Responsibilities were divided between the five countries: Switzerland handled overall logistics and catering, while Ecuador, Japan, Malta and Mozambique each owned a specific operational area. My role was to ensure the Swiss coordination was seamless and that our side of the operation held together under the pressure of a high-stakes diplomatic timeline.
Impact
The reception brought together 300 Ambassadors, UN Senior Officials, Ministers and Heads of State in a celebratory close to a years-long campaign. Switzerland's election the following day with 187 votes out of 190, the highest result ever achieved by a WEOG* country since Switzerland joined the UN in 2002, was the ultimate validation of that collective effort.
*WEOG stands for Western European and Others Group, Switzerland's regional group.
Behind The Scenes
Working at the Swiss Mission during the campaign felt like a perfect alignment of everything I had done before: communication, art direction, event management. I became the Mission's go-to person for graphic content: invitations, campaign materials, visual assets - a role that I deeply enjoyed! What stays with me most, though, is the sense of being part of something much larger than the day-to-day work. Working behind the scenes of a historic moment for my country, I got a rare glimpse into everything a national decision on the international stage actually requires: the negotiations, the logistics, the endless alignment across hierarchies and cultures... most of which remains invisible to the outside world. On a smaller scale, the coordination behind the joint reception was its own diplomatic exercise, a perfect reflection of everything the campaign had been, and the perfect way to bring it to a close.
Photo Credits: Olivia Steuer