Articles by XUNICEF Members
In "I and my grandchild" Ramesh Shrestha reflects on belonging to a "lucky generation" that benefited from post-WWII peace, prosperity, and technological breakthroughs. He contrasts this with his fears for his grandchild’s generation, facing climate stress, virtual realities, weakened social bonds, and widening inequality. His essay questions whether progress has reached its limits and warns that future generations may inherit more burdens than blessings.
Ken Gibbs in "An XUNICEF Escapee in print" recalls his early marriage, a long-forgotten wedding gift of £25, and how its growth over 60 years mirrors his later struggles with donor-report jargon at UNICEF. Blending humor and reflection, he links family life, financial windfalls, and the peculiar language of institutional writing.
Robert Cohen recounts a UNStaff4Gaza virtual town hall with Francesca Albanese, praising her moral courage in condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide. Over 2,000 staff and former staff have joined the movement, urging UN voices to rise above silence and press world leaders to act despite U.S. vetoes.
Plus - Robert also shares A Call by UNStaff4Gaza for endorsements by current and former UN staff on an open letter to the incoming UN Special Adviser on Genocide, urging urgent action on atrocities in Gaza. The letter stresses that the crisis threatens the UN Charter itself and calls for measures such as arms suspensions, sanctions, and a General Assembly emergency session.
Kul Gautam shares a video message for the International Day for Peace:on September 21st. In his address Kul urges us all, especially the faith-based community, to speak up more forcefully against the impact of war on children. Kul continues to serve as Chair of the advisory group of Arigatou International.Guy Scandlen writes about the choral group he belongs to in Chiang Mai and asks for help by XUNICEF members in proposing Palestinian songs the group can sing. We proposed a few but we welcome your additions.
Reunion
In Update #6 the 2026 XUNICEF Zimbabwe team provides information about the accommodation those attending will share at the Elephant Hills Hotel. Looks fabulous!!!
News LinksRecent child studies : a WB/UNICEF paper shows that progress in reducing extreme poverty among children stalled from 2019 to 2022; a Mpox vaccine study begins in DRC; and a S. Africa study shows heavy alcohol use among fathers affects pregnancy outcomes; India highlights adolescent obesity and malnutrition; Odisha launches Vitamin A and deworming drive.
Living well, Living Long is a collection of recent articles on what we might learn from those who are over age 80 but whose memory capacity rivals those 20 to 30 years younger. XUNICEF has more than a few members in this group and we hope that they will share some of their own lessons. We are trying to establish a series of articles on topics relevant to the age group of many XUNICEF members. We want to post at least one article each week. Last week we posted an article on falls tied to too many prescriptions. This week we are posting about Super-Agers. If you have topics or articles you feel would be of value to others in our age group, please share.
Lighter Stuff
Doreen Lobo reminds us that a misplaced comma can change entirely what you want to say.
Tom McDermott, with a sad sigh, reminds us in the north that summer is (almost) over
Funnies of the Week -.Watch out for those snakes.
Comments from our readers
Final thoughts
With summer coming to an end here in the northern hemisphere, our thoughts have turned to how we may manage the remainder of the year. To be frank, News & Views is struggling. Like everyone else our age we editors suffer from the ups and downs of family demands, travel and illness that come along. As a result, our small team of editors has become steadily smaller - too small to handle the volume of articles. We appeal again for your help by volunteering. We are a fun little team and we would love to have you join us.
While we are on the subject of help, we are almost out of our stock of features. Did you travel recently? Share your photos and tell our readers about where you went, what you saw, ate, and felt.
Thanks once more for your support with articles, photos, stories, and comments. Let's keep News & Views alive as our community forum.
Tom McDermott
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