[Grad-postdoc-assn] Fwd: Kofi Annan, Former U.N. Secretary General, To Speak At CU-Boulder April 18 For Speakers Series

[Andrea Sealy]

FYI...I don't know if this would be of interest to anyone...

Andrea



*Kofi Annan, Former U.N. Secretary General, To Speak At CU-Boulder April 18
For Speakers Series * <http://www.colorado.edu/news/releases/2007/106.html>

March 14, 2007

 Kofi Annan

Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan will visit the University
of Colorado at Boulder next month to talk about cultural acceptance, the
challenges he faced during his tenure and eight major goals set by the
international body to meet the needs of the world's poorest people.

CU-Boulder's Distinguished Speakers and Cultural Events boards are
sponsoring the April 18 event, which will take place at 7:30 p.m. at the
Coors Events/Conference Center. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

"We are proud to bring the former secretary general to CU-Boulder," said
Taurean Davis, vice chair of the Distinguished Speakers Board. "We know the
campus and surrounding communities will welcome the opportunity to hear
about Annan's experiences as an influential world leader and hear his
messages of cross-cultural understanding and cooperation."

Tickets will cost $1 for CU-Boulder students, $10 for general admission and
$45 for floor seating. Students can purchase tickets at the UMC Connection
on the first floor of the University Memorial Center. The public can
purchase tickets online at www.ticketswest.com, in person at any Denver
metropolitan area King Soopers and select City Market stores, or by calling
Tickets West at (866) 464-2626.

The media and public will be allowed to take photos and silent film only
during the first three minutes of the talk, Davis said.

Annan, who along with the United Nations won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001,
served as U.N. secretary general from 1997 to 2006. He was the first black
African to head the New York City-based organization, whose members include
192 nations. During his tenure, Annan made his mark as an advocate for human
rights, the rule of law and the revitalization of the United Nations. He
also was a key player in the fight against HIV/AIDS and global terrorist
threats.

Born in the West African nation of Ghana in 1938, Annan studied in Ghana and
Minnesota before receiving a master's degree in management from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The diplomat held a wide array of
leadership posts at the United Nations before becoming its leader.

As U.N. secretary general, Annan also worked to bolster the multilateral
organization's relationship with businesses and civil society groups,
sponsoring an initiative to promote corporate social responsibility.

He was instrumental in laying out the Millennium Development Goals, an
eight-point strategy embraced by many nations to meet the needs of the
world's poorest populations by 2015. The goals range from cutting extreme
poverty in half and increasing gender equality to reducing infant mortality,
halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education.

In 2005, Annan succeeded in persuading the United Nations to establish the
Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council, new intergovernmental
bodies dedicated to global peace and welfare. He also was a chief proponent
of the creation of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.


For more information about the United Nations, visit the Web site at
www.un.org/english/. To learn more about CU-Boulder's Distinguished Speakers
and Cultural Events boards, go to castle.colorado.edu/dsb/ and
www.colorado.edu/StudentGroups/ceb/.

 Contact: Taurean Davis, (303) 908-1799
Taurean.Davis at colorado.edu
Deborah Méndez-Wilson, (303) 492-3117
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