UN Work
ABout The UN
How the United Nations Works
Countries come together to decide international policy on issues ranging from water quality to family law/interpersonal relations to economic policy. These international gatherings create: 1) treaties which are binding law to the countries who ratify them; 2) convention documents and protocols that are customary or “soft law,” but with time — and the process of statement and restatement to create precedent — have the potential of becoming binding international law.
UN negotiations are rarely a democratic process — with a vote taken from all member states to determine the final outcome. Instead, negotiations over language will continue, until “consensus” is reached, or, until there is no more disagreement expressed. The more “sensitive” issues are often decided in the middle of the night. This process gives considerable power to the chairman of the negotiations, for he can choose who will speak and he can make arbitrary decisions as to the outcome of the discussion. There is no method for a “count” or “re-consideration” of the “final decision” by the chair. This is a process that can give greater power to a small, but very vocal group of negotiators.
UFI’s Involvement
UFI maintains non-governmental organization (NGO) status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC) and works to educate UN ambassadors and delegates on root policies affecting the family.
We send representatives, including experts on family issues, to UN conferences to provide legal analysis and peer-reviewed scholarly research in support of UN delegates working to preserve the family.
We have been successful in affecting the outcome of numerous UN conference documents and in promoting respect for the family, marriage, life, religion, parents and national sovereignty. Our publication, “The UN Negotiating Guide,” is the most widely used tool at the United Nations for defending the family in UN documents.
Many of the UN events we organize are not recorded, but here are a few that have been recorded.
Our most recent UN event, “The Family and the Future of Humanity,” took place May 15, 2024 at United Nations Headquarters in New York City, as part of the 30th Anniversary of the International Year of the Family on the International Day of the Family. UFI Co-sponsored this event which was recorded on UN WebTV. Access video here.
This webinar took place May 16, 2022 as part of Commemorating International Day of Families.
This UN NGO Committee on the Family webinar took place May 13, 2022 as part of Commemorating International Day of Families. Susan Roylance, founder of United Families International, was one of the presenters.
Recent UFI Reports and Features on Our Activities at the United Nations:
- Feminism and “Fundamentalism” at the UN
- Fathers Matter! Discussed at the UN
- Lawlessness at the UN
- The World Family Declaration presented at the UN
- What Happens at the UN Hits Home
- UN Treaty Hurts Families
- UN: Countries Manipulated by the Media
- UFI Addresses United Nations General Assembly, Calls Upon Commission to Address Family Issues
Tools to help you succeed.
UN NEGOTIATING GUIDE
UN Commission Outcome Documents
UN Commission Outcome Documents can be hard to find, yet they are valuable for referencing and finding language. To make that easier, we have gathered them for you.
UN QUICK LINKS
Why go searching for important UN Links? Find links for the UN Journal, UN Web TV, Meetings and Events, Blue Book and more.
Check out what people are saying about the “United Nations Negotiating Guide.”
Be assured that this document will be used by pro-life lobbyists and diplomats from around the world during actual UN conferences. It is an invaluable guide that the professionals will plumb constantly.
Austin Ruse
President, Catholic Family and Human Rights
The Pro-Family Negotiating Guide is a tremendous resource for NGOs, governments, scholars and journalists who want to make use of United Nations documents that relate to family issues. As this tool becomes widely available, it will be possible for people of good will to maintain the integrity of UN documents and to prevent their hijacking for ideological purposes.
Wendy Wright
Former President, Concerned Women for America
This compilation is a godsend. It makes easily accessible UN statements on the full range of topics relevant to the family. I will use it, and use it often. I urge you to do the same.
Bill Saunders
Director of the Master of Arts in Human Rights Program, The Catholic University of America
The Negotiating Guide is a phenomenal store of needed documentation, indexing and cross-referencing of UN documents relating to the family. It will be great use, not only for the pro-family movement, but also for UN professionals, who themselves have a very hard time finding their way around the UN’s own website, which at times seems more designed to confuse than to help. Here is one resource that everyone will welcome. It marks a new day in the family’s defense of its own at the UN, and is an indication of its growing sophistication in that defense.
Patrick F. Fagan
Director of MARRI, The Catholic University of America. Former William H.G. FitzGerald Fellow, The Heritage Foundation
This book is an invaluable aid for those who desire to support and strengthen the family- and life-based norms that have undergirded every successful society in human history. The book provides, not only the source documents used to forge new international norms, but a topic-by-topic discussion of the most distressing (and debatable) social policies now being derived from these documents.
Richard G. Wilkins
Former Managing Director, The World Family Policy Center, Brigham Young University