For more than a decade, Dr. Stefan Tschauko has been studying communications issues at the United Nations. He is especially interested in how complex international organizations can best communicate with stakeholders to create a better understanding of, and support for, their work. In his research, he explores how branding relates to the performance of international organizations in the UN system. In collaboration with the UN’s communications department, he also analyzed the UN’s approach to branding and social media. His analyses contributed to the restructuring of the UN’s social media workflow and to reviews of branding strategies across the UN system. 

Stefan has taught at Brown, Columbia, Harvard, Tufts, and Fairleigh Dickinson Universities as well as Sciences Po in Paris. He has also held workshops on graphic design and on personal knowledge management at Columbia, Harvard, The Fletcher School, and the International Studies Association. Previously, he worked at a branding and graphic design company in Vienna and at the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in NYC.

Stefan earned degrees in International Relations (PhD, MALD) from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, in International Management (MS, CEMS) from the University of Economics and Business in Vienna, and in Information Management (DI FH) from FH Joanneum in Graz, Austria. He spent exchange semesters at Sciences Po in Paris, Koç University in Istanbul, and the University of Portsmouth in the UK.

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Prof. Daniel Naujoks is faculty director of the UN Partnership Initiative at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). From 2009–2025, he also served as director of SIPA’s International Organization & UN Studies Specialization. His research focuses on global governance, the effects of migration, refugees, and citizenship on social, economic, and political development, as well as interagency cooperation between UN agencies, including his book Migration, Citizenship, and Development (2013, Oxford University Press). Daniel regularly advises governments and international organizations—including UNDP, IOM, World Bank, ILO, UN-DESA, OECD, UN Women, UNESCWA, and UNICEF.

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Dr. Eli Karetny is the interim director of the Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies (RBI) at CUNY’s Graduate Center. Prior to taking on this role, he served as deputy director and head of programs and operations, and worked alongside Thomas G. Weiss on various United Nations research projects (such as the United Nations Intellectual History Project). Eli is the Principal Investigator on the Institute’s core research projects, such as the China at CUNY Initiative (CACI). He also oversees relations with sponsors, liaises with university administration, and serves as the Institute’s grants director and financial officer. Eli also serves as the legal and financial advisor to the RBI’s Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect (GCR2P) and the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity (CSHGCAH), and is a member of the boards of both organizations. Eli earned degrees in political theory from the CUNY Graduate Center, international relations from NYU, and a JD from Temple University.

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Caroline Bouchard is an Associate Professor of International Communication in the Department of Social and Public Communication at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Canada. She previously held research and teaching positions in Politics and International Relations at the School of Social and Political Science at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. Her current research focuses on communication within the UN system in the digital age. She has contributed to The Oxford Handbook of Digital Diplomacy (OUP, 2024), Digital Diplomacy and International Organisations (Routledge, 2020), and Oxford Bibliographies (OUP, 2023) on this topic.

Senior Branding and Design Leader with over 20 years of international experience across institutional, corporate, and editorial communications, including more than a decade within the United Nations system, Jesús Vicente currently leads Visual Identity and Graphic Design at the International Telecommunication Union in Geneva. He specializes in brand governance, visual identity systems, and multi-channel design, with a proven track record in organizational rebranding, digital transformation, and large-scale communication initiatives. Known for combining strong creative direction with strategic thinking and operational leadership, he has managed global campaigns, publications, and conference communications while overseeing agencies, budgets, and production workflows. His career spans leadership roles across Europe and Asia, award-winning editorial and digital projects, and founding the UN Designers & Visual Communicators network, reflecting his commitment to design excellence, innovation, and collaboration in multicultural environments.

Thomas G. Weiss is a distinguished scholar of international relations and global governance with special expertise in the politics of the United Nations. He is Presidential Professor Emeritus of Political Science at The CUNY Graduate Center and Director Emeritus of its Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies. He is Distinguished Fellow, Global Governance, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs; and Global Eminence Scholar, Kyung Hee University, Korea.

He has written extensively about multilateral approaches to international peace and security, humanitarian action, and sustainable development. Recent book include: The “Third” United Nations: How a Knowledge Ecology Helps the UN Think (2021); Rethinking Global Governance (2019); The United Nations and Changing World Politics (2019). Among his recent edited volumes are International Organization and Global Governance (2023), Cultural Heritage and Mass Atrocities (2022), and Global Governance Futures (2022).

He initiated the UN Intellectual History Project in 1999 to trace the origins and the evolution of key ideas about international economic and social development nurtured under UN auspices. As a norm entrepreneur, Weiss introduced the idea of the “Third United Nations,” and directed the research team that popularized the concept of Responsibility to Protect. A firm believer in R2P, Weiss has shown in numerous works that a well-grounded interpretation of sovereignty does not preclude intervention in the face of mass atrocities. His oral history transcript is available on the UN Intellectual History Project website.