From September 2011 to September 2012, Ambassador Nasser Abdulaziz Al-Nasser of Qatar presided over the 66th session of the “world’s parliament” – the United Nations General Assembly. It was a critical moment in international affairs as the UN responded to a range of global challenges, from the world financial crisis to the Arab Spring. In A Year at the Helm of the General Assembly, Al-Nasser presents a high-level look inside the organization, assessing its strengths and weaknesses, its successes and struggles. He recounts dramatic moments, such as replacing the Libyan delegation, and a tireless schedule of overseas travel, including joint visits with the Secretary-General to Libya and Somalia. His work takes him from major international summits such as the Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Rio+20) to the European Parliament, which he was the first General Assembly President to address, to academic institutions from Oxford to Moscow to Morocco.

 

Al-Nasser structures the book as he did his 66th session, around four main themes or “pillars:” mediation, UN reform, natural disaster prevention and response, and sustainable development.He offers a wide range of recommendations to intergovernmental institutions, to states, to the public sector, and to individuals. Al-Nasser was determined to leave behind a General Assembly that the people of the world could look up to and depend on. This volume is a testament to all that he accomplished in that regard, and a unique resource for those interested in knowing more about the world’s most representative body at a crucial moment in history.