Bruce Turner, US ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament. (Le Temps/Carole Parodi)

🚧 Bruce Turner, US ambassador: ‘The Conference on Disarmament is essential, but must be revitalised’. The Conference on Disarmament resumed its work last week in a tense international context. This semi-UN body, made up of 65 states, has not produced anything substantial since 1996. But the United States ambassador to the conference believes it nevertheless remains essential.

⛰️ Move over, AI: climate finance geeks talk just transition in Davos. Barely a month after climate negotiators agreed on a nebulous timeline to transition away from fossil fuels, some participants in Davos were trying to ensure this week that the process is done in a “​​just, orderly and equitable manner” as the final Dubai document states.

📖 Owen Matthews: behind Putin's war against Ukraine and the path forward. Two years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the belligerent nations are far from ready to renounce victory. In an interview with Geneva Solutions, British author Owen Matthews delves into what precipitated the conflict and what lies ahead.

💵 WHO gears up to replenish coffers amid tough outlook for health funding. After a milestone move two years ago to overhaul its finances, the World Health Organization (WHO) is preparing for the next phase, with plans to raise $7.1 billion later this year against a difficult backdrop for global health funding and the uncertainty created by the US elections.

🚢 WTO chief economist breaks down big challenges ahead of trade talks. After a much-hailed ministerial meeting in 2022, the world trade body is gearing up for crucial negotiations in Abu Dhabi. Its chief economist talks to Geneva Solutions about the need for reform and dispels alarmist calls to scrap the whole organisation altogether.

Martin Chungong, secretary general of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, at the organisation’s villa headquarters known as “Maison des Parlements” in Grand-Saconnex. (IPU)

🪧 Keeping faith with democracy. Dubbed “the United Nations for parliaments”, the Inter-Parliamentary Union has been on a mission to help parliaments promote peace and democracy for 135 years. Its secretary general Martin Chungong speaks to Geneva Solutions about efforts to keep parliamentary talks going in coup-hit nations and between countries at war.

Ameca, one of the world's most lifelike humanoid robots, speaks during the world's first press conference with a panel of AI-enabled humanoid social robots at ITU’s AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, 7 July 2023. (Keystone/Martial Trezzini)

🔮 AI digital trends for Geneva to watch out for in 2024 and beyond. After the first hype around ChatGPT and other technological sensations, debates over how an AI world will be governed are set to gain traction in 2024. The DiploFoundation’s founding director, Jovan Kurbalija, breaks down nine major trends that will drive discussions in Geneva.

🌾 Trends driving humanitarian crises in 2024 (and what to do about them). The UN is calling for $46.4bn to assist nearly 181 million people in 2024. Here’s a take, compiled by The New Humanitarian, on key trends likely to leave millions in need of essential services; plus, some ideas on what governments, aid groups or individuals might do differently so 2025 looks a little better.