The United Nations and the prevention of mass atrocities in the 21st Century: some challenges and opportunities

Adama Dieng, former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, July 2012 to July 2020, discusses the UN's role in the global collective responsibility to prevent genocide and other mass atrocities. Adama considers how the UN can learn from the past and take effective action to prevent mass violence set against a background of increasing commission of atrocity crimes globally, a rise in hate speech, identity-based discrimination and intolerance. He will also explore the UN's continued crucial role in de-escalating conflicts and the challenges that are preventing humanity from achieving its goal of a world without genocide and other atrocity crimes.