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As generative AI advances, women journalists face growing threats including deepfakes, harassment, surveillance, and gendered disinformation. UNESCO is leading a global campaign with major media to expose Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV), which aims to silence and discredit women online and offline. Research shows , with many experiencing real-world violence as a result. AI has intensified these attacks, making abuse faster and harder to control. Marking the , UNESCO calls for stronger protection, accountability, and action to defend women journalists and freedom of expression worldwide.

The  reveals a 10% global decline in freedom of expression since 2012, driven by self-censorship, journalist attacks, economic pressures, and threats to democracy.

“It's [a] trapeze without a net, in a sense, because you're representing ... the Secretary General, you're representing the UN as a whole. And you have to be prepared, and sometimes you don't have the answer.”

Every day at noon, Stéphane Dujarric steps on stage to field questions about the United Nations from international journalists. As spokesman for the Secretary-General, he must be ready to talk on all aspects of the organization’s work at a time of unprecedented financial and political strain.

“There is no way we can move forward in this world without multilateralism, without an organization like this one. It's like a plant, right? It needs to be watered. We can't let it wither away.”

An alumnus of the United Nations International School, Stéphane Dujarric was immersed in the world of international diplomacy from an early age. In this episode of Awake at Night, he shares why his own family owes everything to the actions of two courageous diplomats, and reflects on how being a procrastinator can be a superpower when faced with the challenge of the 24-hour news cycle.

Women in public-facing roles, especially journalism, face rising AI-driven threats like gendered disinformation, surveillance and harassment, an emerging issue known as technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV). A UNESCO revealed that 73% of women journalists face online threats, with many facing offline violence too. This year’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists (2 November) highlights online gendered violence under the theme ",” aiming to raise awareness through advocacy, dialogue and digital initiatives to protect women journalists.

Audiovisual archives are cultural mirrors that transcend time, capturing the voices, visions, and traditions of communities across the globe. They safeguard our shared memory, rich in diversity and meaning. To protect this treasure, launched “Digitizing our shared UNESCO history”. Yet, 95% of UNESCO's archives remain untapped and inaccessible for researchers, scholars, and the public. The (27 October) calls us to preserve these moving images. Want to witness history in the making? Explore  from before the founding of the UN until today.

As artificial intelligence reshapes how we create, share, and engage with information, media and information literacy (MIL) is more essential than ever. In a world where AI influences news feeds, search engines, and even content itself, MIL empowers individuals to think critically, question sources, and understand the impact of algorithms. By prioritizing human judgment, ethics, and awareness, "" calls for a future where people, not machines, guide the interpretation and use of digital information.

UNESCO and Press House-Palestine empowered 150 journalists in Gaza with skills in digital safety, storytelling, leadership, and mental health support amid ongoing conflict.

This year’s International Day for Universal Access to Information (28 September) emphasizes the urgent need for timely, comprehensive, and cross-border access to environmental data in the digital age. Sharing information on climate change, pollution, biodiversity, and disaster risks requires global collaboration and transparency, especially for communities most vulnerable to climate impacts. Universal access is essential for accountable governance and the public’s right to know. 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the observance, reflecting a decade of progress and ongoing challenges.

“Muslims in Nigeria say, well, there you go, this is a woman working in the international scene, and she's not shy or embarrassed to wear her culture or her religion and to stand proud with it.”

How does one out of five sisters from rural Nigeria grow up to be UN Deputy Secretary-General? Blessed with tenacity, determination and grit, Amina J. Mohammed has always been driven to improve the lives of her fellow human beings and our planet. Rising to the top of the United Nations, her vision has helped shape the world’s blueprint for a brighter future.

“One step at a time, this whole life is about a journey. Make each step count. It is about taking people with you. Don't do this alone. It's too heavy. You need people to cry with you, laugh with you.”

Amina is known for making the impossible possible, and has relied on a strong moral compass and the strength of her convictions across a long and varied career of service. In this episode, the UN Deputy Secretary-General and mother-of-six and grandmother to five reflects on what the Sustainable Development Goals have meant in her own life and shares what chocolate and traditional clothes have to do with strong leadership.

Photo: ©UN Photo/Daniel Getachew

“Every person that walks through the door is a new person, a new friend … if they leave the exam room with a smile and feeling hope, then you've done a good job.”

Whenever a new cancer patient entered her office in the U.S., Dr. May Abdel-Wahab knew she could help by palliating their pain and working towards a cure. Now, as Director of the Division of Human Health at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), she delivers hope to patients in places where treatment has until now been unavailable.

“So much can be done to treat cancer, but too many people in the developing world have no access to care. It's unthinkable. It's unfair.”

With global cancer cases expected to mount in the next two decades, the IAEA is equipping low- and middle income countries with training and radiotherapy to help more people survive the disease. In this episode, Dr. May Abdel-Wahab reflects on the outlook for cancer outcomes around the world, the challenges of anchoring new treatment centres, and shares how her upbringing taught her to see the world as one human family.

Photo: ©IAEA/Dean Calma

Every day, Peter Hawkins wakes up to make a difference. As UNICEF's Representative in Yemen, he puts that boundless energy into helping young people survive one of the world’s most intractable humanitarian crises.

After a decade of conflict and collapse, a new generation of Yemenis are yearning for a better tomorrow: "So the children sit there in these classrooms with no walls, no floors, no desks, and learn, and they're proud about what they learn. And they come to me and say, ‘Look, don't worry, we will continue to learn. But if you can give us desks, if you can fill up the walls and you can give us a floor and a blackboard, it will be even better.’"

In Peter Hawkins reflects on the striking resilience of the people he serves, and shares how his upbringing in Ethiopia and service in Iraq taught him to never give up working for change. For him, the biggest challenge today is not so much about raising awareness, but about action, “It is so important to understand how one side of the world is so lucky and the other side of the world is still desperately poor, and how we bring those two together.”

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“It's tragic and it's unimaginable, but at the same time, people live their lives and they do the best they can, and they remain generous and warm, despite the circumstances that they live in. You go to these places and you see the worst and you see the best, and it's all in one package, and it is just something that really, really touches you. It's not like a regular job.”

Vivian van de Perre’s calling is to help nations transition from conflict to peace. Now the deputy head of peacekeeping in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), she leads a life-saving operation in the rebel-held city of Goma.

A recent peace accord has raised hopes of an end to the violence that has plagued eastern DRC for the past three decades. In this episode, recorded before the peace agreement, Vivian van de Perre reflects on the impact of funding cuts on active war zones, on peacekeeping as a delicate balancing act, and shares why she falls for every place she serves.

“[Losing colleagues is] heartbreaking, and you can't think about it all day long, because it will be so demoralizing you have to keep going. Nobody expects to not come back.”

Photo: ©United Nations/MONUSCO

Through , Afghan women and girls cut off from education find hope, healing, and empowerment, one broadcast at a time.

“[Serving refugees] is not a job, it's a mission, and there's always fire in the belly that keeps you wanting to do more, but also never giving up. This is the UNHCR I joined.”

Yacoub El Hillo spent more than thirty years serving refugees and displaced people in some of the world’s worst conflict zones. But when cataclysmic war erupted in his hometown of Khartoum, Sudan, the Regional Director for Africa at the United Nations Development Coordination Office (DCO) had to help his own family flee the violence.

“I don't think there's any home in Khartoum that was spared … the assumption is that everything is gone.”

Having served in more than 16 duty stations, from Liberia to Syria, Somalia and Afghanistan, Yacoub El Hillo has rarely seen any conflict as devastating as the one currently decimating Sudan. In this episode, he reflects on the scale of the human suffering there, looks back on a rich and varied career with the UN, and shares why all nations deserve a chance to strive for a brighter future.

Photo: ©OCHA Syria

“You know, what am I doing every day for human beings, particularly those who are in, you know, a much more challenging situation, we need to support their courage, their resilience, their need to survive...and their rights.”

With her background in human rights law, Georgette Gagnon was once said to represent the conscience of war. Currently serving as the Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan, she has been devastated by the sweeping loss of rights for women and girls there.

“You used to see across the country hundreds of girls going to school... Now, of course, you don't see that, and it's heartbreaking. It's such a huge loss for the entire society,” she says.

Afghanistan has one of the highest numbers of people in need of humanitarian support, and drastic cuts to humanitarian assistance affect access to critical care for millions. In this episode, Georgette Gagnon shares her hopes and fears for a country close to her heart, and reflects on a career serving in some of the world’s toughest places, from Syria to Sudan and Libya.

Photo: ©UN photo/UNAMA/Tahmina Osta