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getting back the trust that we have ternational Geneva, not only outside
lost means proving that we are effec- and beyond. Lots of our colleagues
tive and that we can deliver - to make dorrt seem to lmow. Certainly our
their investment worthwhile. colleagues in New York do not have
a full understanding of the extent of
I think another achievement is that our work here, and even some here in
we have steered through the project of Geneva don't.
renovation of the Palais to a success-
ful start. We received the approval of Q: Ott a persotxal lever, what is the
the {TN General Assembly, and we are achievemetxt that has given you the
moving aheadwith the physical aspect most satisfactiorx- thething that lets

ofit. Itisworkingwell. Sothatisahuge you wake up in the morningatxd go to
undertaking, and we are trying to do it the officewith a smile on your face.

in a way that is both cost effective and I'm a happy man because I'm enjoy-
stays within the time limits, ensuring ing my job. I have worked for the UN
the continuity of business with as little for almost 38 years now, and I have
disruption ofthe lives of our staff and delegates as possible. done quite a lot of different jobs. I have obviously picked
At the same time, it is very important to safeguard a herit- up some experience along the way, some skills and some
age building, which is one of the world's most extraordi- knowledge, and I find in this job, that all of these things
nary historical buildings. I have learned in the past are coming together, giving me
the ability to do my job here. So it's fun, and I look for-
I'm also veryhappy about the waythe staff are coming to- ward to each day on the job. It also means that I do not
gether. There is more collaboration between the different have any stress, so, my health is good too.

services, therefore we perform better as United Nations
Geneva. I think that by and large the staff are happier and Another factor is that we have many really excellent col-
enjoy their work more than they used to. They are more leagues here. Some I started my career with, others I have
inspired to do what we all should do when working in the hired and quite a few I have served with in different parts
United Nations - at least that is what they tell me. When of the world. So it's like a "family" thing. All of these are
people come and tell me this, I'm very happy. It's the things are good and make me a happy man.
nicest part of the job actually. So, more cohesion, more
openness inside and outside, more pride in what we do, Q: Now, talking about the Urxited Natiorts: the retxova-

more understanding also. This business of understand- tion of the Genevaofficeis about to start. What do you

ing what we do actually is part of the "ecosystem" in In- see as the major chal{etxge?
First of all, it's a very big task. It is a very technical
challenge. The Palais 100kS nice from the outside,
but inside itneeds alot oftender loving care. Many
of the things we are doing are things that have not
been done since its construction. It's a challenge.
Le tour d'une langue en 80 heures We have to keep on working in an environment

Franqais - Ang}ais - Allemand - Russe + 33 langues where there will be lots of dust, noise and traffic,
and it's happening at a time when a lot of other
Appznezune langue en quelques mois ! construction is about to happen. Within the Palais
Programmes personnalis6s de 7h a 22h - 7 jours sur 7 there will be many things happening at the same
time, and just outside there are also a lot of things
pour adultes - enhprises - enfants - adolescents
happening. The whole area will be one massive
Soutien scolaire et remotivation toutes matieres: construction zone for manyyears. As I sayto many
Math6matiques-Fran: -Allemand-AngJis + toutes langut of my colleagues and delegates :" buy a bicycle".
"
P% pprsonnsiliffi TTP, TDAH", "DYS"...

Another challenge is also the financial aspect of
Dipl6me de Sea4tmiat en 3 A 12 mois it. The budget which we have is big, nevertheless
it's a minimum and in many ways does not cover
Premier cours sans engagement
everything that we need to do here. For example, it
does not cover the restoration of the villas. It does
not cover security upgrades and other matters. So,
one challenge is to find money. That's one of the

6 DIV A - IN TER N ATIO N AL DIPL0 M AT