In 2004, Lehigh became the sixth university in the world to formally partner with the United Nations. This past fall, the collaboration reached a new milestone.

For more than two decades, Lehigh has served as an accredited non-governmental organization at the United Nations. The partnership has allowed the university to send student representatives to conferences, offer internships, conduct research and participate in youth-focused programs.

This fall, Lehigh received Economic and Social Council Special Consultative Status, placing it on equal standing with well-known non-governmental organizations such as the Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders. 

Bill Hunter, the director of fellowship advising and United Nations programs and the founder of the partnership, said the designation gives Lehigh the potential to place items on the United Nations agenda and help shape global policy. 

When the partnership began, Hunter said it offered 10 to 15 programs each academic year and engaged roughly 1,000 students, faculty and staff annually. Today, that same number participates each semester.

“We offer about 35 or 40 (United Nations) programs every academic year, so we’re open to every major, every minor, every college, undergraduate and first-year students, all the way to doctoral students, faculty and staff,” Hunter said.  

The partnership engages the Lehigh community through speakers, trips to headquarters, internships and the Youth Representative Program. 

Events have featured speakers from the federal government, United Nations programs — including the director of the Environment Programme — and ambassadors from countries such as Denmark and Ukraine.

Ibtihal Gassem, ‘27, is in her second semester as a programming intern for the partnership.  

Gassem works with five other interns to plan, attend and promote events both on and off campus. Her responsibilities include coordinating with the individuals or organizations at the center of each event — whether a diplomat, ambassador or United Nations agency — and ensuring logistics are in place.

“It’s nice to have these kinds of conversations and know the behind-the-scenes of how you send a diplomatic email (and) have conversations that aren’t just a Q&A,” Gassem said. 

She said the role has been meaningful because it allowed her to move beyond a student-participant perspective and work behind the scenes to plan and approach events. 

In addition to the intern program, the Youth Representative Program operates under the partnership’s umbrella.

Established in 2008, the program gives Lehigh students the opportunity to represent a nonprofit or humanitarian organization at the United Nations.

This year, 27 students represent various nonprofit and humanitarian groups focused on environmental issues, gender equality and justice, LGBTQ+ rights, global health and international peace.

Sophie Mallek, ‘28, represents the Widow Development Organization, based in Nigeria. 

Mallek advocates for gender equity and helps advance widows’ rights. Through the position, she receives a United Nations badge and works remotely with the nonprofit’s president on campus to coordinate which United Nations events she should attend. 

For both the interns and youth representatives, involvement in the program has fostered academic and professional growth. 

Gassem said the program has taught her to prioritize timeliness and understand the importance of staying up to date on current events. As an intern, she strives to translate events on the world stage into tangible educational programs, whether on Lehigh’s campus or in New York City. 

Mallek echoed that sentiment. As someone who hopes to pursue international law, she said the experience has been significant. 

“I’ve learned how to be a better communicator by learning to communicate across cultural differences and borders,” Mallek said.

Students like Gassem and Mallek — along with other interns and youth representatives in the partnership — engage directly with global issues, gaining hands-on experience that’s uncommon at most universities. 

“I can now confidently make the statement that if students are interested, we could offer a tangible, concrete, experiential opportunity at the United Nations for everybody on Lehigh’s campus before they graduate,” Hunter said.