gfish: (Default)
gfish ([personal profile] gfish) wrote2003-05-15 02:19 pm

New Life Goal

Back when [livejournal.com profile] xiadyn still lived here, watching BBC World News was a nightly tradition. Since it has an actually international bias there would often be UN peacekeepers in the stories. We used to joke that we should go become a UN peacekeeper and get our own blue helmet, followed by more serious wondering about how one does become one. But neither of us ever remembered to look it up.

Until now. The answer is what we were afraid of, you first have to be part of your own nation's military. No UN bootcamp. Oh well.

In the process of looking this up I found something... wonderful. There is a UN agency called UNITAR (United Nations Institute for Training and Research) that does all their internal training. The operate UNITAR POCI: The United Nations Institute for Training and Research Programme of Correspondence Instruction.

That's right. Correspondence courses in peacekeeping. Each is $100-$150. You can choose from such courses as 'Commanding United Nations Peacekeeping Operations: Methods and Techniques for Peacekeeping on the Ground' or 'United Nations Civilian Police: Restoring Order Following Hostilities'.

Best of all, while they aren't accredited and can't give degrees or anything, they do award a Certificate-of-Training in United Nations Peace Support Operations. This involves taking a course a month for a year, attending at least one classroom course scattered across 'all inhabited continents', and writing a research paper. Total cost would be somewhere around $2500.

It's fairly obvious, I think, that I will have to do this someday. I'm betting I could talk [livejournal.com profile] xiadyn into it as well. Even if you don't get your own blue helmet along with the certificate.

[identity profile] ex-digitalis869.livejournal.com 2003-05-15 02:47 pm (UTC)(link)
That would be the coolest thing ever! Well, ok, one of the many coolest things ever. But still.

[identity profile] xiadyn.livejournal.com 2003-05-15 03:34 pm (UTC)(link)
Woo, that's very cool. If I ever have money...

[identity profile] allanc.livejournal.com 2003-05-15 03:52 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm reminded of the King of the Hill episode in which Dale becomes a professional bounty-hunter.

Of course, he got a hat.

--AC

[identity profile] vixyish.livejournal.com 2003-05-15 05:04 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm willing to bet you'd have little trouble making your own blue helmet.

[identity profile] shandryl.livejournal.com 2003-05-16 02:17 am (UTC)(link)
One word. ebay. =)