They are ambassadors to the public."
The guides represent the UN to the public–many publics, in fact. It is a tall task. But, with their deep knowledge of the UN system and public relations skills in hand, guides put diplomacy into practice everyday.
Ambassadors to the Public
According to former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the guides are the UN’s “ambassadors to the public”– an enormously significant role that generation after generation of guides have taken on with the professionalism and neutrality that such a title entails.
Muriel Denoix Eaton [Photo UN/Teddy Chen]
As tours have always been offered in several languages, guides have typically had strong language abilities. Muriel Denoix Eaton, a French guide from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, conducted tours in French, English, Japanese, and Spanish. In the recording, Eaton announces the start of a French tour and then a Japanese tour, just as she did when she worked as a Tour Coordinator.
Maha El-Bahrawi [Photo UN]
Maha El-Bahrawi, an Egyptian guide from the 1980s, discusses the importance of speaking diplomatically. “When I put my uniform on, I am actually speaking on behalf of the UN.”
Silmara Roman [Photo UN/VSS]
Silmara Roman, a Brazilian guide who joined in April 2022, explains what the daily briefings mean to her:
“I would like to know more to give more.”
Karen LeShufy [Photo UN/Yutaka Nagata]
Karen LeShufy, an American guide from the 1960s, discusses how guides were required to take an oath of loyalty to the UN. “We could only speak on behalf of the UN.”
The Security Council observes a moment of silence before condemning the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 [Photo UN/Tara Engberg]
Adeyemi Oshunrinade, a Nigerian/American guide from the 2000s, discusses how, after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, he was transferred to the American Red Cross to help document missing people in New York. “We switched from being tour guides to work for the American Red Cross”. This was also public-facing work, one that some guides carried out to help their host-city deal with a grave crisis. In the photo, the Security Council discusses the attacks.
Communicating Knowledge
On a daily basis, guides impart their broad knowledge of the UN–its work, the international problems that it seeks to resolve, and everything to do with its headquarters–to visitors from around the world.
Graciela Ghersi Hall [Photo Graciela Ghersi Hall]
Graciela Ghersi Hall, an Argentine-American guide from the late 1960s and early 1970s, discusses how guides do not read from a standardized script, but instead develop their own individualized tours and attune them to the tour group’s interests.
“We had to prepare our own tour. It wasn’t that they gave us a schematic on how to give a tour. We had to prepare our own tour from beginning to end. And everybody tailored to their own tastes. I found that my English tours were by choice more geared towards letting the English-speaking world know about what the UN did on the economic and social field rather than the political field.”
Guides explain everything from the work of specialized agencies to the architectural features of the headquarters.
Photo UN/Yutaka Nagata
An unnamed guide in 1969 interprets the stained glass window designed by Russian-French artist Marc Chagall.
Photo UN
A Philippine guide named F. Go, briefs visitors on the World Health Organization in 1955.
Christine Murdoch
Christine Murdoch, an American guide from the early 1980s, discusses how guides are expected to have answers to a broad range of questions about the UN and international politics.
“You have to learn everything there is to know about the UN because you are the face of the UN.”
Maria Wilhelms [Photo Liisa Simola]
Maria Wilhelms, a Swedish guide from the 1980s, discusses the rhetorical power of the UN’s nuclear disarmament exhibit.
“We said we have enough nuclear weapons to destroy the world four-and-a-half times. They saw the horrible pictures. They saw people who had been hurt and dead. And then we tell them why the UN is so important. That’s the spot where it really sunk in.”
Photo UN/VSS
Yuichi Takamatsu, a Japanese guide from the 2000s, also discusses the nuclear disarmament exhibit. He suggests that guides had to navigate competing interpretations of the past among visitors so as to get to the point of the exhibit.
“There is an exhibit of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It was challenging for me to focus on what’s at stake here—looking at the future. We cannot repeat this. We are not blaming any country. We need to spend money on economic and social development.”
Children in the Headquarters
Since 1952, children’s groups, typically from schools on the eastern seaboard of the United States but also from other US regions and even other countries, have poured into the headquarters. This has required guides to make the tours more child-friendly.
November 9, 1972 [Photo UN/Yutaka Nagata]
One way guides reached the children was to focus on UNICEF. Here, Afua Lokko, a guide from Ghana, tells children about the “Rights of the Child” exhibit in 1972.
Kristina Minister [Photo UN]
Kristina Minister, an American guide from the late 1950s to the early 1960s, discusses how she tailored tours for children.
“You don’t give them a lecture, you ask them questions.”
Children on a guided tour [Photo UN]
Kevin Kennedy, an American guide from the 1970s, discusses how he would connect with the adults by focusing on the children on his tours.
Vimi Bauer [Photo Vimi Bauer]
Vimi Bauer, an Indian-British-Italian guide from the 1960s, discusses how she encouraged children to find pen-pals in other countries.
“That was my big thing—getting people to get in personal contact with other countries.”
Kids Corridor [Photo UN/VSS]
To accommodate the high demand, a specially designed Kids’ Corridor was built for younger visitors in 2017.
Children aged 5 to 10 can walk through the corridor, which mirrors the different stops of the regular tour route, and learn more about the UN and how to be global citizens.
VIP Tours
Countless celebrities, politicians, and even heads of state have toured the headquarters. Some of the people to have received a so-called “VIP tour” include musicians such as Louis Armstrong, actors such as Harry Belafonte, and heads of states such as the Emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie and the Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Elliott Trudeau.
Photo UN/Mark Garten
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, gets a tour of the “Ark of Return" from UN tour guide Smahane Nounouh from Morocco.
The “Ark of Return" is a Permanent Memorial at UN Headquarters designed by architect Rodney Leon, to honour the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. Equatorial Guinea was one of the top contributors to the memorial.
Photo UN
UN guide Peggy Snyder briefing the Deputy Prime Minister of Greece, Stylianos Pattakos, January 7, 1973.
Photo UN/VSS
Tour guide Silmara Roman from Brazil explains peace operations during a private tour to the Vice-President of Brazil, Hamilton Mour?o during his visit to NYC in July 2022.
“It was an amazing opportunity I had very early in my career.”
B’lala Nawurah
Not only politicians, but also movie stars, musicians, beauty queens, actors, and athletes take VIP tours. Here, in 2019, Hadas Fischer-Rosenberg, an American guide, briefs members of the Harlem Globetrotters.
By tapping into their broad knowledge of international affairs and communication skills, guides could wield a surprising influence on VIP tours. Ghanaian-Polish guide B’lala Nawurah took Bill Gates and his then wife Melinda French Gates on a tour, briefing them on the serious problem of landmines in Cambodia. Listen to the recording to hear how they responded.
Photo UN
George Radanovich to Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, June 13, 1995 [Photo UN Archives]
Ken Allen to Marian Aggrey, February 7, 2002
Visiting heads of state and diplomats have gone on countless tours over the decades, often awed by the expertise and professionalism of the guides.
David Vaughan to Benjamin Cohen, January 6, 1953 [Photo UN Archives]
A few months after the launch of the guided tours, UN officials recognized the need to develop capacity to take dignitaries on tours of the headquarters. In this letter, Acting Assistant Secretary-General of Conference and General Services David Vaughan writes that “a considerable amount of time was expended by senior officials... in escorting high ranking dignitaries around the building.” He suggests that the Guided Tours Unit be responsible for these kinds of tours–a suggestion that soon became policy.
Dressing Up
While the guides’ uniforms have evolved with the times–fashion houses such as Dior and Benetton have even designed some of the iterations!–the look of the guides has always symbolized the UN’s internationalism. In that same spirit, guides have also been invited to wear their national dress.
1952
The first guide uniforms–a tailored suit complete with cordons–were inspired by what flight attendants wore in the 1940s and 1950s. It was a look befitting a world that had concluded a global military conflict less than a decade before.
1960s
The flight-attendant style continued into the 1960s, though the cordons were removed, which lessened the military influence–a small sign of the United Nations’ commitment to the postwar project of international peace.
1963
A new uniform was developed by the manufacturer Shotland Modes, Inc. The fabric was 100% Telga reverse twist, with a dark jewel-blue skirt and jacket.
1969
The next guides’ outfit was designed by the uniform manufacturer of Pan American Airlines, Evan Picone, and its designer, Frank Smith. The uniform consisted of a royal blue skirt, khaki vest, and a white blouse, resembling the current flight-attendant uniform.
1970
The khaki vests were replaced by royal blue ones, an aesthetic choice that better represented the UN.
1977
Hollywood designer Edith Head donated a new design, consisting of a skirt and a jacket in the recognizable blue color of the United Nations with navy trim, and a scarf adorned with the Organization's emblem. This same year, male guides were recruited for the first time. They wore a navy blue blazer-type jacket, grey slacks, white shirt and tie, all designed by Brooks Brothers.
1982
Thibaut Bouet of Christian Dior designed a more conservative uniform. The new outfit consisted of a navy-blue sash-belted blazer and matching straight skirt, worn with a white oxford cloth shirt. The suit, in a fine, lightweight wool gabardine, was designed for year-round wear. A pale grey V-necked sweater vest is added to the ensemble during the winter months.
1988
The Italian fashion house Benetton designed and donated a new uniform that was a departure from past styles. The outfit consisted of a lightweight wool suit in black and white houndstooth check pattern combined with a royal blue knit top. A purple twin-sweater set completed the women's outfit, while the male guides wore their suit with a white button-down shirt, tie, and purple V-neck sweater. This uniform reflected the increasing professionalization of the guide service.
1995
The United Nations bought the navy blue Executive Model suit from Jones New York. This classic suit was complemented with a yellow short-sleeve top and a scarf with the United Nations emblem.
2001
The uniforms, designed and provided by the Italian fashion house Mondrian, combined classic elegance with versatility and comfort. The tailored navy blue suits for women and men were matched with light-blue blouses or shirts and a scarf or tie adorned with the United Nations emblem. For the first time, a maternity outfit was included in the line. Also for the first time, shoes, provided by the Italian footwear company Valleverde, complemented the uniforms.
2017
Elie Tahari created an elegant and modern look in dark navy stretch wool, comfortable to wear throughout the year.
Photo UN/Andrea Brizzi, 2001
Since the 1950s, guides have also been encouraged to wear their national clothing as a way to celebrate the culture of their countries and to add a touch of international flair to the UN headquarters.
The result has been a beautiful international collage of hanboks (left), filipiniana dresses (center), and Uzbek dresses (right), as well as Kente cloth, kimonos, saris, Sverigedr?kten (Swedish national dress), and countless other outfits from around the world.
Photo UN
Photo UN/PAS
Photo UN/Manuel Elías
Photo UN/Andrea Brizzi
Photo UN
Visitors are often interested in and intrigued by the traditional clothing worn by guides. In fact, some of the less worldly–and perhaps less tactful–visitors in the 1960s and 1970s were so desperate for an “international” experience that they expressed disappointment to see that their guide was wearing the standard uniform.