Ramu Damodaran presented his letter of appointment as Permanent Observer of the University for Peace to the United Nations to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on April 5, 2024. The establishment of the University for Peace as an inter-governmental entity was approved by the United Nations General Assembly in 1980.
In the course of his diplomatic career , Ramu Damodaran served the United Nations from 1989 to 1991, and again from 1994 to 2021, at which time he directed the Partnerships and Public Engagement Service in the United Nations Department of Global Communications. His responsibilities included outreach to, and cooperation with, global academic entities, civil society organizations and the creative community of entertainment and talent.
In 2008 he was asked to design the United Nations Academic Impact initiative, which was launched by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in 2010 and which he led until 2021. More than 1700 universities and institutes of higher education and research are part of this global network today, aligning activities and projects with the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
He also served, from 2011 to 2021, as Secretary of the United Nations General Assembly’s Committee on Information and as the Department’s focal point for legislative relationships with Member States, including the finalization of resolutions to guide the Organization’s communications strategy.
His career with the Government of India included the position of Executive Assistant to the Prime Minister of India from 1991 to 1994. As a member of the Indian Foreign Service, he served in Indian diplomatic missions in Moscow and at the United Nations and in assignments in New Delhi with a range of governmental ministries, including External Affairs, Defence, Home Affairs, Human Resource Development and Planning.
Ramu Damodaran is a national of India with a Master’s degree in History from the University of Delhi. He has also worked extensively in Indian mass media - television, radio and print publications-and theatre, including as a news anchor, disc jockey and stage actor. His radio feature “Echoes of a Generation” was awarded the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union Prize for the best documentary production.