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Geneva Quaker House

Travel Directions to
Quaker House.

Quaker work at the United Nations in Geneva is greatly enhanced by the facility where its offices are located and where much of its programme with diplomats and others actually takes place. Located in a pleasant residential neighbourhood not very far from the Palais des Nations, Quaker House is not only home for the Quaker UN Office but also serves as the Meeting House for the Geneva Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends and provides meeting space for a range of other groups.

Quaker House is owned and managed by the Geneva Quaker Foundation. The Foundation was originally set up in the 1960s by the Friends Service Committee of Britain Yearly Meeting, the American Friends Service Committee, and Geneva Quakers to purchase a property which would be conveniently sited for access to the United Nations, but also be convenient for local Quakers. The property at 13 avenue du Mervelet, near Petit Saconnex in Geneva, was finally purchased in 1972. Today, the Geneva Quaker Foundation, an non-profit body, is run by a Board made up representatives from Britain Yearly Meeting, the American Friends Service Committee, Friends World Committee for Consultation Europe and Middle East Section, Switzerland Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, and Geneva Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, these being the principal stakeholder bodies.

Quaker House dates from the early 1920s and is of historic architectural importance. Its maintenance is thus an important ongoing responsibility of the Geneva Quaker Foundation. The Foundation is embarking in 2005 on a major refurbishment project aimed at improving basic infrastructure of the building and well as meeting and office facilities. Major fundraising initiatives will be made. Those wishing to assist or find out more should write to David Atwood at QUNO (datwood@quno.ch), as QUNO is taking a major role in this refurbishment campaign.