Outgoing United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan said earlier this month that Israel must not be held to standards that are not applied to other countries, and that it has “very good historical reasons” for taking threats to its existence seriously.

When Gloria Landy heard these words, she experienced an ironic sense of surprise and satisfaction.

“We felt he was echoing many of our own sentiments,” said Landy, who represents the World Council of Conservative/Masorti Synagogues in its dealings with the world body. “We have been promoting Israel’s right to exist for years, and we haven’t always had Annan’s support. It was ironic to hear him say this as his tenure with the UN was coming to a close.”

For the past 10 years, holding the official title of “main nongoverning organization representative” for the worldwide Conservative movement, Landy has been trying to make Israel’s case to the UN and to the network of nongovernmental organizations in its orbit.

Landy is also the liaison for a group of Jewish NGOs at the UN that meets monthly at the offices of member organizations.

The group attracts a series of prominent guest speakers; former U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Bolton, UN General Assembly past president Jan Eliasson, Ambassador Daniel Gillerman of Israel, and current General Assembly president Haya Rashid Al Khalifa have all addressed the group.

“The dialogues that take place at the meetings and with our guest speakers are the most important avenues we have to improve things,” Landy said.

But the goals of Landy’s organization are not reserved for Israel alone. The World Council has endorsed a set of millennium development goals promulgated by the UN, ranging from the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, to the promotion of universal primary education, to combating HIV/AIDS.

And the results are tangible, Landy said; an inoculation program for children in third-world countries has saved many lives, and inroads have been made in the area of education for young children in these same regions.

At a time when many Jewish organizations feel fed up with the UN, Landy insists that the international body has a role to play in improving the world and supports reforms that would increase accountability and transparency. Israel’s treatment, she has written, will be a “litmus test” of whether true reform is taking place.

“The NGOs represent civil society,” said Landy. “NGO members are organizations such as the League of Women Voters, the American Red Cross, and representatives of various faith-based groups. And one of the strongest NGO beliefs is that the United Nations should be true to Eleanor Roosevelt’s vision — that all nations, large and small, should be treated equally.”

The millennium goals are disseminated in newsletters, such as the “Masorti Olami News,” and are discussed and reviewed at a series of conferences, board meetings, and annual conventions that take place in the United States, Israel, London, and Argentina.

Landy, who was born in New York City, and her husband, Eugene, a native of Freehold, have lived in Rumson since 1976. The couple has three sons, Sam, Michael, and Yerachmiel; all are married and live in Jew Jersey.

Landy was president of Congregation B’nai Israel in Rumson from 1983 to 1985 (the first woman to hold the office there). She became involved with the New Jersey region of what would eventually be known as the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, and was elected to the national board of directors of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism in 1988.

In 1992, she became vice president of the World Council of Conservative/Masorti Synagogues and was elected by the World Council as its NGO representative in 1996.

Landy has also found time to be active in Hadassah, National Council of Jewish Women, and B’nai B’rith, where she holds lifetime memberships. She is currently on the board of MERCAZ USA, the Zionist membership organization of the Conservative movement.

“I care about the Jewish people and the continuation of Judaism,” Landy said. “I care about Israel and the world at large. Making a better world for everyone is the goal of the people I’ve come to know and respect through my work with the NGOs.”

She credits her parents with teaching her the meaning of tikun olam.

“They were hardworking, generous people,” Landy said. “I grew up in an observant home, and our religion was an important part of our everyday lives. My parents were immigrants who met after they had reached the United States, but they never forgot what it was like to cope with persecution and hardship.”

And they never forgot their allegiance to the State of Israel.

In 1948, Landy and her father attended a State of Israel Bonds rally in New York City. Her father taught her an important lesson that day, Landy said.

“I asked my father if we could afford to buy a bond,” Landy recalled. “My father said we couldn’t afford not to.”