Annamae Browning, age 15, of Vancouver, Wash., for her question:

WHO WAS RALPH BUNCHE?

Ralph Bunche was an outstanding American diplomat and Nobel laureate who was known for his work at the United Nations. During World War II he served in the Office of Strategic Services and later joined the United States Department of State. In 1945 he become the first black to head a department division.

Born in Detroit, Bunche taught political science at Howard University in Washington, D.C., from 1928 until 1941. He participated in the writing of the United Nations Charter and in 1946 became director of the Trusteeship division of the U.N.

As a senior member of the staff of the U.N. Commission on Palestine, beginning in 1947, Bunche participated in the mediation efforts that resulted in recognition of the state of Israel. International esteem for his skill as a mediator culminated in 1950 when Bunche was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the four armistice agreements that halted the 1948 1949 war in the Middle East.

In 1967 Bunche became undersecretary general of the United Nations. He died in 1971 at the age of 67.