3-4 March 2011, Geneva, Switzerland.  As a follow-up to the 50th session of the Board of Trustees, the Board’s Chairman, Ambassador Henri Lopes, visited the Institute on 3-4 March with a view to engage in dialogue with UNITAR managers.  Apart from sharing more detail on the Institute’s programming in the broad fields of peace, security, and diplomacy; environment; and governance; management also discussed achievements related to the Institute’s Knowledge Systems Innovation Unit, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Communications and Information Technology.

During the visit, the Executive Director and the Chairman also initiated discussions on preparations and modalities for the 51st session of the Board, which will take place in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, from 21-22 November 2011.  The Chairman concluded his visit  with a courtesy visit with Mr. Sergei Ordzhonikidze, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, as well as with a guided tour and presentation at the Institute’s UNOSAT Programme, which is housed on the premises of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

At UNOSAT, Ambassador Lopes discussed with UNOSAT staff and analysts the ongoing crisis in Northern Africa, on which the team is working to support humanitarian operations in the region. The Ambassador completed his visit with a private visit of some CERN experimental installations part of the Large Hadron Collider.