13 January 2022, Geneva, Switzerland – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) is pleased to welcome the Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programme to the UNITAR family.

After 27 years under the United Nations University (UNU) and following the signed Memorandum of Understanding between UNITAR and UNU, the former UNU programme has successfully completed its transition to UNITAR as of 31 December 2021. Presently, the SCYCLE team has been integrated within UNITAR’s Division for Planet, located at the UNITAR Office in Bonn, Germany.

SCYCLE’s mandate is to promote sustainable societies. Its activities are focused on the development of sustainable production, consumption, and disposal patterns for electrical and electronic equipment (EEE), as well as for other ubiquitous goods. As such SCYCLE leads the global e-waste research and training and advances sustainable e-waste management strategies based on life-cycle thinking. 

The SCYCLE Programme is a great addition to UNITAR as the center of e-waste data and research work. We look forward to continuously developing numerous forward-thinking solutions together with the team to address the complex e-waste challenges towards sustainable societies & achieve SDG 12. Based at UNITAR’s new office at the UN Bonn Campus, SCYCLE also strengthens UNITAR’s ties with the German Federal Government. says Nikhil Seth, the Executive Director of UNITAR.

The Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programme’s history and milestones are compiled in the SCYCLE Milestones Report, which can be accessed from the link under "Documents" below: