3 May 2023 - Bonn, Germany - UNITAR, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2023. Since 2020, UNITAR has also had an office on the UN Campus in Bonn. The Bonn office marked the anniversary on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, with a high-level panel discussion on the past and future of education and research in response to current global challenges. Afterwards, the city and UNITAR hosted a reception on the UN Campus.

Beirut/Bonn, 30 March 2023 – A shift to a circular economy in West Asia would place 33 per cent less electronic and electrical equipment on the market and reduce e-waste by 14 per cent, according to the ‘2050 Electrical and Electronic Waste Outlook for West Asia’. The report is published by the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Regional Office for West Asia and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) as the world marks the inaugural International Day of Zero Waste.

30 March 2023, Geneva, Switzerland - The joint UNEP-UNITAR 2050 Electronic and Electrical Waste Outlook in West Asia provides two contrasting future scenarios for e-waste management in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, State of Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

21 March 2023, New York, USA - UNITAR Office in New York and the Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UN DOALOS) held the Briefing for Delegates on Oceans and the Law of the Sea on Tuesday, 21st March 2023 at Conference Room 11 of the United Nations Headquarters.

The Future Policy Award 2023 will take a closer look at policies for a toxic-free world, regulating the use of hazardous chemicals in products, with a focus on children and their environment.

"It seems simple, just entering some data and calculating it, but we had to look into other aspects that play an important role in mercury emission. For instance, for some of these categories, we had to go through data on mercury importation from the last 3 years. We also had to work closely with other ministries to get an accurate assessment of these importations."

10 November 2022, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt - The PAGE and UN partners side event at the COP27, on November 9, discussed how circular economy principles and practices can serve as a catalyst to promoting human well-being, preserving nature, cutting pollution, and making economies more competitive. By bringing together representatives of governments, UN agencies, private sector, think tanks and youth, the event explored the enabling factors for accelerating the global shift towards circular economy, within the context of just, inclusive, and sustainable development.

14 October 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - 14 October 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - UNITAR scientist in cooperation with the WEEE Forum expect roughly 5.3 billion mobile / smartphones will drop out of use this year. Stacked flat atop one another at an average depth of 9 mm that many disused phones would rise roughly 50,000 km – 120 times higher than the International Space Station; one-eighth of the way to the moon. 

“I had a series of ‘awakenings’ throughout my life”, reveals Bárbara A. Smith straightaway. One of the most impactful was when she scuba dived for the very first time. “When we submerged, I discovered a myriad of colours in the corals, an unbelievable variety of fishes, sea turtles, and immense peace. It was as if I found ‘another world within ours’. I cannot put in words what it feels like to discover such an environment for the very first time, but I believe it must be a very similar experience to being in outer space.”

New Regional Online Academy on Clean and Inclusive Energy Transitions in the Context of Green Recovery in Southeast Asia. The Academy aims to build capacities and facilitate experience-sharing among key stakeholders from SEA in support of a clean and inclusive energy transition. Registration open!