On 14 July 2020, UNICEF, UNECA and UNITAR organized an online side event “Strengthening National Capacities for the World We Want – Embedding Evaluation in Voluntary National Reviews” during the virtual 2020 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). The event aimed to explore and promote the use of evaluative thinking and evidence within Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs). Representatives from UNICEF, UNECA and UNITAR were joined by panelists from several African countries to share their experiences and the challenges and opportunities they have faced in their VNR and evaluation processes.

Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTRs) are effective tools for the collection and dissemination of data on emissions and transfers of a determined list of chemicals. The availability of this information can help policy-makers to identify the source of chemical pollution in the country to make informed decisions on how to best remediate degraded environments and enact policies related to the sound management of chemicals.

Curitiba, Brazil, 9 July 2020 - New technologies have had unprecedented impacts on industries and on the performance of professionals. The so-called fourth industrial revolution provided the citizens of the 21st century with a set of technologies with unprecedented historical impacts, materialized in the wide digitalization and technological convergence of the most diverse aspects.

UNOSAT is the operational satellite applications programme of UNITAR, promoting evidence-based decision making for peace, security and resilience by using geospatial information technologies (GIT). One of UNOSAT’s main strategic objectives is to build and develop capacities of Member States to use earth observation (EO) and GIT. As a part of its capacity development activities, UNOSAT delivered a one-week training entitled “ASEAN Regional Training Course on Geospatial Big Data Applications for Sustainable Development” from 05-09 August 2019, together with regional partners in Sri Racha, Chon Buri, Thailand.

7 July 2020, New York, USA, Zoom Workshop - The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Office in New York, in collaboration with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), hosted the first workshop “Learning and Training for SDG implementation in the COVID-19 era” of the High-level Political Forum (HLPF).

Join UNITAR’s online certificate on essential professional skills starting 15 September covering approximately 48 hours of online training up until 29 October. The certificate will consist of a series of e-workshops targeted to working professionals and individuals seeking to improve their professional skills.

7 July 2020, Geneva, Switzerland - 30 diplomats and embassy personnel from the Republic of Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Burundi, and the Republic of Rwanda gathered virtually in order to reinforce their skillset in two key areas: Cybersecurity and Security Awareness, and Digital Diplomacy.

3 July 2020 - UNITAR-UNOSAT and the University of Copenhagen co-organized and delivered a 3-week Masters level course entitled “Geo-information in disaster situations” ending on 3 July 2020. The beneficiaries were University of Copenhagen students registered in the Master of Disaster Management programme. Instruction during the first week focused on introductory concepts and essential software applications as well as data analysis and cartographic modelling; it was delivered by the Geography Section of the Department of Geosciences and Natural Resources Management at the University of Copenhagen.

2 July 2020, New York, United States – On 2 July 2020, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) office in New York, in collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), hosted the third module of the ‘Realizing the Future we Want’, a training series in preparation for the General Assembly’s 2020 Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR) of operational activities for development of the United Nations system. The focus of the third module was on funding UN operational activities for development and financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The module was held online, and attracted more than 150 participants from numerous Member States.

A record 53.6 million tonnes (Mt) of e-waste was produced globally in 2019 — the weight of 350 cruise ships the size of the Queen Mary 2; $57 billion in gold and other components discarded — mostly dumped or burned.