5 April 2025 Geneva, Switzerland – UNITAR and the Directorate of Climate Change (DoCC), an affiliated institution of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Republic of Türkiye, reached a milestone on 27 March 2025 with the successful delivery of an online capacity-building session “Introduction to the Prosperity Blueprint: Project Proposal Development.” The 60-minute training was designed to respond to DoCC’s growing need for strengthened skills in project proposal development. Thirteen officials from DoCC, including senior-level staff, actively participated in the session.

26 March 2025 Hiroshima, Japan – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) introduces a series of policy briefs on Sea and Human Security in the Indo-Pacific. The briefs were produced through the 2024 UNITAR Leaders for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific: Sea and Human Security Training Programme and represent the collaborative efforts of the programme participants, including government officials, NGO representatives, academics, and private-sector stakeholders from across the Indo-Pacific region. Through introducing these policy briefs, UNITAR aims to amplify the voices of emerging leaders in the region.

7 March Nadi, Fiji – On 7 March 2025, the UNITAR “Women’s Leadership in Tsunami-based Disaster Risk Reduction Training Programme 2024” concluded with the end of a five-day intensive workshop in Fiji. The workshop brought together 17 professionals from 11 Pacific Island and Asian countries, committed to advancing women’s leadership in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and strengthening disaster resilience in their communities. They were selected from over 130 participants who completed the first phase of the programme.

21 February 2025, Tokyo, Japan – Fifty agents of change from 18 Asia-Pacific countries graduated from the UNITAR “Leaders for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific: Sea and Human Security” training programme on 21 February 2025.

18 February 2025, Geneva, Switzerland — On 11 February 2025, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Africa Pastoralist Empowerment Organization (APEO) based in Kenya signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote sustainable agriculture, food and nutrition security, and climate resilience across Africa’s dryland regions. This collaboration aims to empower women and youth, strengthen agricultural value chains, and enhance environmental sustainability.

17 February 2025, Geneva Switzerland — On 14 February 2025, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Geneva School of Diplomacy (GSD) signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on advancing global leadership, diplomacy and sustainable development education. This strategic partnership aims to strengthen international cooperation, foster knowledge-sharing and equip future leaders with the skills needed to address pressing global challenges.

12 February 2025, Hyogo, Japan – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and Pasona Group Inc. have jointly implemented training sessions in Awaji Island (Awaji-shima), Hyogo, Japan, for 50 leaders from 18 Asia-Pacific countries. The training sessions, held from 10 to 12 February 2025, provided them with first-hand experiences and practical skills to effectively address sea and human security challenges in the Indo-Pacific region. This collaboration marks a significant strengthening of the partnership between Pasona Group Inc. and UNITAR, which was formalized through a memorandum of understanding in 2023.

10 February 2025, Hyogo, Japan – Fifty leaders from 18 countries across Asia and the Pacific have gathered in Awaji Island, Japan, today to join a workshop on sea and human security, organized by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).

11 February 2025, Hiroshima, Japan – Seventeen entrepreneurs and innovators from Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon showcased their business initiatives and models they refined through the Japan workshop of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) “Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Promoting Food Security and Economic Development in Egypt, Iraq, and Lebanon” training programme. The in-person workshop, which ran from 4 to 11 February 2025, concluded with a Hackathon, where participants applied the lessons learnt through the entire programme to improve and pitch their final business initiatives.

9 February 2025, Tokyo, Japan – On 9 February 2025, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Hiroshima Office, in collaboration with the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, hosted a public event in Tokyo as part of the two-day International Civil Society Forum to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (8-9 February 2025). This year marks 80 years since the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the event brought together experts, activists and people from various sectors of society to reflect on today’s heightened risk of the use of nuclear weapons. The session underscored the urgency of passing on the lessons from Hiroshima and Nagasaki and continuing broad-based dialogue and multilateral diplomatic efforts to prevent such tragedies from happening again.