26 October 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - UNITAR, Franklin University Switzerland, and Industrial Policy Studies (IPS) Switzerland sign Memorandum of Understanding to establish the first SDG Management School in Geneva.

The first years of life of infants are crucial for their development. Exclusive breastfeeding is one of the most effective ways to ensure child health and it is particularly important due to its role in lowering morbidity and mortality, reducing the risk of chronic diseases, respiratory infections, and certain noncommunicable diseases, amongst other benefits. Studies also show that exclusive breastfeeding practices between 0-23 months can contribute to save 804,000 children every year and 20,000 annual deaths from breast cancer.

21 October 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - UNITAR’s Division for People and Social Inclusion has partnered with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Total Energies Nigeria to create a recycling plant in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, empowering members of the Elelenwo community in the process.

October 2022, Hiroshima, Japan – Andaru Dhaniswara is First Secretary at the Directorate for International Security and Disarmament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia. In early 2022, he participated in the UNITAR Hiroshima Training Programme on Nuclear Disarmament and Non-Proliferation. Andaru found the programme incredibly rewarding. Not only was the technical content relevant to his work; he feels empowered to engage in international negotiations towards nuclear non-proliferation.

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. 

"With these products, OCHA will be able to make a comparative analysis with previous years. So, if South Sudan experience floods next year, we can look back on those and see what areas were frequently affected by floods in the past and make predictions, which will help us be better prepared to respond instead of waiting until the disaster happens to make some decisions.”

7 October 2022, Nairobi, Kenya - KCB Foundation and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) have partnered to promote the use of electric motorbikes by Boda Boda riders in Kenya. This is an effort towards accelerating the transition to a low-carbon resilient economy and enable the transition of 25% of the total loan portfolio to green investments by 2025, as part of the KCB Net Zero ambition.

27 September 2022, Plock, Poland – The International Training Centre for Authorities and Leaders (CIFAL) in Plock hosted the “City Coders Hackathon Plock” on 25-26 September, bringing together 81 participants, mostly high schoolers and university students to develop an application that would respond to the needs of the city residents.

“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.”

"Even though we have traffic lights, cameras, signs and enough space for everyone, there is always an element of surprise. We can redesign things to predict those risks, but everything comes back to outreach and education. This course focuses on that."