During the upcoming year, UNITAR is pleased to deliver new editions of its 5-day in-person Chemicals and Waste Management Study Programme in Geneva. This flagship field visit offers participants a unique opportunity to engage directly with the global institutions shaping international chemicals and waste policy, while gaining first-hand exposure to multilateral environmental governance in the world’s leading UN hub.

Hosted primarily at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, the International Environment Hub, and the historic Palais des Nations, the programme provides an immersive learning experience combining technical substance, policy insight, and professional development. Participants will interact with UN agencies, convention secretariats, and international experts working at the forefront of chemicals and waste management.

Activities will include a carefully balanced mix of:

• Expert lectures
• Technical and policy workshops
• Multilateral Environmental Agreement (MEAs) briefings and dialogues
• Guided institutional visits
• Career guidance and networking sessions

The programme is designed to strengthen participants’ knowledge and skills in international chemicals and waste governance, while fostering professional networks and offering insight into career pathways within the UN system and related international organizations.

• Duration: 5 days
• Format: In-person
• Location: Geneva, Switzerland
• Modality: Field visit 

Registration details and available editions can be found under Programme Dates.

Lectures are delivered by senior experts from Geneva-based institutions, including:

• Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions Secretariat
  • Transboundary waste movements, PIC procedures, hazardous waste shipments, and POPs elimination
• Global Framework on Chemicals (GFC)
  • Multi-stakeholder and multi-sector approaches to the chemical lifecycle
• International Labour Organization (ILO)
  • Occupational exposure and chemical hazards
• Inter-Organization Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals
  • Ten Participating Organizations are contributing to policies and activities to achieve the sound management of chemicals.
• Minamata Convention Secretariat
  • Mercury phase-out, artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM), reporting, and monitoring
• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
  • Chemical safety and biosafety for dealing with the safe use of chemicals, nanomaterials, pesticides, biocides, and products of modern biotechnology.
• United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)
  • Aarhus Convention, dangerous goods, and transboundary industrial accidents
• UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Chemicals & Health Branch
  • Lead and mercury, chemicals in products
• United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), Chemicals and Waste Management Programme
  • Capacity development approaches for chemicals and waste management
• World Bank Group
  • Financing and implementation mechanisms for chemicals and waste management; enhanced producer responsibility
• World Health Organization (WHO)
  • Chemical safety and public health

Each session lasts 1–2 hours and includes interactive discussion and Q&A.

The programme is designed for:

• Students and recent graduates
• Early-career professionals
• Practitioners working on chemicals, waste, environmental policy, NGOs, public or private sector, and think tanks.

A maximum of 30 participants will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
Participants who complete the programme will receive a UNITAR Certificate of Completion.

In order to register, kindly click on one of the links under the section "Programme Dates" to bring you on the specific event page. Once there, kindly follow the below steps:

• On the event page, click on "registration". The programme will the be added to your shopping cart.
• Click on the "check out" button.
• Create your own profile on the UNITAR event page and fill out the required sections.
• Review the correctness of all information and choose your preferred payment method: (i) credit card or (ii) bank transfer.
• If you choose credit card, your payment is definite and is completed immediately on the spot.
• If you choose to pay by bank transfer, your payment is not definite yet and could be delayed to a later point in time.
• In either of both choices, click on complete payment. A UNITAR colleague will follow up with you via email thereafter.

Have Questions? 

Contact the Programme Team, and Email Us here: stephen.joyce@unitar.org