United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

In news : Recently, the UN chief Antonio Guterres has appointed leading Indian economist Ligia Noronha as Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the New York Office of the UNEP

About the United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP)

- UNEP is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system
- It serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.
- Headquarters: Nairobi, Kenya

Establishment: It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in June 1972.

UNEP work closely with Member States as well as representatives from civil society, businesses, and other Major Groups and Stakeholders
Mandate: To provide leadership, deliver science and develop solutions on a wide range of issues, including climate change, the management of marine and terrestrial ecosystems, and green economic development.
Along with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), UNEP established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
It is also one of several Implementing Agencies for the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol.

Thematic areas

UNEP categorize its work into seven broad thematic areas:

Climate change
Disasters and conflicts
Ecosystem management
Environmental governance
Chemicals and waste
Resource efficiency, and
Environment under review

Secretariats & Conventions

UNEP hosts the secretariats of several multilateral environmental agreements and research bodies, including The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), The Minamata Convention on Mercury, The Convention on Migratory Species and The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) etc

UNEP’s activities