This Office will serve as a training and resource facility for developing countries on sustainable development, including in the preparations for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, also referred to as Rio+20).
8 December 2010: On the sidelines of the UN Cancun Climate Change Conference, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Sha Zukang and the Minister for Environment of the Republic of Korea, Maanee Lee, signed an agreement to establish a new research and training facility on sustainable development.
The UN Office for Sustainable Development (UNOSD) is a joint effort by the UN, the Korean Ministry of Environment, the City of Incheon and Yonsei University. At the 8 December signing event, Under-Secretary-General Sha stated that, “We are deeply grateful for the unwavering commitment and response of the Republic of Korea to the sustainable development agenda.”
This Office will serve as a training and resource facility for developing countries on sustainable development, including in the preparations for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, also referred to as Rio+20). It will organize training programmes and expert conferences, collaborate with a network of training institutions in developing countries, and undertake policy research on the progress and gaps in the achievement of sustainable development goals. It will begin operations in April 2011 with a launch conference and expert meeting on the “Drivers, Risks, and Challenges in the Transition to a Green Economy.” [UN Press Release]