The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the United Nations’ leading global authority on the environment, created in 1972 to coordinate environmental action and science across the UN system and among Member States. It is headquartered in Nairobi and serves as a neutral convener on the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, nature loss, and pollution. According to UNEP’s official overview, the organization supports delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals through science, coordination and advocacy, with a workforce of nearly 3,000 across 41 countries and territories. About the United Nations Environment Programme.

Founding and mandate

UNEP was established by the United Nations General Assembly on 15 December 1972 through resolution 2997 (XXVII), following the landmark Stockholm Conference (United Nations Conference on the Human Environment) held 5–16 June 1972. The resolution created a Governing Council, an Environment Secretariat, and an Environment Fund to organize international environmental cooperation. UN background on World Environment Day and UNEP’s creation; UNU analysis of GA res. 2997’s institutional design; Yearbook of International Environmental Law overview.

UNEP’s headquarters location in Nairobi was adopted by the General Assembly through resolution 3004 (XXVII) on 15 December 1972. UN Digital Library: A/RES/3004 (XXVII); International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) background.

Governance and institutional evolution

UNEP is governed by the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), the world’s highest-level decision-making body on the environment with universal membership of all 193 UN Member States. In December 2012, the General Assembly decided to “strengthen and upgrade” UNEP and establish universal membership for its governing body; in March 2013 it redesignated the Governing Council as the United Nations Environment Assembly. UNEP press release on universal membership (21 Dec 2012); UNGA resolution A/RES/67/251 (2013); UNEP press release on establishing UNEA (14 Mar 2013).

Between UNEA sessions, the Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR) serves as UNEA’s main intersessional organ, reviewing implementation of UNEA outcomes, guiding the programme of work and budget, and providing oversight of the secretariat. UNEP CPR portal; About the Committee of Permanent Representatives.

Strategy and programmatic focus

UNEP’s Medium‑Term Strategy for 2022–2025 (“For People and Planet”) frames action on three interconnected crises—climate change, biodiversity and nature loss, and pollution and waste—via seven interlinked subprogrammes (including Climate Action; Chemicals and Pollution Action; Nature Action; Science–Policy; Environmental Governance; Finance and Economic Transformations; and Digital Transformations). The Programme of Work and Budget operationalizes this results framework through 2025. UNEP Medium‑Term Strategy 2022–2025 (WeDocs); UNEP Strategy explainer; Programme of Work and Budget portal.

UNEP regularly produces global and regional assessments, notably the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) series, which reviews environmental status and policy effectiveness and informs decision-making. Global Environment Outlook portal; GEO series site.

Organizational structure and location

UNEP is headquartered at the UN Office at Nairobi (UNON), United Nations Avenue, Gigiri, Nairobi, Kenya, and operates through regional and country offices worldwide. UNEP contact and HQ details; UN in Kenya on UNON/UNEP presence and moves to Gigiri.

Current divisions and offices include the Communication Division; Industry and Economy Division; Ecosystems Division; Law Division; Corporate Services Division; and governance- and science-focused offices (e.g., Chief Scientist; Governance Affairs Office). UNEP Divisions and Offices; Structure and leadership page.

Leadership

The Executive Director of UNEP is Inger Andersen (Under‑Secretary‑General of the UN), whose second four‑year term runs from 15 June 2023 to 14 June 2027, following General Assembly confirmation. UN Press: GA confirms Andersen for second term (18 Jan 2023); UNEP biography page.

Past leaders include Maurice Strong (1972–1975), Mostafa K. Tolba (1975–1992), Elizabeth Dowdeswell (1992–1998), Klaus Töpfer (1998–2006), Achim Steiner (2006–2016), Erik Solheim (2016–2018), and acting Executive Director Joyce Msuya (2018–2019). UNEP@50: Leaders through the years.

Selected roles and achievements

– UNEP co‑founded the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with the World Meteorological Organization in 1988 to provide governments with policy‑relevant, scientific assessments on climate change. WMO official page on IPCC; Britannica IPCC entry.

– UNEP administers or provides secretariats for numerous multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), including the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions (chemicals and waste), the Minamata Convention on Mercury, and the Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol on ozone‑depleting substances; the Rotterdam Convention is jointly served with FAO. UNEP MEA secretariats list; BRS Conventions secretariat overview; UNEP OzonAction on the Montreal Protocol and Multilateral Fund.

– The Ozone Secretariat is housed at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi and services the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol; global scientific assessments indicate the ozone layer is on track toward long‑term recovery due to the Protocol and its amendments. European Environment Agency listing of Ozone Secretariat location; UNEP press background on Ozone Secretariat.

– UNEP convenes and services UNEA, which in March 2022 adopted Resolution 5/14 launching negotiations for a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution across the full life cycle; UNEP was requested to convene the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC). UNEP press release on plastics resolution (2 Mar 2022); UNEP INC plastics hub; UN News delegate page on plastics resolution.

– UNEP leads the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) process and reports, which assess the state of the environment, policy performance, and future trends to inform global and national decision‑making. Global Environment Outlook; GEO series site.

– Through the One Planet Network, UNEP serves as the secretariat for the 10‑Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production (10YFP), adopted at Rio+20, promoting SCP across high‑impact sectors. UNEP One Planet Network; US EPA page noting UNEP’s OPN secretariat role.

– UNEP’s Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) partners with the financial sector; its industry frameworks include the Principles for Responsible Banking (launched in 2019) to align banking with the SDGs and the Paris Agreement. UNEP FI About; UNEP FI PRB launch materials.

– UNEP also supports the Intergovernmental Science‑Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) as a UN partner; UNEP has stated it hosts the IPBES Secretariat based in Bonn, working jointly with other UN agencies. UNEP speech noting hosting/support for IPBES; UNESCO/IPBES background.

Funding

UNEP’s income is predominantly from voluntary contributions (approximately 95%), complemented by a small share from the UN regular budget. The core, unearmarked Environment Fund is guided by a Voluntary Indicative Scale of Contributions (VISC) established by the Governing Council in 2002; in 2024, 94 Member States contributed, with 59 paying their full indicative share. UNEP “Status of Contributions”; Environment Fund explainer and 2024 contributors.

Relationship within the UN system and headquarters context

UNEP is a programme of the United Nations (not a specialized agency). Its governance, science functions, and secretariat roles interface with UN system entities and multilateral environmental agreements; the Nairobi headquarters is the UN’s principal hub in Africa. About the United Nations Environment Programme; UN in Kenya on UNON and Nairobi as UN HQ in Africa.

Recent sessions and milestones

UNEA‑7 is scheduled for 8–12 December 2025 in Nairobi, continuing to set the global environmental agenda via resolutions and decisions across the triple crisis. UNEA information page.

Additional reference

For an independent overview of UNEP’s history, mandate and activities, see Encyclopaedia Britannica’s entry on UNEP. Britannica: United Nations Environment Programme.