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UNESCO Science Programmes

The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNESCO was established in 1946 to foster international intellectual co-operation in education, the natural and social sciences, culture and communication.

UNESCO supports a wide range of programmes in the natural and social sciences, totalling some US$82 billion over the 1998/99 biennium. The natural science programmes are mainly environment oriented, and are arranged within the framework of its four intergovernmental programmes:

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) co-ordinates various branches of scientific research in an effort to arrive at a better understanding of:

  • the role of the ocean and its resources;
  • the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB), launched in 1971, promotes international co-operation in the areas of research, training and dissemination of information concerning the conservation, development and management of terrestrial ecosystems and their resources. The MAB programme concentrates its efforts on activities concerned with the concept of sustainable development and the conservation of biological diversity;
  • the International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP) aims to improve knowledge in the field of geology, geophysics and distribution of mineral and energy resources;
  • the International Hydrological Programme (IHP) is designed to develop the scientific and technological bases of hydrology and to promote the rational management of water resources while keeping a strict eye on environmental protection.

Enquiries about specific UNESCO programmes should be directed to the UNESCO web site. The UK rejoined UNESCO on 1 July 1997, after an absence of some thirteen years, and so contact points in the UK are not yet in place for all the science programmes.

The contact point for the UK Government's policy on the science programmes is:

Tracey Elliott
Office of Science and Innovation
International Directorate

Tel: + 44 (0)20 7215 6436
Fax: + 44 (0)20 7215 6448
E-mail: tracey.elliott@dti.gsi.gov.uk

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