Mission

To promote the protection and management of the environment for purposes of sustainable development through education, research and dissemination of intellectual assets in collaboration with like-minded partners from the academic, goverment, corporate and international communities.

Establishment

In 2002, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) turned 30 years of existence. For the past three decades, the world has increasingly recognized the immense importance of environmental protection as a way to sustain life and preserve society. It has been a common belief that environmental preservation is a way of life, a prerequisite for sustainable development, and a pathway towards raising the living standard and thereby improving the quality of life of people. An effective vehicle towards this end is the pursuit of education and research in the emerging domain of Environment for Sustainable Development.

On 9 May 2002, UNEP and Tongji University entered into an agreement that led to the establishment of the UNEP-Tongji Institute of Environment for Sustainable Development (IESD). The Institute is situated in the premises of Tongji campus and is an organic part of Tongji’s College of Environmental Science and Engineering (CESE). IESD’s governance is vested upon its Supervisory Board comprising of members from UNEP and Tongji as well as other prominent professionals in China and elsewhere in the field. The byelaws of IESD have been ratified by the IESD Supervisory Board at its meeting on November 17, 2005. The byelaws spell out provisions on governance, functions, objectives, organization, activities, rules and regulations of the Institute.

IESD has made a significant start during its initial years of operation, having successfully organized the first Asia-Pacific Leadership Programme on Environment for Sustainable Development - a continuing education course - held in July 2004 at the Institute. It successfully held the second and third offerings in September 2005 and September 2006, respectively.  This and other training programs are expected to sustain and grow over the years. IESD has launched the International Master’s Program on Environmental Management and Sustainable Development, with its first batch of students entering in September 2006. IESD has embarked on several sponsored research projects in China. All these activities and more constitute the portfolio of undertakings of IESD now and into the foreseeable future.

来源： 联合国环境规划署-同济大学环境