Find information on environmental negotiations that took place in:

Decades, International Years and Anniversaries of Interest

Ongoing decades of interest for the environmental community:

In 2025, we also celebrate:

UN Environment Assembly (UNEA)

UNEA-7

The 7th session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) will take place from 8 to 12 December 2025 at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya (decision 6/7 of 1 March 2024). Oman was elected President of the Assembly. UNEA-7 will be preceded by the Seventh Meeting of the Open-ended Committee of Permanent Representatives | OECPR-7, taking place from 1 to 5 December 2025.

The theme for UNEA-7 is “Advancing sustainable solutions for a resilient planet“.

UNEA-7 website
UNEA-7 theme | 12 December 2024

Open-ended Committee of Permanent Representatives

The 7th Meeting of the Open-ended Committee of Permanent Representatives (OECPR-7) is scheduled to take place from 1 to 5 December 2025 in Nairobi, Kenya.

OECPR-7 website

End Plastic Pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument

In February 2022, at UNEA-5.2, a historic resolution (5/14) was adopted to develop a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution with the ambition to complete the negotiations by end of 2024.

5th Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5)

The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) took place from 25 November to 1 December 2024 in Busan, Republic of Korea.

INC-5 was adjourned at 2.50 a.m. on Monday 2 December in Busan with an agreement that the ‘Chair’s Text’ shared on 1 December will serve as a basis for the resumed session at a later date in 2025. This session was the largest of the INC process, with over 3,360 participants, including delegates from more than 170 countries, and observers from more than 440 organizations.

Science-Policy Panel to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution

Following UNEA resolution 5/8 entitled “Science-Policy Panel to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution”, a science-policy panel is to be established to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution.

3rd session of the Ad hoc open-ended working group on a science-policy panel on chemicals, waste and pollution prevention (OEWG 3)

OEWG 3.1

An ad hoc open-ended working group, mandated to prepare proposals for the science-policy panel, began work in 2022, with the ambition of completing it by the end of 2024. The first part of the third session of the ad hoc open-ended working group took place in Geneva from 17 to 21 June 2024.

OEWG 3.2

The resumed third session of the ad hoc open-ended working group to prepare proposals for a science-policy panel to contribute further to the sound management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution (OEWG 3.2) will be held back-to-back with the intergovernmental meeting for the purpose of considering the establishment of the panel at the Punta del Este, Uruguay from 14 to 20 June 2025.

UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF)

The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) will be convened from 14 to 23 July 2025, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council. This includes the three-day ministerial segment of the forum from 21 to 23 July 2025, as part of the High-level Segment of ECOSOC.

The theme of the HLPF is “Advancing sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals for leaving no one behind”.

2025 Regional Forums on Sustainable Development

The 2025 Regional Forums on Sustainable Development, convened annually in the five regions of the world by the respective UN Regional Commissions, are the key platforms at the regional level for policy debate, exchange of good practices and peer learning on SDG implementation. The Regional Forum for the Economic Commission for Europe is scheduled to take place from 2 to 3 April 2025 tentatively in Geneva.

Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions (BRS MEAs)

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)

UN Biodiversity Conference

The United Nations Biodiversity Conference took place in Cali, Colombia from 21 October to 1 November 2024. The Conference encompasses the Sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 16), the Eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, and the Fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization.

Notification | 15 December 2023

COP 16.2

The resumed sessions of the sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol and fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol, is scheduled to take place from 25 to 27 February 2025 at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome, Italy.

Notification | 27 November 2024

Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)

IPBES 12

The twelfth session of the IPBES Plenary (IPBES 12) is tentatively scheduled to take place in January 2026 in the United Kingdom.

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

Animal and Plants Committees

The 28th meeting of the Plants Committee (PC28) and the 34th meeting of the Animals Committee (AC34) is scheduled to take place in Geneva in July 2026.

Standing Committee

The 78th meeting of the Standing Committee (SC78) will take place in Geneva from 3 to 8 February 2025.

Conference of the Parties

The 20th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP20) is scheduled to take place from 24 November to 5 December 2025 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

IUCN World Conservation Congress

The IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025 — the general assembly of the Union’s members — will convene from 9 to 15 October 2025 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Press Release | IUCN

IUCN Council

The 112th Council meeting — IUCN’s principal governing body in between sessions of the World Conservation Congress — will take place from 28 to 30 January 2025 in Antigua, Guatemala. The 113th Council meeting is scheduled to take place from 7 to 9 May 2025.

Minamata Convention on Mercury

Minamata COP-6

The 6th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention is scheduled to take place from 3 to 7 November 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Convention)

Standing Committee

The 64th meeting of the Standing Committee will take place at the Secretariat headquarters in Gland, Switzerland, from 20 to 24 January 2025.

Scientific and Technical Review Panel

The 28th meeting of the STRP (STRP28) is scheduled to take place in 2025.

15th meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties

The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties (COP15) will take place in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from 23 to 31 July 2025.

UN Convention on Climate Change

UNFCCC Conference of the Parties

COP30

The 30th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the UNFCCC is scheduled to convene in Belém, Brazil from 10 to 21 November 2025.

Subsidiary Bodies for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and Implementation (SBI)

SBSTA-62 / SBI-62

The 62nd sessions of the UNFCCC Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) took place from 16 to 26 June 2025 in Bonn, Germany.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Sixty-first Session of the IPCC (IPCC-62)

The sixty-second session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-62) will take place in Hangzhou, China from 24 to 28 February 2025.

UN Convention to Combat Desertification

UN Convention to Combat Desertification Conference of the Parties

COP-17

The 17th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP-17) will be held in Mongolia in 2026, during the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists.

Decision 34/COP.15

UN Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

CMS COP15

The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP15) will take place in Brazil in March 2026.

Notification | 17 February 2024

Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol

Combined fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (14th COP) and thirty-ninth Meeting of the Parties (39th MOP)

The fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Vienna Convention will be held back to back with the thirty-ninth Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol in 2027.

Thirty-seventh Meeting of the Parties (37th MOP)

The thirty-seventh Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is scheduled to take place in Nairobi, Kenya from 3 to 7 November 2025.

47th meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties

The forty-seventh meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances the Deplete the Ozone Layer (47th OEWG) will be held from 7 to 11 July 2025 in Bangkok, Thailand.

UN Ocean Conference

2025 UN Ocean Conference

The UN General Assembly has decided to convene the high-level 2025 United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development in Nice, France, from 9 to 13 June 2025, to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14. The Conference will be co-hosted by Costa Rica and France.

UNGA Resolution 77/40

UN Water Conference

UN 2026 Water Conference

On 1 September 2023, the UNGA adopted resolution 77/334 in which it decided to convene the UN Water Conference and the UN Conference on the Final Comprehensive Review of the Implementation of the Objectives of the International Decade for Action, “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018–2028 in 2028.

The UN Water Conference, co-hosted by United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Senegal, will be held in the UAE from 2 to 4 December 2026.

International Seabed Authority Assembly and Council

The first part of the 30th Session of the International Seabed Authority Assembly and Council (ISA30) will take place from 17 to 28 March 2025 in Kingston, Jamaica and will resume for the second part from 7 to 25 July 2025.

UN-Water

The 41st Meeting of UN-Water, the UN’s coordination mechanism for water and sanitation, will be from 2 to 3 April 2025, in Rome, Italy.

UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

UN Ocean Forum on Trade-related Aspects of SDG 14

The 5th UN Ocean Forum on trade-related aspects of Sustainable Development Goal 14, held under the theme “Ocean economy, trade policy, the climate and development nexus”, will take place in Geneva from 3 to 5 March 2025. The Forum will be co-chaired by France and Costa Rica, with the support of the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Secretariat.

UN Trade and Development Ministerial Conference

The 16th quadrennial conference of UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), or UNCTAD16, is set to take place in Viet Nam in October 2025, themed “Shaping the future: Driving sustainable economic transformation for a changing world”.

UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)

Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention) and the Protocol on Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTRs)

The eighth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention and the fifth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on PRTRs are being planned to take place in late autumn 2025. at a venue to be determined.

Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention) and Protocol on Water and Health

The eleventh session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Water Convention is scheduled to take place in Dakar, Senegal in 2027.

The seventh session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on Water and Health is scheduled to take place in Budapest, Hungary from 5 to 7 November 2025.

Global workshop on increasing climate resilience with focus on floods and health on the transboundary and national levels

The Global workshop on increasing climate resilience with focus on floods and health on the transboundary and national levels is scheduled to take place from 19 to 20 March 2025 in Geneva.

Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (Espoo Convention) and Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment

The resumed 9th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Espoo Convention and the resumed 5th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment took place in Geneva on 10 December 2024. Dates for the 10th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Espoo Convention and the 6th session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment are to be confirmed.

Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (Air Convention)

The 45th session of the Executive Body for the Air Convention is scheduled to take place from 8 to 11 December 2025.

71st Session of the Commission

The 71st session of the Commission will take place at Palais des Nations from 9 to 10 October 2025.

Committee on Environmental Policy

The 30th session of the Committee on Environmental Policy of the UNECE is scheduled to take place from 26 to 28 November 2025.

Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management

The 86th session of the Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management is scheduled to take place from 8 to 10 October 2025. The Ministerial Meeting on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management will take place on 8 October 2025.

UN Forum of Mayors

The UN Forum of Mayors 2025 is scheduled to take place from 6 to 7 October 2025 at Palais des Nations.

Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean (Escazú Agreement)

Forum on Environmental Human Rights Defenders

The Third Forum on Human Rights Defenders in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean will be held in Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis, from 7 to 10 April 2025. This Forum is part of the framework of the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters (Escazú Agreement). The 2025 edition will focus on the implementation of the Action Plan on Human Rights Defenders in Environmental Matters, a six-year roadmap (2024-2030) addressing four key areas aimed at advancing the provisions of Article 9 of the Agreement.The event is being organized by ECLAC, OHCHR, UNEP, UNDP, UN Women, with the support of the World Bank.

Conference of the Parties

The 4th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Escazú Agreement is scheduled to take place from 22 to 24 April 2026.

International Labour Conference

The 113th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) will take place from 2 to 13 June 2025. The member States of the ILO meet at the Conference, held every year in Geneva, Switzerland, in the month of June.

World Health Organization

Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) for a WHO instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response

In December 2021, the World Health Assembly established an intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) to draft and negotiate a convention, agreement or other international instrument under the Constitution of the World Health Organization to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response.

The resumed twelfth session of the INB (INB12) took place from 2 to 6 December 2024. Further INB meetings are scheduled for February and April (with precise dates to be confirmed), with a completed agreement supposed to be ready to be voted on at the World Health Assembly in May.

World Health Assembly

The seventy-eighth World Health Assembly (WHA78), the decision-making body of the World Health Organization, is scheduled to take place in Geneva from 19 to 27 May 2025.

Global Framework on Chemicals

The Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) and First Conference of the Global Framework on Chemicals – For a Planet Free of Harm from Chemicals and Waste will take place from 24 to 27 June 2025 in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

The second substantive meeting of the Preparatory Commission (PrepCom II) for the Entry into Force of the Agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) and the Convening of the First Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Agreement will meet for two sessions of two weeks each: from 14 to 25 April 2025 and from 18 to 29 August 2025.

World Meteorological Organization

World Meteorological Congress

The twentieth ordinary session of the World Meteorological Congress is scheduled to take place tentatively from 3 to 14 May 2027.

The extraordinary session of the Congress in 2025 (Cg Ext(2025)) will be held from 20 to 24 October 2025 at the WMO Headquarters in Geneva. The extraordinary session will focus on progress with the Early Warnings for All initiative and other urgent matters as determined by the Executive Council.

World Trade Organization

14th Ministerial Conference (MC14)

The 14th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC14) is scheduled to take place from 26 to 29 March 2026 in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

World Economic Forum

Annual Meeting 2025

The Annual Meeting 2025 of The World Economic Forum will take place at Davos-Klosters from 20 to 24 January 2025. The Meeting will be held under the theme, “Collaboration for the Intelligent Age”.

Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction

The 8th Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GP2025), to be held under the theme “Every Day Counts, Act for Resilience Today”, will take place in Geneva from 2 to 6 June 2025.

World Resources Forum 2025

The World Resources Forum will take place on 2 and 3 September 2025 in Geneva.

4th International Conference on Financing for Development

The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) will take place from 30 June to 3 July 2025 in Sevilla, Spain. The conference will address new and emerging issues, and the urgent need to fully implement the Sustainable Development Goals, and support reform of the international financial architecture.

International Conference on Glaciers’ Preservation

The International Conference on Glaciers’ Preservation is scheduled to take place on 28 June 2025 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. This comes after the UN declared 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation, accompanied by the proclamation of the 21 March of each year as the World Day for Glaciers starting in 2025.

Global Forum on Migration and Development

The 15th Global Forum on Migration and Development is scheduled to take place in the second half of 2025, tentatively in Colombia.

Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health

The Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health will take place from 25 to 27 March 2025 in Cartagena de Indias, Bolivar, Colombia. 

GEO Global Forum

GEO Global Forum 2025 will take place from 5 to 9 May 2025 in Rome, Italy.

Global Environment Facility

69th GEF Council Meeting

The sixty-ninth meeting of the Council — the GEF’s main governing body which comprises 32 members appointed by constituencies of GEF member countries — is scheduled to take place in June 2025 in Washington, DC.

2025 Global Conference on Climate and Health

The 2025 Global Conference on Climate and Health, organized by the Government of Brazil, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), will take place in Brasília from 29 to 31 July 2025.

This Conference will also serve as the annual in-person meeting of the Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH). It will provide a valuable opportunity to showcase the important contribution of ambitious and equitable climate action to global health and well-being.

Munich Security Conference

The 61st Munich Security Conference (MSC) will take place from 14 to 16 February 2025 in Munich, Germany. The Conference will feature high-level debates on the key foreign and security policy challenges of our time, including the intersections of intersections of governance, the environment, security, and prosperity.

Human Rights and the Environment

Relevant meetings taking place in Geneva in 2024 that may tackle the environmental agenda include:

• 20 – 31 January | 48th session of the Working Group on Universal Periodic Review (WG UPR 48)
• 11 February | 7th intersessional meeting for dialogue and cooperation on human rights and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (HRC res. 52/14)
• 18 – 19 February | 16th meeting of the Task Force on Access to Justice under the Aarhus Convention
• 17 – 21 February | 33rd session of the Advisory Committee of the Human Rights Council
• 24 February – 4 April | 58th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC 58)
• 11 – 14 March | 86th meeting of the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee
• 28 April – 9 May | 49th session of the Working Group on Universal Periodic Review (WG UPR 49)
• 12 – 16 May | 26th session of the Working Group on the Right to Development (WG on Right to Development 26)
• 10 – 13 June | Annual meeting of Special Procedure Mandate Holders
• 16 June – 11 July | 59th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC 59)
• 14 – 18 July | 18th session of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP 18)
• 4 – 8 August | 34th session of the Advisory Committee of the Human Rights Council
• 8 September – 3 October | 60th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC 60)
• 13 – 14 October | 5th UN Forum on Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law: Democracy and climate change: focusing on solutions
• 20 – 24 October | 11th session of the Open-ended intergovernmental working group on the legally binding instrument on TNCs (OEIGWG 11)
• 27 – 29 October | 12th session of the Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development (EMRTD 12)
• 30 – 31 October | 2025 UN Social Forum
• 3 – 14 November | 50th session of the Working Group on Universal Periodic Review (WG UPR 50)
• 24 – 26 November | 14th UN Forum on Business and Human Rights

→ More information on Human Rights and the Environment.