UNESCO Chair on Clean and Renewable Energies is officially inaugurated in Tehran

On 22 February 2016, the office of the UNESCO Chair on Clean and Renewable Energies at the Science and Research Branch of Islamic Azad University in Tehran was officially inaugurated by Dr. Majid Abbaspour, Director of the Iranian Society of Environmentalists and Dean of the Faculty of Science and Research, and Ms. Esther Kuisch Laroche, Director and Representative of the UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office, AVA Diplomatic reports.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by Mr. Gary Lewis, UN Resident Coordinator I.R. Iran, among other guests.

The new UNESCO Chair plans to organize international seminars and regional workshops in the field of clean and renewable energies, and foster networking and scientific exchange between research centers and universities in the region.

The inauguration of the Chair took place after the morning programme of the two-day 21st National Conference of the Iranian Society of Environmentalists.

“Energy, like water is at the heart of the climate change mitigation and sustainable development agenda”, said Ms. Kuisch Laroche. “UNESCO promotes the increased use of renewable sources of energy that offer win-win solutions by increasing energy access while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We also put a lot of emphasis on resolving the water-energy nexus and identifying good practices concerning water and energy, because these are two highly interconnected sectors.”

The UNESCO Representative expressed confidence that the new Chair on Clean and Renewable Energy would play an important role in further promoting research and training on this topic.

Both the UN Resident Coordinator and Ms. Kuisch Laroche also referred to the environmental challenges that the world was facing and called the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda a historic step forward. “The 2030 Agenda holds the promise of a better, safer and greener future for all”, said Ms. Laroche. “Sustainable growth must be inclusive, it must be socially equitable, and it must protect our ecosystems and climate.”

Other speakers talked about regional and national initiatives that have been undertaken towards sustainable development.

The two-day conference at Islamic Azad University focuses on Green Management and Sustainable Development Challenges. Key themes include:

-Water, Environment and Sustainable Development;

-Energy and Sustainable Development;

– Human Environment;

-Natural Environment and Biodiversity;

-Green Economy;

-Technology and Environment;

-Marine Environment;

-Regional and International Cooperation;

-Environment, Culture and Education;

-Information Technology and Environment.