The UNESCO Chairs program was conceived as a way to advance research, training and programme development in higher education by building university networks and encouraging inter-university cooperation through transfer of knowledge across borders.
The program was established in 1992 following the decision taken at the 26th session of the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
As of May 2024, the programme involves some 950 institutions in 120 countries.[1]
| Name | Nationality | UNESCO Chair | Institution | Years | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indian-born Canadian | UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance | ||||
| Iranian | UNESCO Chair on Cyberspace and Culture | ||||
| Argentine-American | UNESCO Professor of Mathematics and Economics | 1995–2008 | |||
| Armenian | UNESCO Chair of Armenian Art History | ||||
| Greek | UNESCO Chair on Adolescent Health Care | ||||
| British | UNESCO Chair in Archaeological Ethics and Practice in Cultural Heritage | 2014–present | |||
| Iranian | UNESCO Chair on Interdisciplinary Research in Diabetes | 2014–present | |||
| British-Polish | –2012 | ||||
| Austrian | UNESCO Chair for Peace Studies | 2008–present | |||
| UNESCO Chair on History and Future of The university | Emeritus | ||||
| Iranian | UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship | ||||
| Italian | UNESCO Chair in Information and Computer Ethics | 2008–2013 | |||
| UNESCO Chair in Genocide Prevention | 2013–present | ||||
| Canadian | UNESCO Chair in Global Smart Disruptive Learning | 2018–present | |||
| Turkish | UNESCO Chair of Philosophy | 1998–present | |||
| German | UNESCO Chair in Sustainable Urban Development for Asia and the Pacific | 2008–2010 | |||
| Luxembourgish | UNESCO Chair in Human Rights | 2011–present | |||
| British | UNESCO Chair in HIV/AIDS Education and Health Security in Africa | 2007–present | |||
| Italian | UNESCO Chair for Religious Pluralism and Peace | ||||
| Dominican | UNESCO Chair on Social and Academic Inclusion for People with Disabilities and Special Education Needs | ||||
| American | UNESCO Chair in Sustainable Rivers | ||||
| Burundian | UNESCO Chair in Education for Peace and Conflicts Resolution | ||||
| Romanian | UNESCO Chair in Information and Communication Engineering | 1998–present | |||
| Indian | UNESCO Chair on Education for Sustainable Development and the Human Habitat | ||||
| Ann Skelton | South African | UNESCO Chair in Education Law in Africa | University of Pretoria | 2013–present[2] | |
| German | UNESCO Chair for Entrepreneurship and Intercultural Management | 2005–present | |||
| American | UNESCO Chair in Learning and Literacy | 2012–present | |||
| British | UNESCO Chair in Gender Research | 2008–present | |||
| Pakistani | UNESCO Chair in Information and communication Technology for Development | 2018–present | |||
| Serbian | UNESCO Chair in Bioethics | 2015–present | |||
| Alison Phipps | British | UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and Arts | University of Glasgow | 2016–present | |
| Patrizio Bianchi | Italian | UNESCO Chair in Education, Growth and Equality.[3] | University of Ferrara | 2020–present | |
| Damilola Sunday Olawuyi | Nigerian | UNESCO Chair on Environmental Law and Sustainable Development | Hamad Bin Khalifa University | 2022–present.[4] | |
| Prof. Syed Javaid Zaidi | Canadian | UNESCO Chair in desalination and water treatment | Qatar University's CAM | 2022-present[5] | |
| Prof.Ponnumony Vethamony | Indian | UNESCO Chair in marine sciences[6] [7] | Qatar University's ESC | 2020-present |