UNHCR signs partnership with University for Peace, to inspire humanitarians of the future

GENEVA – UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, today signed an MOU with the UN-mandated University for Peace, the first time UNHCR has partnered with an academic institution specializing in peace.

The agreement highlights the importance of teaching humanitarian principles, applied by UNHCR, to university students. The University of Peace will also offer peace education courses to active UNHCR personnel.

The UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Gillian Triggs, said the partnership had the potential to inspire future humanitarians.

“Educational opportunities can be life-changing,” she said. “The MOU shows how academic institutions can support humanitarian efforts for people forcibly displaced or stateless.”

“We very much value our partnership which adds strength to our global academic interdisciplinary network and solidarity of academia with those we serve.”

The MOU presents opportunities for University of Peace students, through UNHCR designed courses, to understand  humanitarian support and prepare them to contribute.

The UNHCR Americas Bureau, based in Panama, is already working with the University of Peace’s Latin American Observatory on research in human mobility, climate change and disasters. UNHCR has commissioned a study on how climate change and environmental degradation are driving displacement and migration in El Salvador and Honduras.

Dr. Francisco Rojas Aravena, Rector of the University for Peace, said the Observatory is increasing awareness of human mobility among States and humanitarian actors in Latin America.

“The Observatory aims to transform scientific and technical knowledge into practical information for use by relevant actors,” he said.

The University for Peace, based in Costa Rica, was created by the UN General Assembly Resolution 35/55 and has been training leaders for peace for more than 40 years.

Media Contacts:

UPeace

• Prof. José Riera-Cézanne, Director, Latin American Observatory on Human Mobility, Climate Change and Disasters, [email protected]