The UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education offers post-graduate courses and PhD research programmes in Delft, The Netherlands, and carries out research and capacity building projects all over the world. The mission of UNESCO-IHE is contribute to the education and training of professionals and to build the capacity of sector organisations, knowledge centres and other institutions active in the fields of water, the environment and infrastructure in developing countries and countries in transition.

The UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education offers post-graduate education and PhD research programmes in Delft, The Netherlands, and carries out research and capacity building projects all over the world. The mission of UNESCO-IHE is to contribute to the education and training of professionals and to build the capacity of sector organisations, knowledge centres and other institutions active in the fields of water, the environment and infrastructure in developing countries and countries in transition. UNESCO-IHE has a permanent staff of 170, of which 90 are academic staff, while about 250 guest-lecturers from academia and industry contribute to the educational programme. Each year 750 participants (incl. about 175-200 new MSc students per year) from all over the world attend the various MSc programmes and short courses at UNESCO-IHE. The functions of the Institute include serving as an international standard-setting body for postgraduate water education programmes and continuing professional training, building human and institutional capacities through education, training and research, setting up and managing networks of educational and water sector institutions and organisations worldwide, functioning as a ‘policy forum’ for UNESCO member states and other stakeholders, and providing advice on water education to partner organisations and other members of the UN water family. The Department of Environmental Resources provides post-graduate education and training to professionals in the fields of environmental science, technology, planning and management, and carries out research and capacity development projects in these areas. The department has two scientific core groups: Freshwater Ecosystems and Pollution Prevention and Control. Each scientific core is headed by a full professor who takes the academic leadership of the core. More information is available at the Environmental Resources Department Website (http://www.unesco-ihe.org/er). In partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), UNESCO-IHE has established the WWF Chair in the Wise Use of Freshwater Ecosystems to advance research and training on solutions for the interconnected issues of water management, sustainable development, poverty reduction, environmental flows and ecosystem and biodiversity conservation.