The statute of the UNU Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources (UNU-FLORES) was adopted by the UNU Council in December 2010. Scoping workshops were held in November 2010 and March 2011.

The primary purpose of UNU-FLORES will be to contribute to the resolution of crucial challenges in the area of sustainable use and integrated management of the environmental resources water, soil and waste that are of concern to the United Nations and its Member States, particularly developing and transitional countries. It is envisaged that the Institute will consist out of five units:

• Systems and Flux Analysis
• Global Change
• Water Management
• Soil and Land-Use Management
• Waste Management and Contaminated Sites