United Nations University

UNU Council

The governing board of the United Nations University

The UNU Council is composed of 12 appointed members (who serve in an individual capacity, not as representatives of their countries), the UNU Rector, and three ex officio members (the UN Secretary-General, the UNESCO Director-General and the UNITAR Executive Director). The UNU Council is responsible, inter alia, for devising the principles and policies that govern the University’s operations, and for considering and approving the UNU budget and work programme.

The UNU Council currently holds two regular sessions per year. It reports annually to the UN General Assembly, the UN Economic and Social Council, and the Executive Board of UNESCO.

UNU Council Members

Prof. Sir Hilary Beckles

Chair of UNU Council; Vice-Chancellor, The University of the West Indies

Prof. Francisco H.G. Ferreira

Prof. Francisco H.G. Ferreira

Vice-Chair of UNU Council; Amartya Sen Professor of Inequality Studies, Director of the International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics

Yamini Aiyar

UNU Council Member; Public Policy Scholar; and former President of the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, India

Prof. Louise Fawcett

Prof. Louise Fawcett

UNU Council Member; Professor of International Relations, Senior Research Fellow, Department of Politics and International Relations, and Fellow of St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford

Prof. Dr. Hauke Reiner Heekeren

Prof. Dr. Hauke Reiner Heekeren

UNU Council Member; President, University of Hamburg; Spokesperson of the Landeshochschulkonferenz Hamburg (LHK Hamburg), the association of the presidents of Hamburg's member universities in the German Rectors' Conference (HRK)

Prof. Catherine Kyobutungi

UNU Council Member; Executive Director, The African Population and Health Research Center

Dr. Jane Catherine Ngila

Dr. Jane Catherine Ngila

UNU Council Member; Executive Director, African Foundation for Women & Youth in Education & STI

Shuvai Busuman Nyoni

Shuvai Busuman Nyoni

UNU Council Member; Executive Director, African Leadership Centre

Prof. Mu Rongping

Prof. Mu Rongping

UNU Council Member; President, Chinese Association of Sciences of Science and S&T Policy

Amb. Kuni Sato

UNU Council Member; Advisor, East Japan Railway Trading Co., Ltd.; Advisor, National Institutes for Cultural Heritage

Dr. Vanessa Scherrer

UNU Council Member; Advisor in Higher Education and Youth in International Contexts

Dr. Mónica Serrano

UNU Council Member; Research Professor at the Centre for International Studies, El Colegio de México