This report details the goals and activities of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to promote global sustainable development and environmental issues during 2004, as well as providing information on the organisation's funding, structure, personnel and offices around the world. Topics covered include: the response to the Asian tsunami emergency; women, health and the environment; sustainable business and industry; international environmental governance; combating climate change; freshwater and sanitation; sustainable land use; and conserving biodiversity.

The 8th Edition of the UN Environment Programme flagship report, The UNEP Year Book 2011, examines global emerging issues and provides the latest environmental science. it also highlights major environmental events and developments over the past year, and presents the most recent data and indicator trends. The ocean has become a global repository for much of the waste we produce. Scientists are concerned that plastic debris in the ocean can transport toxic substances which may end up in the food chain, causing potential harm to ecosystems and human health. The Year Book also explores the wider implications of the use of phosphorus in food production. Phosphorus is an essential nutrient whose supply is limited. Since demand for fertilizer in agriculture rocketed in the 20th century, large amounts of phosphorus are flowing into the environment. New perspectives are also emerging on how biodiversity conservation can be integrated in forest management. Forests are receiving increasing attention, not least because of their role in climate change mitigation. Halting loss of forest biodiversity is essential if forests are to adapt to mounting pressures, including climate change and pest outbreaks. The Year Book's overview of events and developments during 2010 shows how cutting edge science reveals new opportunities to mitigate climate change while improving air quality. Stimulated by technological innovation and green investments, renewable energy supply is growing rapidly. This and other developments are summarized in key environmental indicators that present the latest data and trends For The global environment.

This is a summary of UNEP's activities in 2006. The main purpose of UNEP is to encourage international co-operation in preserving and protecting the environment. This objective is developed alongside other United Nations departments and international governments by addressing issues such as climate change and sustainable development challenges. Environmental issues also tie into poverty reduction and the general development strategies as set out in the Millennium Development Goals. The theme of this particular annual report is change; climate change; energy change, ecosystem change, and how such change, with impact on future generations.

The UNEP Year Book 2010 is essential, informative and authoritative reading and reports on new environmental science plus recent developments in our changing environment. It looks at progress in environmental governance: the effects of continuing degradation and loss of the world's ecosystems; impacts of climate change; how harmful substances and hazardous waste effect human health and the environment; environmentally related disasters and conflicts; and unsustainable use of resources. Water is a recurrent theme in this seventh edition. Each chapter considers water-related environmental changes, together with a number of challenges and opportunites.

UNEP Year Book 2009: New Science and Developments in our Changing Environment presents work in progress on scientific understanding of global environmental change, as well as foresight about possible issues on the horizon. The aim is to raise awareness of the interlinkages among environmental issues that can accelerate the rates of change and threaten human wellbeing. The chapters of the Year Book track the same trajectory as our awareness of environmental change. Transformations are inherent to this trajectory and are taking place on many fronts: from industrial agriculture to eco-agriculture; from a wasteful society towards a resource efficient one; and from a triad of competing interests among civil society, the private sector, and governments to a more cooperative model based on mutual benefits.