UNESCO Chair
Join the Network
Creating a UNESCO Chair means having a passion to advance research, training and program development in higher education. It also means pursuing a vision of collaboration and information-sharing among universities. The Network now has 40 Chairs in Canada and 1000 around the world.
2025-2026 UNESCO Chairs call for applications
The Canadian Commission for UNESCO welcomes applications for the 2025-26 UNESCO Chairs programme cycle.
For full program details, including program description and eligibility requirements, please consult the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme Guidelines and procedures. Please note that this programme does not provide funding.
The Canadian Commission for UNESCO plays a key role in the preparation and pre-selection of candidates for the UNESCO Chairs Programme. Applications to UNESCO are limited to two per country, per year, as determined by the national commission. Therefore, all applications to UNESCO are subject to the prior validation and endorsement of the Canadian Commission.
Required documents:
- Letter of Intent (maximum three pages)
- Letter of support from the head of the proposed host institution
- CV(s) of proposed Chairholder(s)
Assessment:
Applications will undergo an evaluation process by a committee of current Chairholders and relevant CCUNESCO staff. As the Committee is interdisciplinary, please use accessible language.
Applications will be assessed based on the following criteria:
- Contribution to one or more of UNESCO’s priorities
- Consult the organization’s Medium-term Strategy (2022-2029) and Approved Programmeand Budget (2024-2025)
- Alignment with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO priorities
- Consult the Strategic Plan
- South-South and North-South-South Cooperation
- Note that, generally speaking, “South” refers to countries grouped in UNESCO’s group III, group IV, group V(a), and group V(b)
- Engagement with UNESCO and its networks
- Including a gender-sensitive approach, or gender lens
- Financial sustainability of the Chair
- Contributing to a greater presence of under-represented groups, geographic regions, or host institutions within the Canadian UNESCO Chairs network
- Expertise of the proposed Chairholder(s)
We welcome applications from members of racialized minorities, women, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities, and others.
Deadlines:
Application: 15 September 2025
Full draft proposal (for successful candidates): 30 January 2026
Final Submission to UNESCO (for final selected candidates): 30 April 2026
Contact: Please send completed packages to ccunesco@ccunesco.ca and Elaine Young, Program Officer, Communication and Information (elaine.young@ccunesco.ca)