Geneva, 06 February 2026 - As the first session of the plenary of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution (ISP-CWP) closed, IPEN expressed disappointment that through the week-long session, no discussions were forthcoming around the overwhelming scientific evidence demonstrating the need for urgent action to protect human health and the environment from toxic chemicals.
Instead, the talks focused almost entirely on discussions around the rules of procedure, with many key procedural issues remaining unresolved.
IPEN partner organizations from across South Asia came together in Negombo, Sri Lanka, from December 2–4, 2025, for a regional meeting focused on strengthening coordination, identifying priorities, and reflecting on how our work needs to evolve in a rapidly changing chemicals and waste landscape. Thirty participants from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka took part in the meeting.
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution (ISP-CWP) was established in June 2025. The first session of its Plenary (its decision-making body) will be held in Geneva, 2-6 February 2026.
IPEN’s mission is a healthy, toxics-free future for all. Since 1998, IPEN has worked for a world in which chemicals are no longer produced or used in ways that harm human health or the environment. IPEN’s work protects human health and the environment from the production, use, and disposal of toxic chemicals, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
To help drive implementation of the Global Framework on Chemicals (GFC), PEN, Pesticide Action Network International (PAN), Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF), Health Care Without Harm (HCWH), and International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) came together to develop a Common Statement to encourage other organizations globally to work together in promoting the aims of the GFC.
Read the Common Statement and background information, below.
IPEN members from around the world will participate in the seventh session of the U.N. Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) in Nairobi, Kenya from 8 to 12 December, 2025. The theme of the session is "Advancing sustainable solutions for a resilient planet.”
In previous UNEA meetings IPEN has advocated for strong global protections from toxic chemicals, including successfully working for adoption of the resolution for a Plastics Treaty at UNEA-5.
UNEA is the world’s top decision-making body on the environment, aiming to help restore harmony between humanity and nature and improve the lives of the world’s most vulnerable people.
Read the IPEN briefing, "Defending the Integrity of the Plastics Treaty Negotiations here.
