The Economic and Social Council - Organization of international conferences

In accordance with a charter provision, the council from time to time calls for international conferences on special world problems falling within its sphere of competence. Thus, in the 1990s, the UN held conferences on such subjects as the environment, population, food, housing, and the status of women. In 2001 and 2002, the UN held conferences against racism, xenophobia, and related forms of intolerance, on the problem of HIV/AIDS, and a world summit on sustainable development. These conferences led to the establishment of the UN Environment Program, the World Food Council, the Center for Human Settlements (Habitat), and other programs and to the adoption of world plans of action for the environment, clean water, population, the aging, the disabled, and other subjects of international concern.