UNESCO (redirected from United Nations Educational, Social and Cultural Organization)

UNESCO: see United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.

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UNESCO

 in full United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Specialized agency of the UN, created in 1946 to aid peace by promoting international cooperation in education, science, and culture. It supports member states' efforts to eliminate illiteracy, encouraging the extension of free education, and acts as a clearinghouse for the exchange of ideas and knowledge. In 1972 it sponsored an international agreement to establish a World Heritage list of cultural sites and natural areas that would enjoy government protection (see World Heritage site). In 1984 the U.S. withdrew from UNESCO to protest what it considered the agency's anti-Western approach to cultural issues; the United Kingdom and Singapore withdrew a year later. The United Kingdom rejoined in 1997, and the U.S. followed suit in 2003.

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UNESCO

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization: an agency of the United Nations that sponsors programmes to promote education, communication, the arts, etc.
www.unesco.org