The UNESCO Chair in Development Studies was created by an agreement signed in Paris on 16 September 1994 between the Universitat de València and the UNESCO. In April 2019 the renewal of the agreement was signed until September 2023.

The aim of this Chair is to contribute to sustainable human development through research, teaching and dissemination. It publishes an annual call aimed at staff of the Universitat de València that aims to promote a global citizenship, co-responsible with sustainable human development, human rights and the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations. Through this call, training and awareness-raising initiatives on volunteering, solidarity and cooperation for sustainable human development that contribute to raising awareness, training, mainstreaming, informing, disseminating and educating the university community, its academic activity and its social environment are encouraged.

The activities of the Chair are carried out in the following areas:

• Call for grants for Development Education, Global Citizenship and Awareness-raising actions.
• Promotion of the development and dissemination of teaching materials on the situation of developing countries.
• Creation of university exchange networks.

The Director of the UNESCO Chair in Development Studies is appointed by the Principal of the Universitat de València. At present, its holder is Professor Carmen Lloret-Català, Delegate of the Principal for Cooperation.
The UNESCO Chair in Development Studies is an institutional partner of REEDES since the establishment of this network in 2011.