Over the past several decades, many international organizations have selected Montréal as the city to house their headquarters. Why is that? One of the biggest reasons is that Montréal is affordable; we offer oodles of talent without inflated real estate costs. And because we’re the most trilingual city in Canada — French, English, and some 80 other languages — Montréal also makes sense from a communications perspective. We speak your language! Finally, Montréal has often been described as the cultural middle zone between Europe and North America. We feel culturally familiar to many people.
Despite a humble population, Montréal has the third largest concentration of international organizations in the Americas. We’re home to more than 60 of them, including the headquarters of four UN agencies. We’re also the world capital of civil aviation: the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Furthermore, Montréal is a member of several sustainable development networks across the world, including C40 Cities and the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy.
We’re honoured that international organizations choose us, especially those who are interested in a sustainable future. On that note, here are just 10 international organizations — all with sustainable development at the heart of what they do — located in Montréal.
Secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity
An organization that supports the objectives established at the convention on biological diversity.
Rights & Resources
A global network for protecting the land and forest rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.
Future Earth
A multi-hub organization that accelerates transformations towards global sustainability through research and innovation.
Commission for Environmental Cooperation
Intergovernmental organization for North American cooperation to promote the conservation, protection, and improvement of the environment.
Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montréal Protocol
A UN organization dedicated to reversing the deterioration of the ozone layer.
Global Sustainable Electricity Partnership
A CEO-led alliance of leading global electricity companies at the heart of the electrification revolution. They also promote the development of sustainable energy sources.
Centre for International Sustainable Development Law
Integrate environment, human rights, and economy through legal scholarship and empowerment.
International Secretariat for Water
Mobilizes and advocates for universal access to water and sanitation, while taking a long-term approach to preserving natural resources.
International Francophone Secretariat for Environmental Assessment
Promotes environmental impact assessments in the French-speaking world.
GODAN
Promotes the proactive sharing of open data to make information about agriculture and nutrition available, accessible, and usable worldwide.
Our colleagues over at Montréal International provide personalized support to international associations and organizations who are seeking to establish offices in Montréal. And we — Business Events Montréal (a branch of Tourisme Montréal) — provide support to associations and organizations interested in hosting events in Montréal.
Interested in planning an event in Montréal? Here’s where to direct general inquiries…
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Source material: Montréal International