Achim Steiner
| Achim Steiner | |
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| Born | 17 May 1961 (age 55) |
| Nationality | Brazilian, German |
| Alma mater | Worcester College, Oxford, University of London, Harvard Business School |
Achim Steiner (born 17 May 1961 in Carazinho, Brazil) is an expert in environmental issues and politics. He was Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme UNEP from 2006 until June 2016. Before joining UNEP, he was Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Secretary General of the World Commission on Dams. As of September 2016 he is director of the Oxford Martin School. On April 19, 2017, the United Nations General Assembly confirmed him as Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme for a four-year term.
The son of a German farmer who had emigrated to Rio Grande do Sul, Achim Steiner was born in Brazil in 1961 and holds German as well as Brazilian citizenship. He went to school in Carazinho and at Dover College. He obtained a BA from the University of Oxford and an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, specializing in development economics, regional planning, international development and environment policy. He also studied at the German Development Institute in Berlin and the Harvard Business School.
Steiner started his career in 1989 at the Rural Regional Development Department, GTZ in Germany. From 1991 to 1997 he worked for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Southern Africa and Washington DC. He was Chief Technical Adviser of the Mekong River Commission (1997-1998) before becoming Secretary-General of the World Commission on Dams. In 2001 he returned to IUCN as Director-General.
Acting on the nomination of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the United Nations General Assembly in 2006 unanimously elected Steiner Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for a four-year term. At the time, he was not nominated by a Member State, but prevailed over candidates such as Børge Brende of Norway and Rajendra K. Pachauri of India. His mandate was later extended twice, this time on the proposal of the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
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