José María Figueres
| José María Figueres Olsen | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| President of Costa Rica | |
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In office May 8, 1994 – May 8, 1998 |
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| Preceded by | Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier |
| Succeeded by | Miguel Ángel Rodríguez |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
December 24, 1954 San José, Costa Rica |
| Political party | PLN |
| Spouse(s) | Josette Altmann Borbón (?–?; divorced) |
| Profession | Businessman and politician |
José María Figueres Olsen (born in San José, Costa Rica, December 24, 1954), is a Costa Rican businessman and politician. After he left the presidency of Costa Rica in 1998, Figueres has also been involved in global issues such as climate change, sustainable development, and technology. He started his career as an engineer working in agribusiness. After a decade, he entered public service as Minister of Foreign Trade and then Minister of Agriculture. In 1994, he was elected President of Costa Rica, as the nation's youngest elected president of the 20th century. In 2000, he joined the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, and later he worked with Concordia 21 in Madrid. Since 2010, he has been Chairman of the Carbon War Room, an independent non-profit organization focused on the global transition to a low-carbon economy. On March 27, 2012, Sir Richard Branson announced that he was appointed as the new President of the Carbon War Room.
José María Figueres is the son of José Figueres Ferrer (affectionately known as Don Pepe), who was a three-time President of Costa Rica. His mother, Karen Olsen Beck, an American social worker born to Danish immigrant parents, later adopted Costa Rican nationality. After serving as First Lady, she was appointed Ambassador to Israel in 1982. In 1990, she was elected Member of Congress for the 1990 - 1994 legislature.
Figueres grew up in La Lucha, a farm community his father don Pepe founded in 1928. There José María attended the public school Cecilia Orlich Figueres, before going on to study at the Colegio Humboldt and later at the Lincoln High School, both in San José.
Figueres has three younger siblings, Christiana Figueres, Mariano, and Kirsten. Christiana Figueres is currently the Executive Director of the UNFCCC, responsible for international climate change negotiations. From the first marriage of his father, Figueres has an older brother, Marti, and a sister, Muni. Muni Figueres has held various public positions, and since 2010 she has served as the Costa Rican Ambassador to the United States.
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