IISDMaurice Strong: first executive director of the UN Environment ProgramIISD
Maurice Strong of Canada, the first executive director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and pioneer in devising sustainable development policies, passed away on November 27, 2015. He was 86. Strong was the lead organizer of the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development, held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992: Rio-92. Delegations from 175 countries met at the conference to discuss how to solve challenging issues such as climate, water and pollution. The results have become a benchmark for UN conferences on climate (COPs) that have been held in the last two decades. The most recent, in Paris, began two days after Strong died. A businessman whose wealth came from the oil and gas industry, Strong was one of the first representatives of the industry to draw attention to climate change. He encouraged governments of developed countries to take responsibility for the deterioration caused by industrialization.
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