Friends of Africa International Advisory Board Member

Dr. Noel Brown, CEO Friends of the United Nations

 

One of the most dedicated and ardent champions of environmental sustainability, Dr. Noel Brown initiated numerous innovations in the service of environmental protection and sustainable development as the Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), North American regional office. Since then, he has continued to represent UNEP at a number of the major international conferences and negotiations on environment, development issues and international law, including the historic Earth Summit in Rio, 1992. Dr. Brown currently serves as President of the Friends of the United Nations, an NGO dedicated to advancing the cause of the United Nations by mobilizing public support on its behalf and directing public attention to its major programmes and achievements. He also currently serves as Chairman of the International Institute for Peace Through Tourism and is Vice Chairman of the International Council of the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations. He is a founding member of the Aspen Global Change Institute and the International Council for Local Environment Issues, is Chairman of the Rene Dubos Center for Human Environments, and serves on the Board of Directors of the Global Rivers Environmental Educational Network, the Climate Institute, the Earth Communications Office, the Rainforest Alliance, Global Education Associates, Trust for the Americas, and other environmental and educational organizations. Dr. Brown holds a B.A. in Political Science and Economics from Seattle University, an M.A. in International Law and Organization from Georgetown University and Ph.D. in International Relations from Yale University. He also holds a diploma in International Law from The Hague Academy of International Law, and an honorary Ph. D from Pace University. He is a fellow of the World Academy of Arts and Sciences, Chairman of the International Institute for Peace through Tourism and Chairman of the Rene Dubos Center for Human Environments. Dr. Brown has been a Visiting Professor at both U.S. and foreign universities, teaching on the subject of International Law and Organization, Government and Politics, and Environmental Management. He was a distinguished lecturer at the University of Victoria, British Columbia and an associate of the Queen Elizabeth Trust for Young Australians. Dr. Brown was the 1996 Leo Bloc Professor at the University of Denver and is currently the Director of training at the International Oceans Institute, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Dr. Brown serves on the Board of Directors of the Climate Institute, the Earth Communications Office, the Rainforest Alliance, MUSE, Film & Television, the Center for Resource Management, Global Education Associates, Trust for the Americas, the International Leadership Development Institute, Roots for Peace, International Sea-keepers Society, the Timbuktu Heritage Institute and Jamaica National Parks Trust Fund. Dr. Brown has consulted and lectured extensively around the world and has produced a number of publications. Through his work with the Peace Child International, he sponsored and encouraged a group of young people to rewrite Agenda 21 (the Earth Summit’s Blueprint for Sustainable Development) in a style and language that would be meaningful to their generation and which resulted in Rescue Mission, now an international best-seller within the environmental youth community.  In keeping with efforts to address the moral dimension of the environmental crisis, Dr. Brown introduced the Environmental Sabbath Programme to the United Nations, now celebrated worldwide by thousands of congregations in connection with World Environment Day, and he has recently edited a volume entitled Ethics and Agenda 21: Moral Implications of a Global Consensus. Dr. Brown has numerous awards acknowledging his service to the environment, including: the Lions Club Award, the Friends of the United Nations Award, the Gaia Award, and the Global Education Associates A ward for Distinguished Service in Care of the Earth. Dr. Brown is also a recipient of the 1998 World Academy of Arts and Science Award for Distinguished Public Service.

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