Hakima El Haite (born 13 May 1963) is a Moroccan climate scientist, entrepreneur and politician. In 1994 she founded EauGlobe, the first environmental engineering firm in the MENA region. She served as Minister Delegate in Charge of the Environment for the Kingdom of Morocco from 2013 to 2017. In 2015, she was elected Vice President of United National International Climate Conference (COP21). She was appointed Special Envoy for Climate Change of the Kingdom of Morocco from 2015 to 2017 and
the High Level Climate Champion of the United Nations International Climate Conference (COP22) in 2016 – 2017.
She is the current president of the
Liberal International
Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberal political parties - a political international. It was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties, aiming to strengthen liberalism aroun ...
since December 2018, the first non-European in this post.
Early life and education
El Haite was born in
Fez
Fez most often refers to:
* Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire
* Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco
Fez or FEZ may also refer to:
Media
* ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...
on 13 May 1963. She has a degree in
biology
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...
and
microbiology from
Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University
Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University (french: Université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah; ar, جامعة سيدي محمد بن عبد الله) is a university in Fez city, Morocco, which was founded in 1975. It is named for Mohammed ben Abdallah ...
in Fez (1986), a postgraduate degree in
ecotoxicology
Ecotoxicology is the study of the effects of toxic chemicals on biological organisms, especially at the population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere levels. Ecotoxicology is a multidisciplinary field, which integrates toxicology and ecology ...
from
Moulay Ismail University
Moulay Ismail University (french: Université Moulay Ismail; ar, جامعة مولاي إسماعيل) is a university in Meknes city, Morocco, which was founded in 1989. It is named after the Moroccan Sultan Moulay Ismaïl.
See also
* List ...
in
Meknes
Meknes ( ar, مكناس, maknās, ; ber, ⴰⵎⴽⵏⴰⵙ, amknas; french: Meknès) is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco, located in northern central Morocco and the sixth largest city by population in the kingdom. Founded in the 11th c ...
(1987). She has two PhDs, one in
environmental studies from the University of Meknes (1991) and one in
environmental engineering
Environmental engineering is a professional engineering discipline that encompasses broad scientific topics like chemistry, biology, ecology, geology, hydraulics, hydrology, microbiology, and mathematics to create solutions that will protect and ...
from the
École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Saint-Étienne
, also called (literally meaning "Saint-Étienne school of mines") or simply and commonly abbreviated EMSE is a prestigious French graduate engineering school () training engineers and carrying out industry-oriented research. Its function is to ...
in
Saint-Étienne, France with a thesis on the treatment of wastewater. She also has a diploma in political communication from the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...
in the United States (2008).
[
]
Career
El Haite worked for the urban agency of Fez in territorial administration until 1993. She was also the Treasurer of the National Union of Women. In 1994, she founded the company EauGlobe, which specializes in engineering and environmental consulting.[ She is Vice President of US-NAPEO, the US North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity and ConnectinGroup International, the first organization training women for appointed office.
El Haite is a member of the Popular Movement political party. In 2007, she became president of the Association of Women Entrepreneurs in Morocco. She became president of the International Network of Liberal Women in 2012. Since December 2012, she has been president of the International Relations of the Popular Movement.][
El Haite was appointed Minister Delegate in Charge of the Environment for the Minister of Energy, Mines, Water and Environment in 2013. In this position she oversees environmental policies in the ]constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
so that a sustainable development component is included in every public policy initiative . Morocco also has environmental police.
She participated in the 2013 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP19 or CMP9 was held in Warsaw, Poland from 11 to 23 November 2013. This is the 19th yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 19) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Cli ...
in Warsaw and 2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP20 or CMP10 was held in Lima, Peru, from December 1 to 12, 2014. This was the 20th yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 20) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention o ...
in Lima before taking a leading role in 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, the climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
negotiations in Paris in December 2015.United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established an international environmental treaty to combat "dangerous human interference with the climate system", in part by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in ...
.2016 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The 2016 United Nations Climate Change Conference was an international meeting of political leaders and activists to discuss environmental issues. It was held in Marrakech, Morocco, on 7–18 November 2016. The conference incorporated the twen ...
in Marrakesh in November 2016.
Personal life
El Haite is fluent in Arabic, English and French.
Awards and honours
In 2014, El Haite was awarded the Freedom Prize by the Spanish Foundation Women for Freedom and Democracy. In December 2016, she received the insignia of Chevalier of the Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
of the French Republic from President François Hollande. The award was presented by former Prime Minister Laurent Fabius
Laurent Fabius (; born 20 August 1946) is a French politician serving as President of the Constitutional Council since 8 March 2016. A member of the Socialist Party, he previously served as Prime Minister of France from 17 July 1984 to 20 Mar ...
for her national and international commitment to the ecological cause.
Publications
*
*
*
References
External links
Government profile (in French)
Interview on Climate Changes News
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haite, Hakima
Living people
1963 births
Moroccan scientists
Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University alumni
University of Washington alumni
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
People from Fez, Morocco
21st-century Moroccan women politicians
21st-century Moroccan politicians