Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
) is a German entrepreneur and former
UNHCR
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...
official who served as the director of the
Zaatari refugee camp
The Zaatari refugee camp () is a refugee camp in Jordan, located east of Mafraq, which has gradually evolved into a permanent settlement;
Personal life
Kleinschmidt was born in
Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
as the son of teachers, and grew up in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. After taking his A-Levels, he worked as a
roofer
A roofer, roof mechanic, or roofing contractor is a tradesperson who specializes in roof construction. Roofers replace, repair, and install the roofs of buildings, using a variety of materials, including shingles, bitumen, and metal. Roofin ...
. He then joined a cooperative that raised 35 goats in the
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...
to make cheese. At 26, during a motorcycle trip in
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...
, he met an aid worker and helped out to build a school in Youvarou. He subsequently went on to be associated with UN aid agencies in different capacities. He has five biological children from three relationships and currently resides in Tunis, Tunisia .
Career
He worked in Sudan during the
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originate ...
and helped organise a camp for the
Lost Boys of Sudan
The Lost Boys of Sudan refers to a group of over 20,000 boys of the Nuer and Dinka ethnic groups who were displaced or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War (1987–2005). Two million were killed and others were severely affected by the ...
. He was in Mogadishu in 1993 during the Battle of Mogadishu. He spent two years in Sri Lanka as a liaison to the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
rebels. He also coordinated the rescue of Rwandan Hutu refugees caught in the rain forests of Congo in 1997 for UNHCR. He repaired an old railroad built by the Belgians, and used a train powered by a steam locomotive to rescue many of the refugees. He has also worked as the Deputy UNHCR representative in Kenya and deputy to the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General for assistance to Pakistan.
He took over as the 'Senior Field Coordinator' for UNHCR at the Zaatari refugee camp on March 12, 2013 following a series of temporary camp directors. He was tasked with restoring order in the second largest refugee camp in the world. After a 25-year stint with the UN, he founded his own aid consultancy called Switxboard. He also serves as a consultant on refugee matters to the Austrian Ministry of the Interior.