Rolph Payet
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Rolph Antoine Payet
FRGS The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
(born 4 August 1968) is an international policy expert, researcher and speaker on environment, climate and island issues, and was the first President & Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Seychelles University of Seychelles, informally also called UniSey, is the primary institution of higher education in Seychelles. It was established on 17 September 2009. There are three campuses: the main campus at Anse Royale, the Mont Fleuri campus offe ...
. He was Minister of Environment and Energy in the Cabinet of Seychelles from 2012 to 2014. He is currently
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
Executive Secretary for the
Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
,
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
and
Stockholm Convention Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is an international environmental treaty, signed on 22 May 2001 in Stockholm and effective from 17 May 2004, that aims to eliminate or restrict the production and use of persistent organic ...
.


Personal life

Payet was born in Seychelles. He grew up in Rochon, a suburb of the capital,
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
. As young boy he dreamed of becoming a scientist. He attended Seychelles College, then Mont Fleuri School, completed two years of National Youth Service in Seychelles (1985–1986). He completed his Cambridge O/A-levels at the Seychelles Polytechnic in December 1988, where he was awarded the most outstanding science student. He grew up falling in love with the environment, and after numerous expeditions to islands such as Cerf and Silhouette, decided on a career in environment. He was educated at the
University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...
(BSc Biochemistry, 1992), University of Surrey (MBA),
University of Ulster sco, Ulstèr Universitie , image = Ulster University coat of arms.png , caption = , motto_lang = , mottoeng = , latin_name = Universitas Ulidiae , established = 1865 – Magee College 1953 - Magee Un ...
(MSc), the
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
, and the
John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
at
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
. He received his PhD from
Linnaeus University Linnaeus University (LNU) ( sv, Linnéuniversitetet) is a state university in the Swedish historical province (''landskap'') Småland, with two campuses located in Växjö and Kalmar respectively. Linnaeus University was established in 2010 b ...
in Environmental Science, where he undertook multidisciplinary research in
sustainable tourism Sustainable tourism is a concept that covers the complete tourism experience, including concern for economic, social and environmental issues as well as attention to improving tourists' experiences and addressing the needs of host communities. Su ...
.


Career

Payet had a 17-year career in the civil service, and eventually serving as Principal Secretary for Environment from 2003–2007. During that period he revolutionized environment management in Seychelles and on the international level. He was Seychelles' chief negotiator for the
Montreal Protocol The Montreal Protocol is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances that are responsible for ozone depletion. It was agreed on 16 September 1987, and entered into force o ...
, the
Basel Convention The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, usually known as the Basel Convention, is an international treaty that was designed to reduce the movements of hazardous waste between nations ...
, and the
UNFCCC 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 th ...
. He was instrumental in addressing
Small Island Developing States Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are a group of developing countries that are small island countries which tend to share similar sustainable development challenges. These include small but growing populations, limited resources, remoteness ...
issues and in implementing appropriate strategies, institutions and capacity in Seychelles to address these emerging global environmental issues. He was appointed President & Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Seychelles University of Seychelles, informally also called UniSey, is the primary institution of higher education in Seychelles. It was established on 17 September 2009. There are three campuses: the main campus at Anse Royale, the Mont Fleuri campus offe ...
in October 2009. He is also Special Advisor to the President of the Republic of Seychelles, Mr James Michel, since 2007. In that role he independently advises the President on numerous environmental matters including sustainable development, biodiversity, climate change, energy, and international environment policy. Rolph Payet is founding member/trustee of the Global Island Partnership, the Sea Level Rise Foundation, the Seychelles University Foundation, the Seychelles Centre for Marine Research and Technology, the Island Conservation Society and the Silhouette Foundation. Dr Payet has also been instrumental in increasing the visibility and impact of numerous regional and international organisations such as the International Coral Reef Initiative (co-chair from 2003–2005), the Global Forum on Oceans, Coasts and Islands, and the Interim Coordinator of the Nairobi Convention UNEP Regional Seas Programme. Recently, Rolph has been invited to sit on numerous international conference committees and panels, and as moderator/speaker on climate change, biodiversity and island issues. Rolph is periodically invited by the Secretary General of the UN,
Ban Ki Moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...
, to speak at various UN forums, including the
UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
. His work has also been covered by the international media, such as
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
and the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. Rolph is an elected Central Committee Member of the ruling socialist People's Party and has been active in the social and political life of his party.


Honors and contributions

Rolph has received numerous international awards and recognition for his work on islands, climate change and biodiversity. Rolph is known for his ability to bring together the various disciplines - natural science, economics and business - to innovate solutions for environmental problems. His research in sustainable tourism and climate change continue to benefit numerous tourism developments in Seychelles and elsewhere. Rolph is a lead author with the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations. Its job is to advance scientific knowledge about climate change caused by human activities. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) a ...
and was involved with the Third and Fourth Assessment Reports. The panel was jointly awarded the 2007
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...
, and the contribution of many scientists was acknowledged. Rolph has published numerous peer-reviewed papers, book chapters and one book. In 2007, he was elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society for his contributions to marine research. In January 2007, Rolph was selected a Young Global Leader by the
World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
. He received an honorary doctorate from the
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
in March 2016.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Payet, Rolph 1968 births Living people Alumni of the University of East Anglia Alumni of the University of Surrey Alumni of Ulster University Alumni of University of London Worldwide Alumni of the University of London Energy ministers of Seychelles Environment ministers of Seychelles University of Seychelles Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society