Yann Wehrling (born 3 July 1971) is a French

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicat ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

of the

Democratic Movement A democracy is a political system, or a system of decision-making within an institution or organization or a country, in which all members have an equal share of power. Modern democracies are characterized by two capabilities that differentiate ...

(MoDem). He previously was a member and former leader of the political party

The Greens The Greens or Greens may refer to: Current political parties * Australian Greens, also known as ''The Greens'' * Greens of Andorra * Greens of Bosnia and Herzegovina * Greens of Burkina * Greens (Greece) * Greens of Montenegro *Greens of Serbia *G ...

Education and early activism

In 1988 Wehrling joined the

environmental A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

movement "France Nature Environnement" and in the following year joined The Greens. From 1992 to 1994 he was the National Secretary of "EcoloJ", a youth environmental organisation. After completing his studies of

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

in Strasbourg in 1994, he worked as an illustrator in publishing, for the French-German television channel

Arte Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...

, and for the Irish channel

TnaG TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond. TG4 was formerly known a ...

. Wehrling is a specialist in wild

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

, and an expert on the reintroduction of the

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

into the

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...

forest.

Political career

Green Party

Wehrling then became a spokesman for The Greens. In January 2005 he was elected the National Secretary of The Greens with 62% of the vote, coming after long and protracted negotiations. In December 2006

Cécile Duflot Cécile Duflot (; born 1 April 1975) is a French non-governmental organisation (NGO) leader and former politician. She has been a government minister and political party leader. She was Minister of Territorial Equality and Housing (french: Mi ...

succeeded him to the post. Wehrling belonged to the environmentalist wing of the party, named "Pôle Écolo" (the Eco-Pole) ou "

Ecolo Ecolo, officially Écologistes Confédérés pour l'organisation de luttes originales'', (English: Confederate Ecologists for the Organisation of Original Struggles)'' is a French-speaking political party in Belgium based on green politics. The ...

" (Eco). He worked with fellow Green politicians in the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

MoDem

Following the

2008 French municipal elections The French municipal elections of 2008 were held on 9 and 16 March to elect the municipal councils of France's 36,782 communes. The first task of each newly constituted municipal council was to elect a mayor. Municipal councilors, and the mayors ...

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, Wehrling became a member of

François Bayrou François René Jean Lucien Bayrou (; born 25 May 1951) is a French politician who has presided over the Democratic Movement (MoDem) since he founded it in 2007. A centrist, he was a candidate in the 2002, 2007 and 2012 presidential elections. ...

's Democratic Movement (MoDem). As a consequence, he was excluded from the Green Party. Ahead of the

2014 Paris municipal election Municipal elections in Paris took place on 23 and 30 March 2014, at the same time as other French municipal elections. Anne Hidalgo of the Socialist Party was elected mayor of Paris, becoming the first woman to hold that position. She had been t ...

, Wehrling joined the campaign team of candidate

Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet Nathalie Geneviève Marie Kosciusko-Morizet () (born 14 May 1973 in the 15th arrondissement of Paris), often referred to by her initials NKM, is an engineer, public figure and advocate, having previously had a political career. She was a Membe ...

. In 2017, Wehrling succeeded

Marc Fesneau Marc Fesneau (; born 11 January 1971) is a French politician who has served as Minister of Agriculture and Food since 20 May 2022 in the government of Élisabeth Borne. A member of the Democratic Movement (MoDem), he previously represented the 1 ...

as secretary general of MoDem, under the leadership of chairman

. In 2018, Wehrling was appointed by Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs

Jean-Yves Le Drian Jean-Yves Le Drian (; born 30 June 1947) is a French politician who served as Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs in the First Philippe government, governments of Prime Ministers Édouard Philippe and ...

as France's ambassador on the environment.Emmanuel Galiero (6 December 2018)
Le MoDem Yann Werhling nommé ambassadeur pour l'environnement
''

Le Figaro ''Le Figaro'' () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It is headquartered on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. The oldest national newspaper in France, ''Le Figaro'' is one of three French newspapers of reco ...

''.

Media action

On 22 March 2005, for the

World Day for Water World Water Day is an annual United Nations (UN) observance day held on 22 March that highlights the importance of fresh water. The day is used to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. The theme of each year focuses ...

, Werhling took a swim in the

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributarie ...

river in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, along with three other members of the Executive College of the Greens. Their reason behind this action was to denounce

pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

in French rivers and to urge the government to reexamine its environmental policy in this regard.

French President The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

had—in a sense—promised much the same thing in regard to the Seine river during time as

mayor of Paris The Mayor of Paris (french: Maire de Paris) is the chief executive of Paris, the capital and largest city in France. The officeholder is responsible for the administration and management of the city, submits proposals and recommendations to the C ...

References

External links

Personal site of Yann Wehrling
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wehrling, Yann 1971 births Living people Politicians from Strasbourg The Greens (France) politicians Democratic Movement (France) politicians French illustrators French people of German descent University of Strasbourg alumni Councillors of Paris