A United Nations Association of New York Virtual Event
Ambassador Michel Xavier Biang
Permanent Representative of Gabon to the United Nations
Ambassador Christoph Heusgen
Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations
Moderated by
Elizabeth Bennett
Vice President, Species Conservation
Wildlife Conservation Society
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Thursday | 3 June 2021 | 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. EST
Note: This event will last approximately 1 hour, and will include a brief Q+A session.
Over the past few years, four groundbreaking General Assembly Resolutions on the issue of the illegal wildlife trade have been adopted by countries at the United Nations. The issue is critical since it not only threatens species, but also livelihoods, economies, and national security in multiple countries globally.
Come join us and listen to the Ambassadors of Germany and Gabon to the United Nations, the countries which have led this effort in their role as Co-Chairs of the Group of Friends of Wildlife.
They will discuss the illegal wildlife trade, the importance of, and impact of, the Resolutions on the way in which the problem is addressed on the ground, and why continued global attention to the issue remains critical today.
Moderator
ELIZABETH BENNETT
Elizabeth Bennett is Vice President for Species Conservation at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). She received her Ph.D. from Cambridge University, UK, for research on the ecology of primates in Peninsular Malaysia. She moved to Sarawak, Malaysia, in 1984, and worked there for the next 18 years. This included conducting studies of the effects of hunting and logging on wildlife, and leading a team, with WCS and Sarawak Government staff, to write a comprehensive wildlife policy for the State, and subsequently heading a Government unit to oversee its implementation. She then became Director, Hunting and Wildlife Trade Program at WCS. This included working with WCS field staff to develop strategies to address the bushmeat trade in Central Africa and illegal wildlife trade in China. Her current role involves overseeing WCS’s species conservation programs globally. She has more than 130 scientific and popular publications. Her services to conservation have been recognized by her being awarded the “Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire” (MBE) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, D.Sc. (honoris causa) by Nottingham University, and and Merdeka Award for Outstanding Contribution to the People of Malaysia.
Guest Speakers
AMBASSADOR MICHEL XAVIER BIANG
Ambassador Biang has been the Permanent Representative of Gabon to the United Nations since 2017 and was designated Permanent Representative to the International Seabed Authority (ISA) on 11 February 2021.
Prior to these appointments, Mr. Biang was Ambassador of Gabon to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, accredited concurrently to Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda (2015-17). In 2018, Mr. Biang chaired the UN GA Sixth Committee (Legal) during the Seventy-second session of the United Nations General Assembly. His previous governmental positions include Deputy Permanent Secretary to the National Climate Council in charge of international negotiations on Climate Change (2014-15); Director of Legal Affairs and Legislation at the National Civil Aviation Agency (2012-14); Diplomatic and Legal Adviser (2010-12) and Legal Adviser (2009-10) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Deputy Director-General of International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2007-09); Director of Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2004-07). Between 2004 and 2005, he was the Legal Adviser to the President of the Fifty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Mr. Biang holds an Advanced Degree in Diplomacy from the École Nationale d’Administration (ENA-Gabon) and a Master’s Degree in Public Law from Omar Bongo University (Gabon).
AMBASSADOR CHRISTOPH HEUSGEN
Ambassador Christoph Heusgen has been the Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations since July 26, 2017. He has also recently served as President of the UN Security Council.
Prior to this appointment as Permanent Representative and since 2005, Heusgen was the Foreign Policy and Security Adviser to his country’s Federal Chancellor, Angela Merkel. He served as Director and Head of the Policy Unit for High Representative Javier Solana in the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union from 1999 to 2005.
Between 1988 and 1999, Heusgen served in various capacities at the Foreign Office in Bonn, including Deputy Director-General for European Affairs from 1997 to 1999; Head of Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel’s Private Office in charge of European Affairs from 1993 to 1997, serving as Deputy Head since 1994. From 1990 and 1992, he was Deputy Head of the special section in charge of negotiations on the Treaty of Maastricht. He held the position of Private Secretary to the Coordinator for German-French Relations from 1988 to 1990. From 1986-88, Heusgen worked in Germany’s Paris Embassy, having begun his foreign service career in the Press and Economic Affairs Office of his country’s Consulate in Chicago, where he worked from 1983 to 1986. He joined the foreign service in 1980.
Heusgen is a graduate of the University of Saint Gallen in Switzerland, and Georgia South College in the United States. In 1980, he earned a post-graduate degree from the University of Saint Gallen, where from August 2020, he is an Honorary Professor.