Dr. Marion Cheatle delivers lecture series at IESD

Dr Marion Cheatle, delivered a keynote speech which focusedon how UNEP meets its responsibility to keep track of the world environmentalsituation and bring emerging problems to the attention of governments.  Following some introductory remarks on UNEPshe explored how the organization has met this important mandate since itsestablishment in 1972. Dr. Cheatle focused in on the last 25 years during whichthe GEO report series took center stage, explained how the process has evolvedusing integrated environmental assessment, and outlined the outcomes and impactsthat have resulted to date – culminating in GEO6 which was launched in March2019. 

Dr. Cheatle’s visit concluded with a series of intensive lecturesfor the course Environmental Systems and Sustainable Development in Tongji UNEPInstitute of Environment for Sustainable Development.

 Dr. Cheatle has a natural science background in geography,ecology and remote sensing.  After herearly career in tertiary education and research at the universities of Malawiand Zambia she spent 2 years in the Solomon Islands, South Pacific, where sheundertook land-related consultancy work. She joined the United NationsEnvironment Programme (UNEP), Nairobi, Kenya in 1993, working in the Divisionof Early Warning and Assessment (DEWA) on diverse activities including globalobserving and monitoring systems, environmental data and indicators, andidentification of emerging environmental threats.

She coordinated UNEP’s flagship global assessment process,the Global Environment Outlook (GEO), for six years and subsequently heldvarious management level posts in DEWA including Chief of the Early Warning andCapacity Development Branches, Deputy Director and Acting Director of theDivision. In China, Marion has co-chaired a 3-year special project for theChina Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development(CCICED), and has been a guest professor at Tongji University since 2011.