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Who are the ACA Project Partners?

The ACA Project team from across the Americas consists of:

Project Management

• Lic. Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger, CISDL / UNEP / IISD, Canada (law)

• Dr. Peter Hardi, Senior Fellow, Measurement and Assessment, IISD (political scientist)

• Dr. László Pintér, Director Measurement & Indicators, IISD (natural resources)

Project Advisors

• Dr. Nicola Borregaard de Strabucchi and Lic. Hernan Blanco, RIDES, Chile (economists)

• Lic. Daniel Taillant, CEDHA, Argentina (political science)

• Lic. Soledad Salvador, CIEDU, Uruguay (health policy)

Core Assessment Partners

Mercosur

• Dr. Maria Leichner, ECOS, Argentina (law)

Andes

• Dr. Maria Amparo Alban, CEDA, Ecuador (law)

Central America

• Prof. Carlos Murillo, CINPE, Costa Rica (economist)

North America

• Lic. Luis Guardarrama, CEMDA, Mexico (law)

• Lic. Ana Karina González, CEMDA, Mexico (law)

Caribbean

• Dr. Patricia Aquing, CEHI, St. Lucia (information)

Associate Partners

• Lic. Nicolas Lucas, WRI, Argentinian (lawyer)

• Lic. Mindahi Bastida Munos, COMEDES, Indigenous (political science)

• Lic. Misotis Rivas, Dominican Republic (economist)

• Dr. Pablo Rodas Martini, ASIES, Guatemala (political science)

• Dr. Enrique Leff, United Nations Environment Programme

• Mr. Scott Vaughan, Organisation of American States

• TBC, Pan-American Health Organization*

Hemispheric Advisory Council

A Hemispheric Advisory Council will be defined in the first project meeting. The Advisory Council of 5 – 10 experts in international environmental management and assessment, will include donor representation and will serve as a sounding board and guide for the course of the project, a source of expertise and legitimacy. It will help to deliver project results to key communities, and give opinions on recommendations.

National Expert Groups

To ensure that national authorities are fully involved and informed, and that links are built to economic, environmental and social sectors, each "core partner" will form a national advisory group of technical experts from different government departments, who will be informally consulted and advise the project. A list of the national advisory group for each country will be posted here.

Sponsors

The ACA Project is pleased to acknowledge partnership and support from:

• Department of Foreign Affairs & International Trade of Canada

• Environment Canada

• Health Canada

• The AVINA Foundation*

• International Development Research Centre

• Canadian International Development Agency*

* not yet confirmed.

---

Contact Information and Biographies of Project Personnel

Project Management

• Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger
  IISD – CISDL – UNEP Americas Portfolio
  Centre for International Sustainable Development Law
  McGill Faculty of Law
  3661 Peel St.
  Montreal, Quebec
  Canada H3A 1X1
  Phone: +1 (514) 398 8918
  Fax: +1 (514) 398 8917
  E-mail: mcsegger@iisd.ca
  Web: http://www.cisdl.org

  Marie-Claire directs the IISD-CISDL-UNEP Americas Portfolio, and is based at the CISDL in Montreal, Canada. As a consultant for the IISD Measurement and Assessment Program, she directs the ACA Project, chairs a Hemispheric Working Group on Trade and the Environment, and directed the Quebec City Hemispheric Trade and Sustainability Symposium in 2001. With IISD, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Organisation of American States (OAS), she was lead author of 'Trade Rules and Sustainability in the Americas' (IISD, 1999); 'Ecological Rules and Sustainability in the Americas,' (IISD / UNEP, 2002); and 'Social Rules and Sustainability in the Americas' (IISD/OAS, 2003), as well as 'Beyond the Barricades: An Americas Trade and Sustainable Development Agenda' (Kumarian Press, 2004). She is also Director of the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law, based at the McGill University Faculty of Law in Montreal, Canada, and chair of a United Nations 'International Law for Sustainable Development' Partnership with the International Law Association and the International Development Law Organisation. With CISDL, she is author of 'Sustainable Justice: Integrating Social, Economic and Environmental Law' (Martinus Nijoff, 2004), and Sustainable Development Law: Principles, Practices and Prospects (Oxford University Press, 2004). She is a candidate for the Ph.D. of International Law from the Oxford University Faculty of Law, and holds a professional Masters of Environmental Management in Economics, Law and Policy from the Yale University School of Environment and Forestry (highest honours, Teaching Fellowship). She also holds degrees in civil and common law from McGill University in Montreal (distinction, Wainwright Scholarship), and an interdisciplinary BA (highest honours) in international relations, environment, law, and management studies. She has been twice appointed visiting scholar at the Lauterpatch Research Centre for International Law in Cambridge University, and spent two years as an associate fellow at the Royal Institute for International Affairs in London. She has coordinated other hemispheric projects and founded various environmental organizations. She was delegate to the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, 1996 United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, 1996 Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD IV), and Bolivia Santa Cruz Summit of the Americas, 1997 Rio + 5 Forum, 1997 UN General Assembly Special Session on Sustainable Development, and 1998 Santiago Summit of the Americas. She has served on the Advisory Committee of the Canadian International Development Agency's Environment and Sustainable Development Program, CSD V NGO Steering Committee, and National Steering Committee of the Canadian Environmental Network among others. She speaks English, French, Spanish, basic Portuguese and German, and is married to Markus Gehring of Hamburg, Germany.

• Peter Hardi
  IISD Measurement and Assessment Programme
  International Institute for Sustainable Development
  161 Portage Avenue East, 6th Floor
  Winnipeg, Manitoba,
  Canada R3B 0Y4
  Phone: (204) 958-7700
  Fax: (204) 958-7710
  E-mail: phardi@iisd.ca
  Web:

  Dr. Hardi is a Senior Fellow of the Measurement and Assessment strategic objective. He joined the Institute in 1993 as Senior Fellow and Director of the Measurement and Assessment work. He has a Masters of Science in chemistry and a PhD in political science. Over the past decade, the main focus of Dr. Hardi's research interest has been related to sustainable development assessment and decision-making. He combines a comprehensive knowledge of the theoretical and methodological issues of SD with practical field experience in designing and working with decision-making tools, including indicators in a variety of settings, ranging from local communities through regions to international agencies and from highly developed countries to developing nations and countries in transition. Dr. Hardi has tested different frameworks and approaches, applied several innovative methods in practice. Dr. Hardi brings valuable experience in performance evaluation to the area. He participated in several project evaluations in Canada, in Central and Eastern Europe as well as in Asia. Dr. Hardi is a highly experienced presenter both at academic and public fora; he has designed organized and moderated workshops and public meetings in culturally diverse settings. He sits on several Boards of Directors and Advisory Committees of international and Canadian organizations dealing with SD; he is a member of the editorial board of the journal Ecological Indicators.

• László Pintér
  IISD Measurement and Assessment Program
  International Institute for Sustainable Development
  161 Portage Avenue East, 6th Floor
  Winnipeg, Manitoba,
  Canada R3B 0Y4
  Phone: (204) 958-7700
  Fax: (204) 958-7710
  E-mail: lpinter@iisd.ca
  Web:

  László Pintér is Director, Measurement and Assessment Strategic Objective at the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. László has been with IISD since 1994 and helped set up the Institute's program on Measurement and Assessment. He conceptualized, contributed to or lead projects with emphasis, among others, on state of the environment and sustainability reporting, sustainable development indicators, performance evaluation and integrated assessment in place-based, sectoral or global contexts. He also works in the areas of climate change adaptation on the regional level with a focus on water and agricuture, and leads IISD's activities as a Collaborative Center of the United Nations Environment Programme on the Global Environment Outlook program and associated capacity building activities. During 2000-01 he spent ten months as a Global Environmental Assessment Practitioner Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University, where he carried out research on the relationship between global integrated environmental assessment system design and effectiveness. He holds a Diploma in Agronomy (1988) from the Gödöllő University of Agricultural Sciences, Hungary, a Master of Natural Resources Management (1994) from the University of Manitoba, Canada and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota (2002). Prior to joining IISD László worked in the biotechnology industry as Manager of International Sales and Marketing with Diagnostic Technology, Inc. in the United States and as Marketing Director with Deltaco RT in Hungary. He lives with his wife, Emőke, their two daughters, Kamilla and Margaréta, and son Márton in Winnipeg. Prior to joining IISD Dr. Pinter worked in the biotechnology industry as Manager of International Sales and Marketing with Diagnostic Technology, Inc. in the United States and as Marketing Director with Deltaco RT in Hungary. He lives with his wife, Emõke, and their two daughters, Kamilla and Margaréta, and son in Winnipeg.

Core Research Partners

• Dr. Nicola Borregaard de Strabucchi
  Lic. Hernan Blanco
  Recursos e Investigación sobre el Desarrollo Sustentable (RIDES)
  Pedro de Valdivia Norte 0482, Santiago.
  Phone: +56 2323343
  E-mail: nborregaard@rides.cl
  Web: http://www.rides.cl

  Nicola Borregard of CIPMA in Chile, founder of the new RIDES, has a Ph. D. in Economics, with a specialisation in Natural Resources from Cambridge University, U.K. She is an initiator of the Andean Community – Mercosur dialogue among civil society organisations, and specialises in international economic development, also interanational environmental governance and social and environmental market stimulation and analysis projects. She was lead investigator and author of many studies, articles and books, including 'Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization and Policies for the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources: A Case Study on Chile's Mining Sector' for UNEP and the UNCTAD, and 'Environmental Effects of Foreign Investment Versus Domestic Investment in the Mining Sector in Latin America' for the OECD, 'Corporate Citizenship - Revisiting the Relationship between Business, Good Governance and Sustainable Development' for the WSSD with Halina Ward IIED, UK. She is a member of UNEP's Working Group on Economic Instruments, and an advisor to the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Her full biography will be available shortly.

• L. Soledad Salvador*
  Centro Interdisciplinario de Estudios sobre el Desarrollo, Uruguay (CIEDUR)
  Av. Américo Ricaldoni 2529/602
  CP 11600 Montevideo Uruguay.
  Phone/Fax: (598 2) 480 8685 (ext. 221)
  E-mail: marisol@chasque.net

• Lic. Daniel Taillant
  Centre for Human Rights and Environment (CEDHA)
  General Paz, 186, 10A
  Cordoba 5000 Argentina
  E-mail: daniel@cedha.org.ar
  Web: http://www.cedha.org.ar

  Jorge Daniel Taillant, Argentinian, is founding Editor and Director of the Journal of Latin American Affairs (JLAA), and is currently Executive Director of the Center for Human Rights and Environment, based in Cordoba, Argentina. Mr. Taillant has focused his work on development economics, human rights, democratization and urban poverty eradication, serving at the local and international levels. Mr. Taillant served in Cambodia as credit program officer, for a European Union-financed rural micro finance and village banking operation based on the Grameen Bank model and closely assisted an access to justice program strengthening human rights accountability and procedure. He has worked with numerous national and international organizations, including the World Bank, United Nations, OAS, European Community, and the US Department of Commerce. He began his career at the World Bank conducting macro-economic analysis and more recently helped develop strategic guidelines for the Bank's worldwide urban agenda, regularly supervising municipal and provincial reform programs in Latin America, coordinating local, regional, and international seminars and conferences on a variety of development topics related to public sector reform, and local and community development. Further to his local agenda, Mr. Taillant has focused on developing participatory mechanisms and local planning tools for municipalities. He has also served as an Elections Monitor for the United Nations/OAS, in Haiti and in Peru. He is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley where he studied political science, and holds a Masters degree from Georgetown University in Political Economics/Latin American Studies. He also studied political science at the Institute d'Études Politques in France, and economics at the United Nation's CEPAL in Chile.

Core Assessment Partners

Mercosur

• Dr. Maria Leichner
  Fundación Ecos (ECOS)
  CEP 56098 - Agencia 20 – Punta del Este, 2000 Uruguay
  Phone: 59.842.71252/71532
  Fax: 59.842.71252
  E-mail: mlreynal@adinet.com.uy
  Web: http://www.ecosibera.org/

  Maria Leichner Reynal, an Argentinian based in Uruguay, is the executive director and co-founder of the Fundación Ecos. She holds a Doctorate at Law (Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Argentina), and lectures in law, also organises seminars and capacity building workshops for Latin American NGOs, lawyers, trade negotiators and the media. In 1993, she co-ordinated "Informa Mercosur" a UNDP program to promote Mercosur for the civil society and the academia sector. She has written "La estructura orgánica del Mercosur" (1993) and several other articles, and she organised conferences to facilitate the participation of Mercosur-based civil society organisations in the regional integration process. In recent years, she has carried out consulting for World Wildlife Fund US and published with them "Mercosur: Su dimensión ambiental" (October, 2000) and she also participated as an expert in the project "Trade Rules and Sustainability in the Americas" (TRSA), and "Ecological Rules and Sustainability in the Americas" (ERSA), of the Institute for International and Sustainable Development. She was recently appointed a 'Global Leader of Tomorrow' with the World Economic Forum, for her work on civil society participation mechanisms and corporate social responsibility. She also participates as an expert in the Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI), a collaborative effort between the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy, the Global Leaders for Tomorrow Environmental Task Force, the Center for International Earth Science Information and the World Economic Forum. Before joining Fundación Ecos, Dr. Leichner Reynal served as Professor at the Universidad de Buenos Aires.

Andes

• Dr. Maria Amparo Alban*
  Centro Ecuatoriano de Derecho Ambiental (CEDA)
  Eloy Alfaro 17-70 y Rusia, tercer piso.
  Quito- Ecuador
  Phone: (593-2) 2231-410/1 and (593-2) 2238-609
  E-mail: albanr@uio.satnet.net
  Web: http://www.ceda.org.ec

Central America

• Prof. Carlos Murillo
  International Centre of Economic Policy for Sustainable Development (CINPE)
  PO Box 555-3000, Heredia, Costa Rica
  Cantón Central, Provincia Heredia, Costa Rica
  Phone: +(506) 262-2071, 262-2082
  Fax: +(506) 262-8733
  E-mail: hcorrale@una.ac.cr
  Web: http://www.cinpe.una.ac.cr

  Carlos Murillo-Rodriguez is Research Director of the International Centre of Economic Policy for Sustainable Developement (CINPE) at the Universidad Nacional (UNA), Costa Rica, where he is also a professor in economics, trade policy and social development. His research interests include seeking inspired developing-country led solutions to rural poverty, through agricultural economic development, as well as programs for social progress and improved access to services. Mr. Murillo serves as Chairman of the Inter-University Consortium for Sustainable Development, a collaborative effort between Wageningen Agricultural University, Utrecht University, Tilburg University (The Netherlands) and UNA. Previously, Mr. Murillo was Vice Minister of Foreign Trade for Costa Rica and Chairman of the Preparatory Committee of the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA). He also served as a member of the FTAA Working Group on Investment. He is author, with Eduardo Gitli, of "A Latin American Case for a Trade and Environment Link in the FTAA"(Washington, April 2000), and many other FTAA related publications. Concurrently, Mr. Murillo is pursuing his PhD in Agricultural Economics with particular emphasis on development at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA, from where he already has a Master of Sciences in Economics.

North America

• Mr. Luis Guardarrama*
  Ms. Ana Karina González
  Centro Mexicano de Derecho Ambiental (CEMDA)
  Atlixco 138, Colonia Condesa,
  México, D.F., 06140
  Phone: +(525) 286-3323, 211-2457
  Fax: +(525) 211-2593
  E-mail: general@cemda.org.mx
  Web: http://www.cemda.com

  Ana Karina González-Lützenkirchen, Mexican,coordinates the Trade and Environment Program at the Mexican Environmental Law Center (CEMDA) and has collaborated in several signficant publications with papers on trade, development and environment. She studied international relations at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City. She has a Diploma course on Risk Assessment by the same university and an M.Phil on Environment and Development from the University of Cambridge, U.K., where she focused on poverty eradication and enterprises in developing countries At the Universidad Iberoamericana she teaches courses on international policy, the environment and development, and international organizations. She has worked for Mexico's Foreign Ministry; and in the firm Galaz, Gómez Morfín, Chavero y Yamazaki, A.C., where she designed and evaluated a social and environmental assessment program for industry. In addition, she has worked as part of a consultancy group, for private firms, with a focus on developing eco-efficiency in Mexico.

Caribbean

• Mrs. Patricia Aquing*
  Caribbean Environmental Health Institute
  The Morne, P.O. Box 1111
  Castries, St. Lucia, WI
  E-mail: cehi@candw.lc

  Patricia Aquing, Programme Director of CEHI, is responsible for assisting the Executive Director in the development and coordination of the CEHI's programmes. As head of the Programme Unit she is, among other things, responsible specifically for: identifying and building relationships with key Donor and Development Agencies; developing projects to sustain the work of the Institute and either oversee or manage projects and report to Donor Agencies; ensure rationalisation and consistency among various programme areas. The Unit is also responsible for coordinating the Associate and Experts Programme. Mrs. Aquing also represents the Institute in some regional fora such as the Caribbean Regional Environment Programme (CREP) Joint Executive Committee and the CARICOM Task Force on Environment. Mrs Aquing received the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Language and Linguistics from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus. Mrs. Aquing completed the Post-Graduate Diploma in Information Studies at the UWI at Mona, Jamaica. She also completed short Programmes in Environment and Resource Management at the Haifa School for Managers, Israel, Development Studies and Project Management at the United Nations Staff College in Turin (formerly the ILO Turin Training Centre), Development of Technical and Vocational Training Systems (Policy and Strategy ) organised by the Inter-American Centre for Research in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CINTERFOR)and UNESCO and numerous courses on sustainable development issues as well as programme and project development organised by the CDB, UNDP, the World Bank, the IDB and others. She also undertook training courses in information management and website development.

  Before joining CEHI, Mrs Aquing worked with the International Labour Organisation Office for almost thirteen years where she held several portfolios including Information Officer and Caribbean Focal Point Coordinator for CINTERFOR, a sub-Agency of the ILO located in Montevideo, Uruguay. Between 1991 to 1992, Mrs. Aquing held the position of Information Officer at CEHI, on release from the ILO. Mrs. Aquing also worked on Projects at the UWI at St. Augustine and Cave Hill one of which was the Caribbean Lexicography Project.

Associate Partners

• Lic. Mindahi Bastida Munos
  Consejo Mexicano para el Desarollo Sostenible (COMEDES)
  Lazaro Cardenas Nte. 125,
  Lerma, Estado de Mexico
  CP 52030 Mexico
  E-mail: mindahi@mail.lermanet.com.mx

  Mindahi Crescencio Bastida Munoz, Otomi Indigenous of Mexico, holds a PhD in Indigenous Peoples and Management from Mexico State University, and a Masters of Arts in Political Science from Carleton University in Ottawa with a focus on NAFTA and indigenous peoples self governance initiatives, also an honours degree in Social Sciences at the Autonomous State University of Mexico. He initiated and chairs the Council for Sustainable Development (COMEDES), an organization that promotes sustainable development projects and research and is based in the state of Mexico. He is also coordinator of the Regional Otomí Council of Alto Lerma, an indigenous council promoting the self-determination and autonomy of the Otomí people, and represents them on a coalition of 56 different indigenous peoples. He is the recently appointed member of the NACEC Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC) and coordinated the United Nations Environment Programme ROLAC international conference on 'Latin American Perspectives on Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development', held in Mexico City, 2001. He is a co-author of 'Trade Rules and Sustainability in the Americas' (IISD, 2000) and 'Ecological Rules and Sustainability in the Americas' (IISD – UNEP, 2002), as well as many other articles and reports. He edited the book, Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development: Perspectives from Latin America and the Caribbean, produced by UNEP-ROLAC, and others. He has also published writings on relations between the state and indigenous peoples, intercultural education, intellectual property rights to indigenous peoples' traditional knowledge of biodiversity, and other issues. In 2002, Mr. Bastida-Muñoz was named a member of the Mexican National Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. He has held the position of Latin American representative for Pacific Cultural Conservancy International and is General Coordinator for the Otomi Regional Council of the Alto Lerma, representing over 3 million indigenous people (200 Otomi villages). In this capacity he coordinated community micro-enterprise and trade projects among indigenous peoples and youth, Canada-Mexico. In 1992, he was a global indigenous youth representative and coordinated youth presence at UNCED in 1992, has earned Diplomas in Italian, French and English with the UAEM Centre of Foreign Languages, and has served as member of the CSD V NGO Steering Committee at UN and held positions as Mexican representative on the Plural Group of Indigenous Peoples.

• Dr. Pablo Rodas Martini
  Asociación de Investigaciones Económicas y Sociales (ASIES)
  Oficinas: 10a. Calle 7-48, zona 9. Apartado Postal 1005A Guatemala C.A.
  Telefonos: 502-3347178, 502-3347179, 502-3322002, 502-3310814
  Fax: 502-3602259

  Dr. Pablo Rodas Martini holds a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. from the University of London. He is the Director of the Project 'Central America in the World Economy of the 21st Century', supported by IDRC; Ford Foundation and ASIES He collaborated for the Human Development Reports 1999, 2000 and 2001. He has done research for the Social Science Research Council, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, the Inter-American Dialogue, Transparency International, FLACSO; the Institute for Latin American Studies of the University of London, among others. He writes op-ed articles for 'El Periódico', a Guatemalan newspaper.

• Dr. Miosotis Rivas*
  Centro de Investigación Economica para el Caribe (CIECA)
  Calle Juan Parada Bonilla #8A Plaza Winnie
  La Arboleda End. Naco Apartado 3117
  Santo Domingo, Republica Dominicana
  E-mail: ciecard@codetel.net.do

• Lic. Nicolas Lucas*
  World Resources Institute
  10 G Street, NE (Suite 800)
  Washington, DC 20002 USA
  Phone: 1+202/729-7600;
  Fax: 1+202/729-7610
  Web: http://www.wri.org

* Bio to follow.

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