Claude Martin (biologist)

Claude Martin (born 20 July 1945) is a Swiss biologist and environmental scientist. He was the Director General of WWF International from 1993 to 2005.
==Education==
Claude Martin grew up in Zurich and completed biology studies at the University of Zurich in 1970. Thereafter he worked as a field biologist in Kanha National Park (Madhya Pradesh, India) and studied the ecology of the barasingha (Central Indian swamp deer). In 1975 he graduated with a doctorate at the University of Zurich, under the supervision of Prof. H. Burla and Dr. F. Kurt. His dissertation on the status and ecology of the gravely endangered barasingha was in large part reprinted by the Bombay Natural History Society in 1977 (see "Publications" below). Martin's research subsequently served as a blueprint for the conservation and recovery of threatened deer species in India.
==Career==
From 1975 to 1978 Claude Martin worked for the Ghana Wildlife Division as the director of the Bia- and the Nini-Suhien National Parks in the Western Region of Ghana. He also studied the forest elephant and primate populations in these parks. His engagement with the Department of Game and Wildlife (as the Division was called then) was supported by one of the first International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and WWF projects on rainforest conservation.
===WWF (Switzerland) and WWF International, 1978-2005===
After returning from Ghana in 1978 he joined WWF Switzerland and became its director in 1980. This national WWF organization subsequently developed into the leading environmental organization in Switzerland. In 1990 Martin joined WWF International, first as Deputy Director General (Program) and in 1993 he was elected as the Director General reporting directly to the then Board chairman Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh. During the following 12 years Claude Martin developed target-driven programs for global biome conservation and climate change issues, as well as international partnerships e.g. the World Bank-WWF Alliance for Forest Conservation and Sustainable Use, and the Amazon Region Protected Areas Program (ARPA).The Impact of the ARPA Program on the Management Effectiveness of Amazon Protected Areas, Luciano Candisani, WWF Brasil and Funbio, 2017. Retrieved 2024-10-05. Under his leadership WWF International initiated the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as well as the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). From 1995 to 2006 he was also a member of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). During his years of service the WWF network developed into the world's largest private conservation organisation, with over 4500 staff, active in nearly 100 countries.
===Tropical rainforest studies===
The years Martin spent in the Central Indian jungles and West African rainforests, as well as numerous trips into other tropical rainforest areas while working for WWF International, led him to publish a number of papers and books on the conservation of tropical rainforests, notably:
* "The Rainforests of West Africa" (1989 in German and 1991 in English)
* "On the Edge - The State and Fate of the World's Tropical Rainforests" (2015) (see specific reference under "Publications")
===Other Functions===
Since his retirement from WWF International Claude Martin holds a number of senior roles in various organizations, amongst those:
* Since 2006: Chancellor of the International Institute in Geneva­–IIG (a private international business school)Message from the Chancellor, International Institute in Geneva (IISD), retrieved 2024-10-05.
* 2007-2013: Vice Chair of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)The State and Fate of Tropical Rainforests, Commentary by Scott Vaughan, President of IISD, on Claude Martin's book "On the Edge", IISD, 2015. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
* Since 2010: Chairman of the advisory board of the Centre for International Environmental Studies (CIES) - Graduate Institute, GenevaCIES 2023 Annual Report,The Centre for International Environmental Studies, retrieved 2024-10-05.
* Since 2010: Member of the Club of Rome
* Since 2016: Vice chairman of the Fondation Segré, a Geneva-based conservation organization
==Honours and Awards==
* 2003 Officier de l'Ordre National Malagasy
* 2003 Commander of the Order of the Golden Ark, by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands
* 2005 Honorary Doctorate, International Institute in Geneva - IIG
* 2016 Georg-Ludwig-Hartig-Prize (Germany) for his contribution to sustainable forest management
==Publications==
Some of Martin's most relevant publications:
* 1977: Status and ecology of the barasingha (Cervus duvauceli branderi) in Kanha National Park. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 74/1:60-132.
* 1991: The Rainforests of West Africa, Ecology – Threats – Conservation. English ed. of Martin, C. 1989. Die Regenwälder Westafrikas. Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, Bonn, Boston: 236 pp. ISBN 0-8176-2380-9 (U.S.)
* 2006: One Lifeboat – China and the world's environment and development. Int. Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). Winnipeg, Canada, 61 pp. ISBN 1-895536-96-0
* 2015: On the Edge – The State and Fate of the Worlds Tropical Rainforests. Greystone Books, Vancouver/Berkeley, 343pp. ISBN 978-1-77164-140-1
* 2015: Endspiel – Wie wir das Schicksal der tropischen Regenwälder noch wenden können. Oekom Verlag, München (German translation of „On the Edge") 368pp. ISBN 978-3-86581-708-2
* 2018: Sustainable Development: The uncertain role of tropical forests in the Paris Agreement. IUG Business Review, Vol. 4/1, pp. 71- 86. https://www.iig.ch/iun/en/en-en/file.cfm?contentid=1908. ISSN 1660-9700
Category:1945 births
Category:Swiss biologists
Category:Environmental scientists
Category:People from Zurich
Category:Swiss people