| |
|
Published in Fall 2003
|
An interview with Kennedy
|
| |
|
|
|
| © CEC |
William Kennedy began a three-year term as executive director of the CEC on 2 September 2003. A political scientist by training, Kennedy has held top international environmental policy and management positions with the UNEP, OECD and Dutch government. Most recently, he worked at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, UK, as head of Environmental Policy and Strategy. Trio interviewed Kennedy about the new job.
Congratulations on your appointment! What are your first impressions of the CEC?
Thank you! My very first impression relates to the professionalism, enthusiasm and friendliness of the staff. I don't believe I have ever started in a new position where I have felt more welcomed or optimistic about working relationships with colleagues.
I am also very impressed by the workplace itself. The CEC is lucky to have such a spacious and comfortable headquarters in addition to being so centrally located.
How does the CEC compare to your previous work places?
The closest comparison is probably to the Environment Directorate of the OECD where I spent three years as an administrator in the late 1980s. Indeed, in many ways the CEC is a small version of the OECD's Environment Directorate, particularly regarding the work we undertake on the state of the environment as well as in the Pollutants and Health and Environmental Law and Policy areas.
It is very unlike my last work place, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). "Environment" at the EBRD is viewed very much in the context of "environmental due diligence" carried out in relation to, primarily, private sector investments. In other words, EBRD's environmental mandate is not as broad as the CEC's. It is refreshing for me to be associated once again with an organization that is 100 percent concerned with environmental issues.
What attracted you to the position?
A number of things attracted me to the position. Foremost, I suppose, was the opportunity of a new challenge. After 12 years with a multilateral financial institution and over 20 years in Europe, I welcomed the opportunity to return to North America and take on the challenge of leading the CEC into its next decade.
What past experiences will you draw upon for the new job?
Three that come immediately to mind are ones acquired during my tenure at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The first relates to my years of experience working with the Bank's Environmental Advisory Council. This group, unique among multinational financial institutions, is similar to both JPAC and the National Advisory Committees.
The second is the time I have spent over the years with local, national and international environmental NGOs at both the project and policy levels.
Lastly, I would point to my work with local communities and citizens' groups involved in the EBRD's Independent Recourse Mechanism that is similar to the CEC's citizen's submission process.
My experiences in each of these areas will, I believe, hold me in good stead here at the CEC.
How do you see your job?
In my capacity as executive director, I am, of course, formally responsible for appointing and supervising the staff of the Secretariat and ensuring that the annual program and budget of the CEC is prepared for submission to the Council. In addition, however, I see a major aspect of my job to be a "consensus builder"—this means doing all I can to ensure general agreement on the CEC's goals among the Council, the Secretariat and the JPAC.
In addition, I see a particularly important aspect of my job is to strengthen and increase CEC's partnership with other international organizations, financial institutions (particularly the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Finance Corporation) as well as with foundations and the private sector.
How would you describe your first two months on the job?
Busy but fascinating. I was fortunate to have attended the Washington, DC, Council session in late June, even before I started to work in September. This was an excellent introduction to the operations of Council, as well as to JPAC. Since September I've had a crash course in the CEC's programs and activities. I participated in Mexico's high-level round table on trade and the environment immediately prior to the WTO ministerial; traveled to Guadalajara to participate in a pollution prevention forum, and presented briefings to the Parties in Ottawa, Washington and Mexico City. It's not all travel and meetings, however. A priority for me is to meet one-on-one with every single person working for the Secretariat, from the receptionists, to the clerical staff, to our professional staff.
|
| © CEC |
What's on the immediate horizon?
In addition to meeting with all the staff who help make the Secretariat function, I am focused on the challenges presented by our operational plan for the coming year. Like any organization we need to line up our priorities with the resources available to do the job we've been tasked with. In the CEC's case it's all the more complex because we are responding to the collective will of three very different national governments. If I haven't accomplished it by the time this is published, I will shortly meet with the key environment officials of each of our three countries to discuss our plans for next year.
The CEC is about to celebrate its 10th year. Would you say the organization is in its infancy, adolescence or adulthood?
Having been in existence for 10 years, I don't think we can say that the CEC is an infant and I suppose that adolescence is a better descriptor than adulthood. On the other hand, the term adolescence has, in my mind, the connotation of immature, which the CEC is not. Perhaps it would be best to say that the CEC is still very much in its youth and correspondingly dynamic and optimistic.
And finally, you're the first American executive director for the CEC. How does that make you different?
I don't believe the fact that I am an American makes me different. As a US citizen who's been living outside the US for over 20 years, I have probably acquired a more international perspective than most of my countrymen have and it is that perspective that I bring to this job. Like everyone in the Secretariat, however, whether American, Mexican or Canadian, we are all "North Americans" working together for the common good and shared environment of our continental home.
|
Top
