John Scanlon
Chair, Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime Seasoned leader in the fields of environment, nature and sustainable development. Held senior positions in the private sector, with government, international organisations, the United Nations, and not-for-profit organizations, and as chair or member of numerous boards and initiatives.
About this speaker
John served as Secretary-General of the CITES Secretariat from 2010-2018, after which he joined African Parks as its first Special Envoy. He is now the CEO of the Elephant Protection Initiative Foundation, Chair of the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime, Chair of the UK Governments’ IWT Challenge Fund, Tustee with the RBG Kew, and a Commissioner with the Lancet Commission Preventing future pandemics by reducing the risk of spillovers of viruses between animals and humans. John has worked in the private sector, in government and in senior positions with IUCN in Bonn, Germany and UNEP in Nairobi, Kenya, where he served as Principal Adviser on Policy and Programme to the Executive Director and Team Leader of the Strategic Implementation Team. In Australia, after starting his career in private legal practice, John served as Chief Executive of the Department of Environment, Heritage and Aboriginal Affairs, Commissioner on the Murray Darling Basin Commission and as an adviser to State and Federal Environment Ministers. He established the Environmental Defender’s Office in his home State and served as its founding Chair. John holds a Bachelor of Laws, Master of Laws (Environmental), and is an accredited mediator. In 2019, he was awarded the prestigious Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to wildlife conservation and protection through roles with international organizations and in 2023 was presented with the Chinese Government Firendship Award, recognising his many years of exchnages and cooperation with China.
