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Sundtoft, NorwegianMinister of Climate and Environment,
Øystein Djupedal, Aust-Agder County Governor, and Einar
Halvorsen, Mayor of Arendal. The cooperation between
UNEP and GRID-Arendal has matured greatly since
its establishment 25 years ago and this new agreement
underscores the value of this cooperation.
After eight successful years Dr Peter Prokosch stepped
down from his post as Managing Director of GRID-
Arendal in August 2014. The Board appointed Dr Peter
Harris as the new Managing Director in September.
Under his leadership, GRID-Arendal implemented a new
organizational structure in December 2014 to simplify
and improve operations and management, to better
match the skills and qualifications of the staff with the
programme of work to be delivered in the foreseeable
future, and to focus attention on the delivery of content
and the measure of impact and outcomes. A key element
of the new structure is the creation of eight programme
areas that address global environmental challenges: Polar
and Mountain Environments; Environmental Crime;
Transboundary Waters; Blue Carbon; Green Economy;
Marine Spatial Planning; State of Environment Reporting;
and Marine and Coastal Resources.
GRID-Arendal’s accomplishments in 2014 reflect
well on the organization and set the stage for another
successful year in 2015. After signing a new Framework
Agreement with UNEP and with its improved internal
organization, GRID-Arendal is well placed to make
significant contributions to support UNEP and advance
environmental knowledge in the years ahead.