Gunter Pauli - author, innovator, founder of ZERI
ZERI (Zero Emissions Research Institute) Training
Gunter PAULI (1956) obtained his masters in business administration from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France. His entrepreneurial activities span business, culture, science, politics and the environment. Under his leadership, a small European company pioneered an ecological factory. He founded the "Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives" (ZERI) at the United Nations University in Tokyo, and subsequently established The Global ZERI Network, redesigning production and consumption into clusters of industries inspired by natural systems. He is dedicated to design and implement a society and industries, which respond to people’s needs using what is available from nature. Fluent in seven languages, and having lived on four continents, he is a world citizen. He has written sixteen books, which have been printed in 27 languages and 36 fables bringing science and emotions to children. Over 17 million copies have been distributed worldwide. A few of his fables are available in over 100 languages. He is father of three children and married to Katherina Bach.
To learn more, visit www.zeri.org
Resume of Gunter PAULI
1956 - citizen of Belgium
Current Positions:
1985- Visiting lecturer and professor at universities in Europe, Africa and Latin America
1994 - Founder and Director ZERI (Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives) Foundation
a network of 3,000 scientists focusing on creative solutions for pressing problems
2000 - Visiting Professor Systems Design, Politecnico Torino, Italy
2005 - Member of the Board of NGOs and private companies
Academic Background
1975 High School Diploma, Cambridge, Nebraska, USA
1979 Licencié en Sciences Economiques, St. Ignatius Loyola, Antwerp, Belgium
1982 Master in Business Administration, INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France
2000 Fellow of the World Academy of Arts and Sciences, San Francisco, USA
2001 Creative Member of the Club of Budapest, Hungary
2004 Member of the Club of Rome
2005 Moderated the Roundtable of Nobel Science Laureates hosted by HM King of Jordan
2006 State Doctorate from the Italian Government for innovative science in design
Career:
1981-1994 Founder and Chairman of PPA Holding, founder of 10 companies
1985-1994 Founder and CEO of the European Service Industries Forum (ESIF)
1987-1992 Secretary General European Business Press Federation (UPEFE)
1990-1994 President of the Foundation “Mozarteum Belgicum“
1991-1993 President Ecover, built the first ecological factory featured on CNN Prime Time News
1994-1997 Advisor to the Rector of the United Nations University, Tokyo, Japan
1999-2005 Advisor to the President of the European Bank (UK) on environment
Awards (partial list):
1979 Rotary International Foundation Award
1979 Prize of the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Belgium)
1982 Fellow of the Honda Foundation (Europe)
1982 Golden Key of the City of Osaka (Japan)
1983 One of the Ten Outstanding Young Persons in the World
awarded by the Junior Chamber of Commerce
1988 Gregg Foundation Award (Belgium/Netherlands) for innovation
1991 Honorary Citizen of Salzburg, Austria
1993 Global 500 Award of the United Nations
1994 Global Leader of Tomorrow elected by World Economic Forum (Davos)
1999 Honorary Citizen of Cartagena, Manizales, Pereira and Armenia (Colombia)
2001 Golden Key of the City of Kobe (Japan)
2002 Novamont Prize for promoting science and technology in the developing world
2005 Fuji TV “Special Global Environment Award” (Japan)
2007 Award from Hogares Juveniles de Colombia for philanthropic work
2008 Peace and Development Award from Government of Brasilia (shared with Red Cross)
2009 Sustainability Award from the Specialty Coffee Association of America for “pulp to protein” program having generated over 10,000 jobs in Colombia.
Books, articles and video
since 1974 authored +200 newspaper and science articles
1987 “The Crusader for the Future. Portrait of Aurelio Peccei”, founder of the Club of Rome, Pergamon Press, Oxford
1987 “Services: the driving force of the economy”, Waterlow Press, London
1987 “The Second Wave: Japan’s assault on finance” with Prof. Richard Wright
1989 “Autobiography Part I”, Roularta Books, Belgium
1991 “Double Digit Growth: how to do it!”, Pauli Publishing, Belgium
1992 “Andorra: Strategies for the Future”, Credit Andorra
1995 “Steering business towards sustainability”, editor with Fritjof Capra
1996 “Breakthroughs: what business can do for society”, Epsilon Press, UK
1997 “UpSizing: more income, more jobs and no waste”, Greenleaf UK
1997 “Las Gaviotas”: script writer, producer and director of documentary film
1999 “Diversification in the Tropics” (Spanish only), SENA, Colombia
1999 “Give a lot - Get a lot”, a book about virtues for high school children
2000 “The Giving Tree”, fable translated in + 100 languages
2002 “From Fairy Tales to Reality” about innovative education (Portuguese)
2004 “Out of the Box: 21 ways to be creative and innovative at work” (English, Spanish)
2005-2006 36 fables and detailed pedagogic guidance (English, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Chinese)
2009 Conexions published (forthcoming in the USA)
2009 Nature’s 100 Best: The Green Job Machine to be co-published with UNEP in all official UN languages
Special Events
1978 elected President of AIESEC Belgium in charge of the international students congress with participants from +50 countries
1979 elected member of the Board of AIESEC International responsible for Latin America
1983 Co-organizer of the Club of Rome meeting in Kuwait focusing on development
1984 Co-Organizer of the Club of Rome meeting in Salzburg focusing on the work of its late President Dr. Aurelio Peccei
1985 Co-Organizer of the World Youth Summit in Hiroshima with the Japan Junior Chamber bringing 40 young leaders under 40 for 5 days to Japan
1986-1990 Organizer of the Annual World Congresses on Service Industries
1988 Organizer of the presentation of the “Kreisky Report on Employment Issues in Europe” to the President of the European Union
1991 Organizer of the presentations launching Worldwatch’s “State of the World Report” before 9 Parliaments across Europe
1991 Organizer of the Mozart Year in Belgium, including production of golden CD, award winning art book and comic strip selling +600,000
1991-1992 Organizer of the election of the European Executive of the Year
1995-1999 Organizer of the Annual World Congress on Zero Emissions
April 1995 Organizer of the first speech of a head of government, PM Ingvar Carlsson of Sweden, over Internet in collaboration with ASCII Corporation (Japan)
Dec 1995 Organizer of the first Internet Summit, a one hour Internet-video debate with Mandela, Carter, Perez and Wiesel, held in conjunction with the “Future of Hope” Conference in Hiroshima, hosted by the Asahi Newspaper of Japan
2000 Constructed, built and operated the ZERI Pavilion at the World Expo in Germany, introducing bamboo as a German approved building material, visited by 6.4 million persons over 5 months, named Extraordinary Ambassador to Germany.
- City of Curitiba adopted Gunter’s educational system “From Fairy Tales to Reality”with 6,000 teachers and 120,000 children committed to implement an innovative leaning process: better academic knowledge, stronger emotional intelligence, richer artistic expression and a deep understanding of systems with the capacity to implement
2005 A keynote speaker at the launch of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, held in New York at the UN Headquarters in the presence of the Secretary General of the UN and the Director General of UNESCO on March 10.
2006 Coordinator of the roundtable of Nobel Laureates in Science in the presence of 28 Nobel Laureates including HH the Dalai Lama, as well as former President Bill Clinton.
2007 Invited by the President of the European Union to present policies for innovations in industry to all the Ministers of Environment (November 11-12, 2007).
2008 Member of the Wise Persons Panel chaired by Nobel Laureate and Former US Vice President Al Gore to review Solutions for the Environment
