Henk Simons

Background

About Henk Simons

Henk Simons holds an MSc in Biology, with a specialization in tropical ecology and biodiversity policies. He currently works as a consultant on (international) biodiversity issues. He has 40 years of professional experience, mostly in an international context in the field of nature/biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. He has worked for a variety of organizations, including NGOs - Wetlands International, WWF, IUCN NL - and the United Nations (FAO). He also contributed to the authoritative Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA). Selection of working experiences: Forest Resources Assessment Program (FAO) of the tropical regions (1991-1995): forest resources analyst and remote sensing specialist; Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (UN)(2001-2004): co-coordinator of one of the working groups, the Responses (=policy options) Working Group. In this function he organized and facilitated working group meetings, provided technical support and advice to assessment and report preparation, and contributed to the summary for decision makers and other reports. IUCN Netherlands (2005 – 2022) Coordinator of Uganda and Ghana programs to support NGOs in biodiversity lobby and advocacy, and on the ground biodiversity conservation and management; Various projects on business and biodiversity: publication ‘business and biodiversity, guide for Netherlands based operations’, study project ‘boosting investments in biodiversity and ecosystems’, advising companies on how to incorporate biodiversity concerns into business operations; Providing inputs, representing IUCN NL, to various Dutch policy processes, including ‘Environmental Policy’ and ‘International Biodiversity policies’. He was also NGO member of the Dutch delegation to Conference of the Parties of the Biodiversity Convention (CBD CoP 2006 and 2010); Development of a National Biodiversity Dashboard for the Netherlands, a key instrument for biodiversity monitoring and policy action. Mr Simons has excellent presentation and organizational skills, and a fluent working knowledge English and a good knowledge of German, French and Italian.