Felipe Calderón

Former President of Mexico; President, Fundación Desarrollo Humano Sustentable

Felipe Calderón served as the 65th President of Mexico from 2006 to 2012. Prior to his presidency, Calderón was Energy Secretary (where he headed the administrative councils for PEMEX and CFE) and Director of BANOBRAS (National Works and Public Services Bank). He was also a member of the Chamber of Deputies, leader of the National Action Party (PAN) in the Mexican Congress, as well as Secretary General and National President of PAN. President Calderón received his bachelor’s degree in law from the Escuela Libre de Derecho, a master’s in Economics from Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) and has a master’s in Public Administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. During his administration the Mexican economy experienced stability and economic growth. Despite the impact of the 2009 international economic crisis, Mexico grew economically through deregulation, the promotion of free trade, effective management, private investment and technical education, as well as historic levels of investment in infrastructure. President Calderón also led an unprecedented effort to enforce the rule of law. During his administration, Mexico became one of the world’s biggest exporters in the world, representing 60 percent of total manufacturers in Latin America and the Caribbean. When Calderón took office, Mexico was the ninth largest automobile exporter in the world and by the end of his administration the country was in fourth place, surpassing Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among other countries. President Calderón was the host and president of the G-20 Leaders’ Summit, the most important global forum of heads of state. He also presided over the United Nations Conference on Climate Change COP 16 which marked a new era of cooperation and a long-term effort to confront climate change. The conference produced several notable results, including the Green Fund, an international mechanism for the financing of climate change action. Calderón has been named “Statesman of the Year” by the World Economic Forum and "Champion of the Earth” by the United Nations. He was a recipient of the Teddy Roosevelt award, the Global Legislators Organization for a Balanced Environment’s GLOBE Award, among other awards as a world leader on the environment. Currently, Felipe Calderón is a member of the Advisory Council of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a member of the World Resources Institute’s Board of Directors, President of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate and heads The New Climate Economy Project which presented the report on “Better Climate, Better Growth: The New Climate Economy Report” to the United Nations. In Mexico, President Calderón presides over the Sustainable Human Development Foundation where he continues to work to analyze and propose viable public policy alternatives.