ZHAO Wei (Cohort 1, China), is an Environmental Affairs Officer at the Division of Technology, Industry and Economics of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Outposted at UNEP's Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, she coordinates the activities that apply environmental management strategies in industrial activities with specific focus in the Asia and the Pacific region. Before moving to the regional office, she was at the Paris of of UNEP DTIE in the Production and Consumption Branch. Her specific activities were alternative economic development models, agrifood sector, and environmental management of industrial parks. Prior to this position, she worked as project manager for technology transfer in a Chinese state owned consultant firm. Ms. ZHAO was programme officer in the planning division of the Department of Science and Technology in the Ministry of Light Industry of China from 1984-1993.
Her career focus shifted from technology management to environment and development management, more specially sustainable industry development. Her interests are the development and application of environmental management strategies and tools in industry, such as cleaner prodcution, life-cycle management, corporate responsibiity, industrial ecology, etc. Her recent focus is on integrated approach for changing production and consumption patterns and alternative economic decelopment models. She is also interested in global governance, international co-operations and training. Ms. Zhao is a member of International Society of Industry Ecology. She serves on the board of Professionals Associtaion(PACE) for China's Environment and currently vise president of it.
Ms. Zhao's majored in polymer process engineering in China and furthered her engineering training at the Canadian National Industrial Materials Institute from 1990-1992. She also advanced her training in technology management through a study on technology transfer during the time in Canada. To refresh her knowledge base, Ms. Zhao took an UN sabbatical programme in 2001 to carry out a study at Imperial College on strategies and tools for industry environmental management.
