Mr. Kane brings to the position over 20 years of experience in development, policy, international environmental governance, and diplomacy, including with the United Nations. He most recently served as the Executive Secretary of the Abidjan Convention, supporting 22 African countries in transitioning to a sustainable blue economy while building the resilience of coastal populations along the Atlantic.
At the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Mr. Kane held several leadership positions. As Head of Multilateral Environmental Agreements in the Law Division, he advanced international environmental governance processes and fostered greater coherence among Member States. From 2020 to 2022, he led the UNEP Office in Saudi Arabia, where he guided reforms of the environmental sector, influenced greener policies in the Kingdom, and integrated environment, climate change and natural resources into the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework. Earlier, as Global Coordinator of a Multilateral Environmental Agreements Programme in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries, he supported States, particularly Small Island Developing States, in advancing their biodiversity, chemicals and waste management, and oceans governance agendas. He also directed the Secretariat of the African Elephant Fund, created under the auspices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), serving 37 African range States.
Mr. Kane began his United Nations career in 2004 with UNEP’s Division of Policy Development and Law, where he developed poverty-environment nexus policies and managed country portfolios in Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Rwanda, and Tanzania in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
He holds a Master of Business Administration with a minor in Finance and a Bachelor of Science in International Business, both from Johnson and Wales University in the United States.
