Gino Van Begin joined ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability in January 2000. Gino is ICLEI"s Regional Director for Europe and was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of ICLEI in 2007. Gino brings into his current position more than 20 years of work experience in international institutions and organisations. He worked at the European Commission from 1987 until 1993, in particular in DG Environment and then moved to Russia for seven years (1993 ?1999) to set up EU LIFE funded Environmental Centres (ECATs) in the cities of Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg. He also worked at the Cabinet of the Vice-President of the Government of Flanders and Minister of Economy, Small Business and Energy. He has been a member of the EU Expert Group to the European Commission on the Urban Environment from 2003 until 2006. He is also a member of the Steering Committee of the European Sustainable Cities and Towns Campaign since 2000 and is a co-drafter of the Aalborg Commitments on urban sustainability to which more than 650 cities and towns in Europe have adhered since its launch in 2004. He has been a member of the Jury on the European Green Capital Award, and is following the UNFCCC negotiations on Climate Change on behalf of ICLEI in its official observer status. Gino Van Begin was born in 1964 in Belgium and graduated from the University of Brussels as a lawyer in 1987. He is father of two children. Gino speaks Dutch, French, English, German and Russian. Please contact Mr. Van Begin at iclei-europe@iclei-europe.org