Mr. Messner is currently Director of the Institute for Environment and Human Security at the United Nations University in Bonn. He is also Co-Chairman of the German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU). Mr. Messner’s work has not only influenced scientific debates; it has had an effect on politics, too. As advisor, he has supported the German government, the European Commission, the World Bank and also the Chinese government as a long-standing member of the China Council on International Cooperation on Environment and Development.