Steiner is Administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and has worked in sustainable development for three decades.

Prior to joining UNDP, Steiner was Director of the Oxford Martin School and Professorial Fellow of Balliol College at the University of Oxford. Steiner led the United Nations Environment Programme between 2006 and 2016, helping governments invest in clean technologies and renewable energy. He was also Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi. Steiner has also served as Director General of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, and Secretary General of the World Commission on Dams. 

Born in 1961, Steiner’s educational background includes a bachelor’s degree from Oxford, as well as a master’s degree from the University of London, with specialization in development economics, regional planning and international development and environment policy.  He also studied at the German Development Institute in Berlin, and at Harvard Business School.