Editing CITES (section)

== Governing Structure of CITES ==
'''CITES''' operates to support the member Parties. This support consists of the input from three Committees (Standing, Animal and Plant) who are overseen by the Secretary-General.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The structure of CITES {{!}} CITES |url=https://cites.org/eng/disc/org.php |access-date=2024-12-07 |website=cites.org}}</ref> The secretariat position has been held by a variety of people from different nations.

=== Timeline of CITES Secretary-General Offices ===
1978-1981: '''Peter H. Sand'''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Ivonne Higuero, Secretary-General {{!}} CITES |url=https://cites.org/eng/about/sec/Secretary-General |access-date=2024-12-07 |website=cites.org}}</ref>

He was born in Bavaria, Germany and was educated in international law in Germany, France and Canada. He became a professor and an author, focusing on environmental law, holding other positions such as the Director-General of the IUCN and legal advisor for environmental affairs to the World Bank.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Peter H. Sand {{!}} Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München - Academia.edu |url=https://lmu-munich.academia.edu/PeterHSand/CurriculumVitae |access-date=2024-12-07 |website=lmu-munich.academia.edu}}</ref>

1982-1990: '''Eugene Lapointe'''<ref name=":0" />

A Canadian native, Lapointe served in the military for many years and acted as a diplomat before governing the CITES. He is currently an author and holds the position of President of the [https://www.iwmc.org/ IWMC] World Conservation Trust, a non-profit organization that promotes wildlife conservation with an emphasis on a human-centered approach to natural-resources.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About IWMC – IWMC – World Conservation Trust |url=https://www.iwmc.org/about-iwmc/ |access-date=2024-12-07 |website=www.iwmc.org}}</ref>

1991 - 1998: '''Izgrev Topkov'''<ref name=":0" />

Born and raised in Bulgaria, Topkov was a diplomat before managing CITES, and was removed from that position following the misuse of permits that violated CITES guidelines.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Masood |first=Ehsan |date=1998-07-01 |title=CITES chief removed in scandal over trade in banned species |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/BF27998 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=394 |issue=6689 |pages=112 |doi=10.1038/27998 |bibcode=1998Natur.394..112M |issn=1476-4687}}</ref>

1999 - 2010: '''Willem Wijnstekers'''<ref name=":0" />

A native of the Netherlands and graduate from the University of Amsterdam, Wijnsteker held the position of Secretary-General for the longest period of time and is now an author.

2010 - 2018: '''[[John E. Scanlon]]'''<ref name=":0" />

An Australian who studied environmental law, Scanlon was active in combating illegal animal trade and currently works in the effort to protect Elephants in Africa as CEO of the Elephant Protection Initiative Foundation (EPIF).<ref>{{Cite web |last=EPI |title=The Secretariat |url=https://www.elephantprotectioninitiative.org/the-secretariat |access-date=2024-12-07 |website=EPI |language=en}}</ref>

2018- Current: '''[[Ivonne Higuero]]''' <ref name=":0" />

The first woman to hold this position, Higuero was educated in environmental economics and is from Panama.