Juan Manuel Santos was the President of Colombia, from 2010 to 2018, where he managed to significantly improve his country’s social and economic indicators. He was one of the initial promoters of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that became the world agenda in 2015 (officially proposed in 2012). Santos led the process to convene a special session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (UNGASS 2016) to discuss more effective ways to face the world drug problem. He was also one of the founders and architects of the Pacific Alliance, the most successful economic integration process in Latin America.
Santos was the sole recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2016 and was awarded the Lamp of Assisi by the Catholic Church and the Tipperary International Peace Award in Ireland. Santos was awarded the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew International Medal and the Wildlife Conservation Society Theodore Roosevelt Award for Conservation Leadership in recognition of his environmental policies aimed at protecting Colombia’s biodiversity and combating climate change. In addition, the National Geographic Society honored him for his for unwavering commitment to conservation and Conservation International awarded him the Global Visionary Award.
His innovative and successful policies to fight poverty and inequality earned him the appointment as co-founder of the Multidimensional Poverty Peer Network (MPPN) by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), along with his former professor and inspirer of his policies, Economics Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen. The World Economic Forum distinguished him as Young Global Leader and years later presented him with an exceptional Global Statesman Award in recognition of his leadership and contribution to peace. Santos was awarded the Chatham House Prize in 2017 in recognition of his role in formally ratifying a peace agreement with the FARC rebel group and bringing an end to the armed conflict in Colombia.
Santos currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of COMPAZ Foundation, which he created to promote peace, protect the environment and fight poverty mainly through grassroot leadership. He is also a member of the board of the International Crisis Group, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the Global Commission on Drug Policy and recently became part of The Elders. He is also a visiting professor at Oxford University.
Santos is married and has two sons, one daughter and one granddaughter.
