Thomas Jakl
Encyclopedia
Thomas Jakl is the Chairman of European Chemicals Agency
(ECHA) and the Director of Austrian Ministry responsible for Environmental protection relating to Chemicals Policy. His field of activity includes legislation on chemical substances at the national, European and UN levels.
Dr. Jakl has led the Austrian delegation to the negotiating bodies for multilateral environmental agreements such as Montreal Protocol
, Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer
, Stockholm Convention
, the Rotterdam Convention
, SAICM etc. He has been responsible for sector specific policies for organic solvents, nanomaterials
, pesticides, detergents, endocrine disrupters etc.
Dr. Jakl is a prominent public speaker who addresses global issues pertaining to sustainable development and environmental management. He is a prolific writer credited with over 100 publications in high quality newspapers, journals and books on scientific and environmental related issues.
Dr. Jakl is one of the most influential thinkers on the subject of sound chemical management, and the foremost propounder of Chemical Leasing
. He is the co-author of “Chemical Leasing” and “Chemical Leasing goes Global.” He has pioneering contributions to the fields of scientific and technical risk assessment of substances and products, best practice diffusion for the production and application of chemical products.
European Chemicals Agency
The European Chemicals Agency is an agency of the European Union which manages the technical, scientific and administrative aspects of the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals system...
(ECHA) and the Director of Austrian Ministry responsible for Environmental protection relating to Chemicals Policy. His field of activity includes legislation on chemical substances at the national, European and UN levels.
Education
- 1991 - PhD in plant physiologyPlant physiologyPlant physiology is a subdiscipline of botany concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants. Closely related fields include plant morphology , plant ecology , phytochemistry , cell biology, and molecular biology.Fundamental processes such as photosynthesis, respiration, plant nutrition,...
with specialization in photosynthesisPhotosynthesisPhotosynthesis is a chemical process that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight. Photosynthesis occurs in plants, algae, and many species of bacteria, but not in archaea. Photosynthetic organisms are called photoautotrophs, since they can...
research and simulation of plant bio-productivity at the University of ViennaUniversity of ViennaThe University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
. - M.Sc. in Earth Sciences.
Tenure at Lebensministerium
Dr. Thomas Jakl has worked in different high level policy positions, including the Head of EU-Presidency delegation for international negotiations in the field of chemicals policy during the Austrian Presidency in 2006, and as former President of EU Council working group on international environmental policy (chemicals) and Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH).Dr. Jakl has led the Austrian delegation to the negotiating bodies for multilateral environmental agreements such as Montreal Protocol
Montreal Protocol
The Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances believed to be responsible for ozone depletion...
, Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer
Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer
The Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer is a Multilateral Environmental Agreement. It was agreed upon at the Vienna Conference of 1985 and entered into force in 1988....
, Stockholm Convention
Stockholm Convention
Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is an international environmental treaty, signed in 2001 and effective from May 2004, that aims to eliminate or restrict the production and use of persistent organic pollutants .- History :...
, the Rotterdam Convention
Rotterdam Convention
The Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, more commonly known simply as the ', is a multilateral treaty to promote shared responsibilities in relation to importation of hazardous chemicals...
, SAICM etc. He has been responsible for sector specific policies for organic solvents, nanomaterials
Nanomaterials
Nanomaterials is a field that takes a materials science-based approach to nanotechnology. It studies materials with morphological features on the nanoscale, and especially those that have special properties stemming from their nanoscale dimensions...
, pesticides, detergents, endocrine disrupters etc.
Dr. Jakl is a prominent public speaker who addresses global issues pertaining to sustainable development and environmental management. He is a prolific writer credited with over 100 publications in high quality newspapers, journals and books on scientific and environmental related issues.
Dr. Jakl is one of the most influential thinkers on the subject of sound chemical management, and the foremost propounder of Chemical Leasing
Chemical leasing
In the chemical industry, chemical leasing is a business model in which the chemical company supplies a substance for a specific service, but retains ownership of the chemical. It is intended to shift the focus from increasing sales volume of chemicals towards a value added approach...
. He is the co-author of “Chemical Leasing” and “Chemical Leasing goes Global.” He has pioneering contributions to the fields of scientific and technical risk assessment of substances and products, best practice diffusion for the production and application of chemical products.
Membership of professional bodies
- European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) – Member of Management Board; elected as Chair of the Management Board since 2008.
- Federal Environment Agency – Deputy Head of Supervisory Board
- Federal Agency for Site Remediation – Deputy Head of Supervisory Board
- Austrian Forum of Scientists in charge of Environmental Protection – Board of Directors
- University of Applied Sciences - Technikum Wien, Lecturer "Environmental Management and Ecotoxicology"
- Austrian Federal Ministry for Environment (Director) since 1997.
Awards and honours
- Winner of most important grand Austrian journalism “Environment Award;”
- Winner of the EU co-funded “Genius” Award for Innovation.
- Invited speaker at the European Forum AlpbachEuropean Forum AlpbachThe European Forum Alpbach is an annual event that takes place in August in the Tyrolean village of Alpbach, Austria. Similar to the World Economic Forum in Davos, politicians, academics, students, and decision makers from all areas come together to discuss and brainstorm new ideas and solutions to...
(1992).