Kaveh Zahedi

Mr. Kaveh Zahedi is the Director of the Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). He is responsible for coordinating FAO’s work and strategies on climate change, biodiversity, and environment, including through partnerships with the Conventions. He also oversees FAO’s Global Environment Facility and Green Climate Fund portfolios, as well as the Commission on Genetic Resources, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and the Globally important Agricultural Heritage Systems.

From 2016 to 2023 Mr. Zahedi served as Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) in Bangkok, overseeing its programmes on environment, climate change, natural disasters, finance, energy, trade, transport, social development, and statistics, all in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

From 1995 to 2016 he worked at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Kenya, Mexico, UK, France and Thailand. Mr. Zahedi started his career at a non-governmental organization where he was responsible for agricultural credit and micro finance projects in Latin America and the Middle East.

Mr. Zahedi holds a Master of Arts in International Relations from The Fletcher School at Tufts University in the United States, and a Bachelor of Science in Economics (1st class honours) from University College London in the United Kingdom.