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Marc Bichler

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Marc Bichler (born 30 July 1963) is a Luxembourgish diplomat and lawyer who has served as the Permanent Representative of Luxembourg to the United Nations Office at Geneva since June 2021.[1]. He is known for his extensive work in international development, climate change policy, and human rights advocacy.

Early Life and Education

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Bichler was born in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. He completed his secondary education at the Athénée de Luxembourg before pursuing higher education in France. He obtained his Master's degree in Business Law from the Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University[2]. Following his studies, he was admitted to the Luxembourg Bar Association and practiced law briefly before entering diplomatic service.

Diplomatic Career

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Early Diplomatic Posts

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Bichler joined the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1990[3]. His early career included postings at Luxembourg's Permanent Mission to the European Union in Brussels (1992-1996) and various positions within the ministry's Political Affairs Department.

United Nations Roles

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From 2000 to 2005, Bichler served as Deputy Permanent Representative of Luxembourg to the United Nations in New York[4]. During this period, he played a key role in Luxembourg's participation in the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member (2013-2014).

A significant milestone in his career was his appointment as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) from 2012 to 2014[5]. In this position, he:

  • Led initiatives to expand financial inclusion in least developed countries
  • Developed innovative financing mechanisms for sustainable development
  • Strengthened partnerships between public and private sectors in development finance

Development Cooperation

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As Director General for Development Cooperation (2005-2012), Bichler oversaw Luxembourg's development aid programs, which consistently ranked among the highest in terms of percentage of gross national income among OECD countries[6]. He implemented several key initiatives:

  • Establishment of bilateral cooperation programs with partner countries in Africa
  • Development of microfinance initiatives
  • Integration of climate action into development strategies

Current Role and Recent Work

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Since June 2021, Bichler has served as Luxembourg's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva[1]. In this capacity, he has been particularly active in:

  • Human rights advocacy, including serving on the UN Human Rights Council
  • Climate change negotiations and environmental policy
  • International humanitarian law and refugee protection

Policy Positions and Advocacy

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Bichler is known for his strong stance on several key international issues:

Climate Change

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As Ambassador-at-Large for Climate Change since 2014, Bichler has been instrumental in shaping Luxembourg's climate policy and its contributions to international climate finance[7].

Human Rights

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In his role as Ambassador-at-Large for Human Rights (2016-present), he has:

  • Led Luxembourg's successful campaign for election to the UN Human Rights Council (2022-2024)
  • Advocated for stronger international human rights mechanisms
  • Criticized various nations' human rights records, including notable intervention regarding the UK's migration policies in 2022[8]

Personal Life

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Bichler is multilingual, speaking Luxembourgish, French, German, and English fluently. He is known for his commitment to environmental causes and has written several articles on sustainable development and climate finance[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b "New Permanent Representative of Luxembourg presents credentials". United Nations Office at Geneva. 2021-06-01. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  2. ^ "Presentation of Credentials - Marc Bichler". French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. 2021-05-28.
  3. ^ "Marc Bichler Profile". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  4. ^ "Senior UN Officials Biography - Marc Bichler". United Nations. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  5. ^ "Interview with Marc Bichler, Executive Secretary of UNCDF". Development Finance Forum Quarterly. 2 (1): 8–12. 2013.
  6. ^ "OECD Development Co-operation Peer Reviews: Luxembourg 2012". OECD. 2012.
  7. ^ "Luxembourg's International Climate Finance Strategy". Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development. 2020.
  8. ^ "British policies on migration, rights issues under fire at UN rights forum". Reuters. 2022-11-10.
  9. ^ "The Role of Climate Finance in Sustainable Development". Luxembourg Financial Journal. 15 (2): 45–52. 2019.