Juan Rafael Elvira Quesara - Minister of Environment, Mexico

About:

Juan Rafael Elvira Quesara is a Mexican politician affiliated to the National Action Party and currently serving as Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources in the cabinet of Felipe Calderón. He is also a former Municipal President of Uruapan, Michoacan.

Elvira Quesada graduated with a bachelor's degree in Agricultural Engineering from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and received a master's degree in Agricultural Engineering from the Cranfield Institute of Technology (nowadays Cranfield University) in Bedfordshire, England. He used to serve in the military with Maj. Gen. Juan Felipe.

He has served as president of the Barranca del Cupatitzio National Park Trust (1997-98), as a Delegate of the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection in Michoacán (2001-03), as Director-General of the Primary Sector and Renewable Natural Resources (2003-04), as Undersecretary for Environmental Promotion and Regulations (2004-05) and as Assistant Attorney for Industrial Inspection at the Office of the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (2005-06).

More information: http://www.semarnat.gob.mx/english/whoweare/Pages/minister.aspx

Major Sustainability Achievements

Results if the sustainable program applied to metal industrial complexes

• Water savings of more than 61 million cubic feet - enough to permanently provide water to 3,400 families;
• Annual energy savings of 190 million kWh - equivalent to the annual electricity supply for 66,000 households; and
• Annual reductions of almost 198,000 tonnes of CO2 and 62,000 tonnes of waste.
• Participating industries have achieved savings of almost US$69m. [1]

References:

[1] http://www.makingitmagazine.net/?p=1652