In Memoriam

Nicole Glineur (1954-2020)

Nicole had 10 years of professional experience when she joined the World Bank in 1986. She was one of the first to work on biodiversity as a Bank Agenda and covered a broad spectrum of issues from coastal zone management, private sector development, fragility, conflict and violence, cultural heritage and tourism. She worked in all regions developing strong partnerships and noteworthy contributions to defeating river blindness in Africa and promoting biodiversity conservation in the Middle East and Pacific Islands. She joined the GEF Secretariat in 2004 and stayed there till her retirement in 2017 as Program Manager, Biodiversity and Private Sector.

Returning from a mountain trek, Nicole was fatally injured in a car accident in Aspen, Colorado and passed away peacefully on June 29, 2020, not having recovered consciousness.

Testimonials from her colleagues bear witness to her professionalism and passion:

“She always had a love of nature “ Marjory-Anne Bromhead

“High energy person with tremendous enthusiasm for exploring nature.” Neeraj Kumar Negi

“We rented bikes and rode around Rarotonga Island,  … her passion for ocean conservation was a part of her being.” Baljit Wadhwa

“Nicole was indeed someone special… Around 1997 while director for the Middle East, a knock on my door … Nicole was developing a biodiversity conservation project in Jordan to protect biodiversity and wildlife, and provide livelihood for the Bedouins.  I was cautious, perhaps even skeptical … but Nicole was persuasive and in the end I gave the go ahead.  “A few years later … Nicole’s Dana Biodiversity Conservation Project… had blossomed into a wonderful place to hike, with flora and fauna of desert bush, and great scenery.  A small guest house and gift shop, owned by the community, sold arts and crafts to visitors.  It was most impressive. “We remained friends ever since: …  ‘I knew you were skeptical, but … would ultimately support the project.  So I was not about to give up.’  I took it as a compliment from a dedicated professional.” Inder Sud, President, 1818 Society

Nicole was a core member of the 1818 Hiking Club.   Her last trek is a testament to her oneness with nature and the joy she felt out there. In 2019, she undertook the ultimate pilgrimage trek to Mt. Kailash, the sacred mountain of Tibet. She displayed immense drive and stamina at high altitude and was one of the two people out of nine, who successfully completed the Kora (the 32 mile circuit around Mt. Kailash) crossing the high altitude Drolma La Pass at 5,640 meters (picture on right).

“She so loved and admired the sherpas. Reason why she had hundreds of loving friends all over the world.” Ralph Chambers

 

Anis Dani and Maryvonne Plessis-Fraissard, 1818 Hiking Club