Editor’s choice
Editor’s choice
In honour of Philip Osano’s ten years of dedicated service and impactful leadership, SEI Africa hosted a reception on 2 May with collaborators and partners, underscoring the work that has and continues to be done with stakeholders across the region. The event also introduced and welcomed Niall O’Connor as the incoming SEI Africa Centre Director.
Photo: SEI.
Philip Osano will step down mid-May as director of SEI Africa, the organization’s centre based in Nairobi, Kenya. Niall O’Connor will take up the position while continuing as centre director of SEI Asia until early September. At a recent event, collaborators celebrated Osano’s great contributions while looking forward to continued work with SEI Africa.
Partners from various organizations in attendance reflected the extensive network of partnerships with SEI, many launched during Osano’s tenure. Throughout the dinner, speakers highlighted his instrumental role in fostering collaborative relationships and driving impactful outcomes in SEI’s three program areas: natural resources and ecosystems, sustainable urbanization, and renewable energy.
“SEI has become a valuable partner to the Government of Kenya and more specifically to the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry”, said Festus Ng’eno, Principal Secretary of the State Department of Environment and Climate Change, “which has utilized research findings and applied decision support tools especially in the development and implementation of climate action policies.”
“As a Ministry, we are immensely grateful for the technical support that we received from SEI when Kenya hosted the inaugural Africa Climate Summit (ACS) in September 2023, as well as in the development of a draft national action plan for short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs),” Ng’eno said.
In another SEI collaboration started during Osano’s tenure, Ambassador Njambi Kinyungu, the Director of Multilateral Affairs at Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, highlighted his contribution to the success of the inagural Nairobi Environmental Diplomacy Symposium (NEDS), held 6 February. The event marked the launch of the SEI-supported publication Celebrating 60 Years of Kenya’s Environmental Diplomacy.
Speaking on behalf of Caroline Vicine, the Swedish Ambassador to Kenya, Marie Ottosson, Head of Sida Kenya, commended Osano for his effective strategic work with the Swedish Embassy. She noted that under his leadership, SEI had become a key strategic partner on environmental matters and a readily available resource for knowledge and expertise-sharing, both nationally and internationally. Ottosson also recognized the collaborative work between SEI and Athletics Kenya, in partnership with the Swedish Athletic Federation and UNEP, on installing air quality monitoring sensors during the Adidas Stockholm Marathon.
Alphonce Muia, member of UNEP Youth and Children’s Major Group, reflected on Osano’s mentorship and his commitment to empowering young professionals in climate policy and research. He highlighted that Osano has created significant opportunities for African youth engagement in environmental governance, citing the Stockholm+50 youth report, part of a project aimed at promoting a healthy planet and prosperity for all.
As incoming director, O’Connor, with previous 20 years of leadership experience in environment and development across Africa, as well as 10 years as the SEI Asia director, acknowledged the strong foundations established by Osano and his team and conveyed his eagerness to engage with partners throughout the continent to address critical environmental challenges. He noted that his work will fortify the institute’s global perspective, complementing its well-established regional presence in Africa.
“I look forward to learning more about all of these partnerships, learning more about the challenges that we face here, which I think are fairly global in terms of climate change and the impacts that we’re having, and the needs for adaptation, mitigation and resilience building for vulnerable communities and, but also dealing with businesses and overconsumption and production, pollution, waste management, and so much more. There’s a lot we can hopefully do together,” O’Connor said.
SEI brief / What have seven years of research revealed about aligning climate action and sustainable development?
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Project / TRANS4BIO analyses governance gaps linked to the energy transition and develops policy insights for integrated climate and biodiversity action.
