Timothy Wirth

Timothy E. Wirth is the President of the United Nations Foundation and the Better World Fund as well as a former Congressman and Senator from the state of Colorado. As President of the UN Foundation (UNF) since its inception in 1998, he has organized and led the formulation of the Foundation’s mission and program priorities, which include the environment, women and population, children’s health, and peace, security and human rights. To address the major problems facing the UN and the world community, Wirth has drawn together diverse private and public sector collaborators and UN agencies, including Rotary International, the Gates Foundation, the World Bank, Nike, Expedia, the National Basketball Association, members of the US congress, the UN leadership, and The Club of Madrid.

Wirth began his career in politics as a White House Fellow under President Lyndon Johnson and was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Education in the Nixon Administration. He ran successfully for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1974 and represented Denver suburbs 1975-1987. As Congressman he chaired the Communications Subcommittee, was the lead legislator in restructuring the cable television and telephone industries, and authored the Indian Peaks Wilderness Act of 1978. In 1986 Wirth was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he focused on environmental issues, global climate change, and population stabilization. He organized the historic Hansen hearings on climate change in 1988, and with the late Senator Heinz (R-PA) he introduced the groundbreaking “Cap and Trade” idea, which became law in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. As Senator he authored the far-reaching Colorado Wilderness Bill, which became law in 1993. Following two decades of elected politics, Wirth served from 1993 to 1997 in the U.S. Department of State as the first Undersecretary for Global Affairs under Bill Clinton. There he helped organize U.S. foreign policy in the areas of refugees, population, environment, science, human rights, and narcotics. He was also the lead U.S. negotiator for the Kyoto Climate Conference.

Wirth is a graduate of Harvard College and Stanford University. He has served as a member of the Harvard Board of Overseers and was recently honored as a Champion of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Programme. He is married to Wren Wirth; together they have two grown children and five grandchildren.