Olafur Eliasson appointed UN climate ambassador

Danish artist Olafur Eliasson (Copenhagen, 1967) was named UN Ambassador for Urgent Climate Action and Sustainable Development on September 22, 2019, on the sidelines of the New York climate summit preceding the UN General Assembly. This marks the first time the United Nations has appointed an artist to such a role. Eliasson expressed honor at becoming a Goodwill Ambassador for the UNDP, stating that the 17 Sustainable Development Goals provide the best roadmap for urgent climate action and that culture offers access and deep understanding of the challenges. The appointment recognizes his long-standing environmental commitment through works like the 11-meter-high artificial waterfall series "Waterfall" (Sydney, 1998) and "The presence of absence pavilion" inspired by Iceland's melting glaciers, all featured in his ongoing retrospective at Tate. Notably, his Little Sun solar torch, launched in July 2012, has distributed over 830,000 units worldwide, especially to refugee areas and disaster zones, providing clean, affordable solar energy to people without electricity. Eliasson emphasized that coexistence among people, animals, ecosystems, and the environment is beautiful and generative but requires taking the climate emergency seriously.