Jeannie Peterson

Last updated
Jeannie Peterson
Born
Jeannie Peterson

(1940-02-18)February 18, 1940
Suttons Bay, Michigan,
United States
NationalityAmerican

Jeannie Peterson was editor-in-chief of Ambio , a journal of the human environment published by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, author of "The Aftermath: The Human and Ecological Consequences of Nuclear War" which was written for Ambio, and served with the United Nations in several capacities including Deputy Director of Public Information and External Relations, country director of United Nations Population Fund in the Philippines, as a United Nations peacekeeper dealing with political issues during the Serb-Croat wars in the former Yugoslavia, and at United Nations headquarters addressing global population and environmental issues.

Contents

Education

Jeannie earned a Master of Science in Journalism (with minors in psychology and history of art) from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. Jeannie then studied environmental sciences at Stockholm University in Sweden.

Career

Ambio

When Ambio: A Journal of the Human Environment was published by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm. Ambio was considered to be the eminent environmental journal dealing with international issues. Jeannie was Assistant editor from 1972-1977, and Editor-in-Chief,1978-1983.

As editor, Jeannie considered it important that the economic and political aspects of discoveries in the environmental sciences be addressed. In 1982, she noted that existing studies on the effects of nuclear war had not adequately addressed the environmental effects. She initiated the publication of a special double issue of Ambio, published in 1982 - and later a book in 1984 called "The Aftermath: The Human and Ecological Consequences of Nuclear War", published in England by Pergamon Press and in the US by Pantheon Books. She invited the scientist Paul Crutzen to contribute an article to that issue which explored the atmospheric consequences of nuclear war. His co-authored Ambio article for that issue provided the impetus for the "nuclear winter" theory, which was later developed further by other scientists such as Carl Sagan. The Ambio issue/book originated and explored the idea that there might be no winner in a nuclear war because of the probably disastrous after-effects of climatic cooling caused by soot that would circulate around the atmosphere and potentially block warmth from the sun, with devastating effects around the northern hemisphere. The General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, who met with the then-US President Ronald Reagan, afterwards stated that the nuclear winter effect had a decisive impact on his decision to embark on a peaceful, non-nuclear relationship between the US and USSR. She went on to serve as Director of the Public Information Center for the Consequences Nuclear War in Washington DC in 1984.

This special issue of Ambio is credited with transforming the scientific understanding of the outcomes for a nuclear war. [1] In 2022, Jeannie Peterson was among eight winners of the Future of Life Award. The award was given to Peterson for "reducing the risk of nuclear war by catalyzing and popularizing the science of nuclear winter." [2]

United Nations

For the next two decades Jeannie worked primarily for organizations in the United Nations. She first served as Deputy Chief Information and External Relations with the United Nations Population Fund in New York City from 1981-1985. She served as Senior Information Policy Officer from 1985-1986. She served as Country Director with United Nations Population Fund in Manila from 1986-1990. She served as Deputy Chief Governing Council with the United Nations liaison and external relations in New York in 1990, preparing population and environment issues for governments around the world. She was often traveled around the United States with non-governmental organizations to address civic groups, college commencements, graduate classes, television, and radio.

When the UN became involved in mediating the wars in the former Yugoslavia, Jeannie took a leave of absence from UNFPA, and joined the largest peacekeeping mission ever fielded, the United Nations Protection Force, or UNPROFOR, with 54 thousand mission members. Rebel Serbs living in Croatia had conducted a war with the new Croatian Government, accusing it of fascist tendencies and rights violations against the sizeable Serb minority living in Croatia. The rebel Serbs were considered to be under the influence of President Slobodan Milošević of Serbia. As the head of UNPROFOR's political office in Belgrade, [3] Jeannie often found herself across the negotiating table from President Milosevic, who many considered responsible for initiating the wars.

At that time the Serb/Croat war in Croatia was still ongoing along the borders of the three Serb enclaves in Croatia. Jeannie was then given an additional posting, to the Rebel Krajina Serb stronghold of Knin in Southwestern Croatia, where she headed UNPROFOR's regional office and was the negotiator with the rebel Serbs' political leaders.

From 1996 to 1998 Jeannie returned to work with the region on a different UN mission, UNTAES, United Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium. Eastern Slavonia borders the Danube River, with Serbia just across the water. She was given responsibility for dealing with the issues of reconciliation, religion, and the re-integration of the Rebel Serbs into the Croatian government. Under UNTAES, the eastern territory of Croatia that had been forcefully taken by Rebel Croatian Serb forces in 1991 was peacefully restored under Croatian Government authority.

Jeannie's last mission to the troubled Southwestern area of Croatia from 1999 to 2001 was called the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Mission to Croatia. She again was given responsibility for the former Sector South, which had been a stronghold of the Rebel Serb leadership. There was real interest on the part of the international community to assist the Croatian Serbs who had fled that area in 1995, to return, in accordance with international conventions, to their war-ravaged mountains and valleys to work with the Croatian Government. Considering that many essential documents had been destroyed during the war, the return of the Croatian Serbs to their traditional homelands in Southwestern Croatia did not occur easily. [4]

Future of Life Award

Jeannie was awarded the 2022 Future of Life Award for her contributions in discovering and popularising nuclear winter. Additional recipients of this award were John Birks, Paul Crutzen, Alan Robock, Carl Sagan, Georgiy Stenchikov, Brian Toon, and Richard Turco.

Personal

Jeannie was born in Suttons Bay, Michigan. Her father, Paulus Peterson, was a cherry farmer. She married Kurt Ekenberger of Sweden, a photographer she met while working as a travel writer and ski sweater model in Ketchum, Idaho.

She was a long-time partner of Cedric Thornberry. Jeannie and Cedric spent time in Montauk, New York; the island-country of Cyprus and to Korčula, an island off the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia; and the Champlain Islands of Vermont. In Vermont, she served on the board of the local arts organization, Island Arts, and had a small business in art photography – photographing the ever-changing elements of sky, wind and water. Her work was exhibited at the Island Arts Gallery of the Merchant's Bank on the Champlain Islands, the North Hero Town Hall in the Champlain Islands, the Brian Memorial Gallery in Stowe, Vermont, at the Forchgott and Sourdiffe Gallery in Shelburne, Vermont, and at the Champlain Valley exposition in Vermont. She has since moved to California, where she enjoys retirement near her niece and family, on the Pacific Ocean.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nuclear winter</span> Hypothetical climatic effect of nuclear war

Nuclear winter is a severe and prolonged global climatic cooling effect that is hypothesized to occur after widespread firestorms following a large-scale nuclear war. The hypothesis is based on the fact that such fires can inject soot into the stratosphere, where it can block some direct sunlight from reaching the surface of the Earth. It is speculated that the resulting cooling would lead to widespread crop failure and famine. When developing computer models of nuclear-winter scenarios, researchers use the conventional bombing of Hamburg, and the Hiroshima firestorm in World War II as example cases where soot might have been injected into the stratosphere, alongside modern observations of natural, large-area wildfire-firestorms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium</span> Former country

The United Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES) was a UN peacebuilding transitional administration in the Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia in the eastern parts of Croatia. The transitional administration lasted between 1996 and 1998. It was also sometimes known as the United Nations Transitional Authority in Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium. The transitional administration was formally established by the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1037 of January 15, 1996. The transitional administration was envisaged and invited in the November 1995 Erdut Agreement between the Croatian Government and the representatives of the local Serb community in the region. At the time of UNTAES deployment the region already hosted another traditional type UN peacekeeping mission known as the UNCRO. While the region was covered under the UNCRO's sector east, the whole UNCRO mission was brought into question by the Operation Storm escalation of hostilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Medak Pocket</span> Military operation by the Croatian Army during the Croatian War of Independence

Operation Medak Pocket, officially called by Croatians Operation Pocket-93(Operacija Džep-93) was a military operation undertaken by the Croatian Army between 9 – 17 September 1993, in which a salient reaching the south suburbs of Gospić, in the south-central Lika region of Croatia then under the control of the self-proclaimed Republic of Serbian Krajina, was attacked by Croatian forces. The pocket was named after the village of Medak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Republic of Serbian Krajina</span> Proto-state in Croatia (1991–1995)

The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina, known as the Serbian Krajina or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, a territory within the newly independent Republic of Croatia, which it defied, and which was active during the Croatian War of Independence (1991–95). It was not recognized internationally. The name Krajina ("Frontier") was adopted from the historical Military Frontier of the Habsburg monarchy (Austria-Hungary), which had a substantial Serb population and existed up to the late 19th century. The RSK government waged a war for ethnic Serb independence from Croatia and unification with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Republika Srpska.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Protection Force</span> Military unit

The United Nations Protection Force was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav Wars. The force was formed in February 1992 and its mandate ended in March 1995, with the peacekeeping mission restructuring into three other forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul J. Crutzen</span> Dutch climatologist (1933–2021)

Paul Jozef Crutzen was a Dutch meteorologist and atmospheric chemist. He and Mario Molina and Frank Sherwood Rowland were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995 for their work on atmospheric chemistry and specifically for his efforts in studying the formation and decomposition of atmospheric ozone. In addition to studying the ozone layer and climate change, he popularized the term Anthropocene to describe a proposed new epoch in the Quaternary period when human actions have a drastic effect on the Earth. He was also amongst the first few scientists to introduce the idea of a nuclear winter to describe the potential climatic effects stemming from large-scale atmospheric pollution including smoke from forest fires, industrial exhausts, and other sources like oil fires.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia</span> United Nations peacekeeping mission in Croatia

The United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia, commonly abbreviated UNCRO, was a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in Croatia. It was established under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter and approved by the UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 981 on 31 March 1995. UNCRO inherited personnel and infrastructure from the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR). Its command was located in Zagreb; the peacekeeping troops were deployed in four sectors named North, South, East, and West. Twenty different countries contributed troops to the mission.

The Battle of the Miljevci Plateau was a clash between the Croatian Army and forces of the Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK), fought on 21–23 June 1992, during the Croatian War of Independence. The battle represented the culmination of a series of skirmishes between the HV and the RSK forces in Northern Dalmatia, after the implementation of the Vance plan and deployment of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) began. The skirmishes occurred in the pink zones—areas under control of the RSK, but outside the UN Protected Areas established by the Vance plan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Bøllebank</span> 1994 Bosnian War confrontation

The Operation Bøllebank is the name given to the military confrontation between Bosnian Serb military forces and Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish combat units composing the United Nations Protection Force's (UNPROFOR) Nordic Battalion, outside of the city of Tuzla on 29 April 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mirkovci, Croatia</span> Village in Syrmia, Croatia

Mirkovci is a village and suburb of the town of Vinkovci in eastern Croatia. It is geographically within the Syrmia and Podunavlje region. The village is located immediately southeast of Vinkovci separated from the rest of the town by Vinkovci-Gunja railway. At the time of 2011 Census, the local population was 3,283.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia (1995–1998)</span>

Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia, commonly abbreviated as Eastern Slavonia, was a short-lived Serb parallel entity in the territory of Croatia along the Danube river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 779</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 1992

United Nations Security Council resolution 779, adopted unanimously on 6 October 1992, after reaffirming Resolution 743 (1992) and subsequent resolutions and noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali submitted pursuant to resolutions 743 and 762 (1992), the Council authorised the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) to assume responsibility for monitoring the complete withdrawal of the Yugoslav People's Army from Croatia, demilitarization of the Prevlaka peninsula and the removal of heavy weapons from neighbouring areas of Croatia and Montenegro in co-operation with the European Community Monitoring Mission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 871</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 1993

United Nations Security Council resolution 871, adopted unanimously on 4 October 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 713 (1992) and 743 (1992) and subsequent resolutions relating to the situation in the former Yugoslavia and United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), the Council expressed concern that United Nations peacekeeping plan for Croatia, in particular Resolution 769 (1992), had not been implemented and went on to discuss the peace plan and extend UNPROFOR's mandate until 31 March 1994.

United Nations Security Council resolution 908, adopted unanimously on 31 March 1994, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in the former Yugoslavia and in particular Resolution 871 (1993), the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) until 30 September 1994 and declared its intention to increase the number of personnel in the peacekeeping force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1120</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 1997

United Nations Security Council resolution 1120, adopted unanimously on 14 July 1997, after recalling previous resolutions on Croatia including 1023 (1995), 1025 (1995), 1037 (1996), 1043 (1996), 1069 (1996) and 1079 (1996), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Transitional Authority for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES) until 15 January 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erdut Agreement</span> 1995 treaty ending the Croatian War of Independence

The Erdut Agreement, officially the Basic Agreement on the Region of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium, was an agreement reached on 12 November 1995 between the authorities of the Republic of Croatia and the local Serb authorities of the Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia region on the peaceful resolution to the Croatian War of Independence in eastern Croatia. It initiated the process of peaceful reintegration of the region to central government control and provided a set of guarantees on minority rights and refugee return. It was named after Erdut, the village in which it was signed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenja</span> Village

Tenja is a village in eastern Slavonia, Croatia, located just southeast of Osijek. The population is 7,376.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joint Council of Municipalities</span>

The Joint Council of Municipalities in Croatia is an elected consultative sui generis body which constitutes a form of cultural self-government of Serbs in the eastern Croatian Podunavlje region. The body was established in the initial aftermath of the Croatian War of Independence as a part of the international community's efforts to peacefully settle the conflict in self-proclaimed Eastern Slavonia, Baranya and Western Syrmia. The establishment of the ZVO was one of the explicit provisions of the Erdut Agreement which called upon the United Nations to establish its UNTAES transitional administration.

The Vance plan was a peace plan negotiated by the former United States Secretary of State Cyrus Vance in November 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. At that time, Vance was the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations; he was assisted by United States diplomat Herbert Okun during the negotiations. The plan was designed to implement a ceasefire, demilitarize parts of Croatia that were under the control of Croatian Serbs and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), allow the return of refugees, and create favourable conditions for negotiations on a permanent political settlement of the conflict resulting from the breakup of Yugoslavia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John W. Birks</span> American professor at the University of Colorado Boulder

John W. Birks is an American atmospheric chemist and entrepreneur who is best known for co-discovery with Paul Crutzen of the potential atmospheric effects of nuclear war known as nuclear winter. His most recent awards include the 2019 Haagen-Smit Clean Air Award for his contributions to atmospheric chemistry and the 2022 Future of Life Award for discovery of the nuclear winter effect.

References

  1. ↑ Badash, Lawrence (2009). A Nuclear Winter's Tale :science and Politics in the 1980s. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. pp. 52–53. ISBN   0-262-25799-8.
  2. ↑ "Future Of Life Award". Future of Life Institute. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  3. ↑ "National Security And The Future". Nsf-journal.hr. Retrieved 2012-04-17.
  4. ↑ Erlanger, Steven (16 January 2000). "For Serbs in Croatia, a Pledge Unkept". The New York Times.
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