Johan Eliasch

Last updated

Johan Eliasch
BornFebruary 1962 (age 61)
Djursholm, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
British
Alma mater Stockholm University
Royal Institute of Technology
Occupation(s)Industrialist, Financier and Environmentalist
TitlePresident, International Ski Federation (FIS)
Predecessor Gian-Franco Kasper
Board member ofEquity Partners (Chairman)
London Films (Chairman)
Saatchi Gallery (Chairman)
Cool Earth (Chairman)
Global Strategy Forum (President)
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1988;div. 2006)​
Children2
Website official website

Johan Eliasch (born February 1962) is a Swedish-British businessman, investor, and environmentalist. [1] He was the chief executive of Head, a sporting goods company, from 1995 to 2021, and is now its chairman. In 2006, he co-founded Cool Earth, a charity dedicated to rainforest conservation. [2] Under Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Eliasch served as the Prime Minister's special representative for deforestation and clean energy. Since June 2021, he is the president of the International Ski Federation (FIS). [3]

Contents

Early life

Johan Eliasch was born in February 1962, [4] in Djursholm, Sweden. [5] He is the grandson of G. A. Svensson, a leading Swedish industrialist. [6] He graduated in Stockholm with a Master of Science from the Royal Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Stockholm University. Eliasch served in a specialist unit at the Life-Guard Dragoons, K1, Stockholm, Sweden (1980-81.) [7] [8]

He was married to Amanda Eliasch, a photographer and filmmaker, from 1988 to 2006; they have two sons. [9] Their son Charles Eliasch is an opera singer. [10]

Career

Eliasch began his career in turning around companies in 1985, when he joined the London-based private equity firm Tufton Group. [6] In 1991, he established his own private investment group, Equity Partners. [6]

In 1995, Eliasch took over Head Tyrolia Mares, [6] the sporting goods company now known as Head; he was the Chief Executive Officer of Head from 1995 to 2021. [11]

In June 2021, Eliasch was elected as president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) at the 52nd International Ski Congress, succeeding Gian-Franco Kasper, who had run the organisation for 23 years. [12] Eliasch stepped down as CEO of Head after his election. [11] At the 53rd International Ski Congress in May 2022, Eliasch ran unopposed and was re-elected as FIS president through 2026 but some delegates called the elections undemocratic as it was not possible to vote against him; as a result 15 national associations walked out during his election and 40% of the delegates abstained. [13] [14] [ better source needed ]

He is chairman of Equity Partners, [6] and on the board of directors of Aman Resorts [15] and Longleat. [7] He is the chairman of the Saatchi Gallery. [16]

He was an advisory board member of the Shimon Peres Peace Centre, World Peace Foundation, the Centre for Social Justice, Societe du Louvre and the British Olympic Association, a member of the Mayor of London’s (Boris Johnson), Jerusalem’s and Rome’s International Business Advisory Councils. [7] He was chairman of Starr Managing Agents, Investcorp Europe [17] and the Aman Resorts Group. [18] He was a director of London Films Productions Limited from August 2016 to January 2017. [19]

The Sunday Times Rich List puts him in number 50 of UK's richest in 2022 with a net worth estimated at £3.6 billion. [20]

Environmental causes

In 2005, Eliasch created the Rainforest Trust and purchased for preservation purposes a 400,000-acre (1,600 km2) rainforest area in the heart of the Amazon rainforest near the Madeira River. [21] He then reportedly closed down the rainforest logging operations in that area. [22] In June 2008, the Brazilian and international media reported that the company Gethal, owned by Eliasch, had been issued a fine of R$450 million for alleged illegal deforestation in the Amazon region by IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources). [23] [24] The investigation ended in 2013, Eliasch was not fined, and the case was dropped. [25] In a press release note, Gethal stated that "the logging activity of Gethal Amazonas S/A had been out under the Forest Steward Council (FSC) guidelines, a certification that was obtained in 2000". [26]

In 2006, he co-founded Cool Earth, [27] a charity he co-chairs, which sponsors local NGOs to conserve endangered rainforest and has over 120,000 registered members.

In 2007 he was commissioned by HM Government to undertake an independent review on the role of international finance mechanisms to preserve the global forests in tackling climate change, The Eliasch Review, which was launched in October 2008. [28] [29] The Eliasch Review has served as a guideline for REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) as part of the international climate change convention. [30]

Under Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Eliasch served as the Prime Minister's special representative for deforestation and clean energy. [31]

Eliasch is currently a director of the Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment, a non-profit, international organisation, [32] and an advisory board member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Polar Regions, Brasilinvest. [7] [33] He is an advisory board member of the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative [34] and previously served on the International Advisory Board of the Stockholm Resilience Centre. [35]

He chaired the 2021-22 HM Treasury net zero review technology and innovation advisory group, [17] [36] RUSI’s Food, Energy and Water security program, and was a member of the DEFRA Council for Sustainable Business. [17]

Political activity

Since 1997, Eliasch has served the Conservative Party in different roles, including as Deputy Treasurer, Advisor to the Leader and Advisor to the Shadow Foreign Secretary. He was appointed as a non-political special representative of Prime Minister Gordon Brown on deforestation and clean energy. [37] [38] Eliasch was a member of the Austrian president's delegation of State for Trade and Industry (1996-2006). He was chairman of the Young Conservatives Party in Djursholm, Sweden, from 1979–1982. [39]

In 2006, Eliasch co-founded the Global Strategy Forum with Rt Hon Michael Ancram, [40] and became the foundation's first president. [41]

Friendship with Prince Andrew

Eliasch became friends with Prince Andrew, Duke of York, after he organised a charity tennis match at Buckingham Palace between John McEnroe and Björn Borg. Later, the Duke visited Eliasch at his French residence. [42] In 2019, The Times reported that in 2002 the Duke used the pseudonym Andrew Inverness to set up a company with Eliasch. [43] They named the company Naples Gold. [44] In 2021, speaking to the New York Times about the Duke's friendship with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, Eliasch claimed that, "Anybody who knows the Duke well knows that he is intensely loyal to his friends and sometimes that loyalty is not in his best interest, and that is what happened here." [45] On 9th March 2011, The Guardian newspaper had to publish an apology about an article that contained inaccurate details regarding the 2000 vacation. The article wrongly stated that Johan Eliasch and Prince Andrew had been accompanied by topless models during this holiday, a claim that was later acknowledged as false. The newspaper's apology also made amends for the fact that they stated the pair were spotted on a catamaran when in fact they were aboard a single-hulled vessel and the models were clothed. The Guardian expressed regret over the misinformation in the initial report and apologised to both Johan Eliasch and Prince Andrew for any distress or inconvenience caused by the inaccuracies in the previously published article. [46]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden</span> Crown Princess of Sweden

Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland is the heir apparent to the Swedish throne, as the eldest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf. If she ascends to the throne as expected, she would be Sweden's fourth queen regnant and the first since 1720. Her inheritance is secured by Sweden's 1979 Act of Succession, the first law in Western Europe to adopt royal absolute primogeniture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Bildt</span> Swedish politician, prime minister 1991–1994, foreign minister 2006–2014

Nils Daniel Carl Bildt is a Swedish politician and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Sweden from 1991 to 1994. He led the Moderate Party from 1986 to 1999, appearing at its lead candidate in four general elections, before his appointment as Minister for Foreign Affairs under Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt from 2006 to 2014. Bildt first entered the Riksdag in 1979, holding a seat until 2001. A member of the Bildt family, he is a great-great grandson of Gillis Bildt, who was Prime Minister of Sweden from 1888 to 1889.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah, Duchess of York</span> Former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York (born 1959)

Sarah, Duchess of York, also known by the nickname Fergie, is a British author, television personality, and member of the British royal family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, a younger brother of King Charles III.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson</span> Mrs. Magnuson

Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson, is a member of the Swedish royal family. She is the fourth child of Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and the youngest of the four older sisters of King Carl XVI Gustaf. She generally uses the name Christina Magnuson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yelena Välbe</span> Russian cross-country skier

Yelena Valeryevna Välbe is a Russian former cross-country skier. She won a record-high 14 gold medals at the FIS World Championships, including all five golds in the 1997 edition. She also won three Olympic gold medals and four bronze medals in various Winter Olympic Games as well as four World Cup Crystal Globes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Juniper</span> British writer, environmentalist and conservationist

Anthony Juniper is a British campaigner, writer, sustainability adviser and environmentalist who served as Executive Director of Friends of the Earth, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. He was Vice Chair of Friends of the Earth International from 2000 to 2008.

Gian Franco Kasper was a Swiss ski official who was president of the International Ski Federation (FIS) from 1998 to 2021. He also served as a member of the International Olympic Committee from 2000 to 2018 and member of the World Anti-Doping Agency from 2003 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aiglon College</span> Independent school, day and boarding school in Chesières-Villars, Vaud, Switzerland

Aiglon College is a private co-educational boarding school in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland. Founded in 1949 by former Gordonstoun teacher John C. Corlette, it occupies a scenic location in the alpine village of Chesieres, close to the ski resort of Villars-sur-Ollon, 58 kilometers from Lausanne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deforestation in Brazil</span> Conversion of forest to non-forest for human use in Brazil

Brazil once had the highest deforestation rate in the world and in 2005 still had the largest area of forest removed annually. Since 1970, over 700,000 square kilometres (270,000 sq mi) of the Amazon rainforest have been destroyed. In 2001, the Amazon was approximately 5,400,000 square kilometres (2,100,000 sq mi), which is only 87% of the Amazon's original size. According to official data, about 729,000 km² have already been deforested in the Amazon biome, which corresponds to 17% of the total. 300,000 km² have been deforested in the last 20 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deforestation of the Amazon rainforest</span>

The Amazon rainforest, spanning an area of 3,000,000 km2, is the world's largest rainforest. It encompasses the largest and most biodiverse tropical rainforest on the planet, representing over half of all rainforests. The Amazon region includes the territories of nine nations, with Brazil containing the majority (60%), followed by Peru (13%), Colombia (10%), and smaller portions in Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johan Olsson (skier)</span>

Johan Arne Olsson is a Swedish cross-country skiing coach and former skier. He is a two-time Olympic champion who raced from 1998 to 2017. Olsson won five individual FIS Cross-Country World Cup victories and two additional podium finishes during his career.

William Samuel Hugh Laidlaw is the Executive Chairman of Neptune Energy, the independent E&P company. He is former chief executive officer of Centrica, the British natural gas and electricity company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cool Earth</span> NGO that protects endangered rainforest

Cool Earth is a UK-based international NGO that funds Indigenous communities to protect endangered rainforests in order to combat the climate crisis and protect ecosystems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alessandro Benetton</span> Italian businessman

Alessandro Benetton is an Italian businessman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ajay Banga</span> American business executive (born 1959)

Ajaypal Singh Banga is an Indian-born American business executive. He is currently the president of the World Bank Group. He was vice chairman at General Atlantic, and was before that executive chairman of Mastercard, after having previously served as president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the company from July 2010 until December 31, 2020. He retired from this position on December 31, 2021, to join General Atlantic. He is also the chairman of Netherlands-based investment holding company Exor and chairman of the public-private Partnership for Central America with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacob Wallenberg</span> Swedish banker and industrialist (born 1956)

Jacob Wallenberg is a Swedish banker and industrialist from the Wallenberg family who currently serves as a board member for multiple companies. He was described by The Guardian as a “prince in Sweden's royal family of finance”.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iran–Sweden relations</span> Bilateral relations

Iran–Sweden relations are foreign relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kingdom of Sweden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vladislav Doronin</span> Russian businessman

Vladislav Yurievich Doronin is a Russian-born oligarch, real estate developer and art collector. He is the owner and chairman of Aman Resorts, chairman and CEO of OKO Group and is a co-founder of Moscow-based Capital Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohamed Amersi</span> British businessman

Mohamed Amersi is a British businessman. He is the founder and chairman of the Inclusive Ventures Group, and former chairman of QML Group. He is a donor to the Conservative Party, having given nearly £525,000 since 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frida Karlsson</span> Swedish cross-country skier

Frida Karlsson is a Swedish cross-country skier. She won a silver medal in the women's 10 kilometres classical, bronze medal in the women's 30 kilometre freestyle mass start, and gold as a member of the women's 4 × 5 kilometre relay during the 2019 FIS World Championships in Seefeld in Tirol, Austria. With this win, she became the youngest cross-country skiing World Cup gold medalist in history. In April 2018, she received a 50,000 Swedish kronor prize for promising new skiers from former skier Johan Olsson and a bank. The award also gave her the opportunity to use Olsson as a mentor. Karlsson is the daughter of former cross-country skier Ann-Marie Karlsson.

References

  1. ↑ Eliasch, Johan. "About". Johan Eliasch. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  2. ↑ Clarke, David. "UK's Brown names opposition donor as green adviser". Reuters . Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  3. ↑ "FIS Presidents". www.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  4. ↑ "Johan ELIASCH - Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". Beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  5. ↑ Opitz, Caspar (10 May 2006). "Svensk räddar skog för 100 miljoner". DN.SE. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Wherry, Rob (20 March 2000). "Head's up". Forbes . Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Johan Eliasch". cps.org.uk. Centre for Policy Research. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  8. ↑ Taylor, Matthew; White, Michael (2 September 2007). "Big Tory donor quits citing party's move to the right". The Guardian . Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  9. ↑ "All Tamara's parties". the Guardian. 8 February 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  10. ↑ "20-Year-Old Charles Eliasch Makes His Opera Debut at Carnegie Hall". HuffPost. 13 March 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  11. 1 2 Houston, Michael (14 June 2021). "New FIS President Eliasch steps down as chief executive of HEAD". insidethegames.biz. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  12. ↑ "Johan Eliasch". www.fis-ski.com. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  13. ↑ "FIS PRESIDENT RE-ELECTED AS MANY SKI NATIONS BOYCOTT VOTE IN PROTEST" . Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  14. ↑ "Walk-outs from major ski countries as Eliasch re-elected FIS President and Putin-supporter Vyalbe voted off Council" . Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  15. ↑ Rizzo, Lillian (14 March 2016). "Aman Resorts Owner Doronin Scores Legal Wins in Long-Running Dispute". Wall Street Journal . ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  16. ↑ "Big Changes at Britain's Saatchi Gallery, as Visitor Numbers Slide". The New York Times . 4 April 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  17. 1 2 3 "Johan Eliasch". World Economic Forum.
  18. ↑ "Johan Eliasch has been appointed Chairman at Aman Group". Hospitality Net.
  19. ↑ "LONDON FILM PRODUCTIONS LIMITED people - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk.
  20. ↑ "The Sunday Times Rich List 2022". www.thetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  21. ↑ Chittenden, Maurice (13 September 2006). "It's my rainforest now. No logging". The Sunday Times .
  22. ↑ "The Man Who Bought a Forest". The Guardian. 4 April 2006.
  23. ↑ "Johan Eliasch, Gordon Brown consultant, fined for illegal Amazon logging". 7 June 2008. Archived from the original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  24. ↑ "Ibama multa madeireira de milionário sueco em R$ 450 mi no Amazonas - 06/06/2008 - Poder". Folha de S.Paulo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  25. ↑ "Fairness bei BLICK". Blick (in German). 9 April 2020. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  26. ↑ "Em nota, madeireira Gethal nega práticas ilegais na Amazônia - 07/06/2008 - Últimas Notícias". noticias.uol.com.br. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  27. ↑ O’Neill, Sean (7 September 2007). "Green campaigner and businessman who despaired of ineffective politics". The Times . p. T7. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  28. ↑ Peel, Lilly (16 October 2008). "Business big shot". The Times . London. p. T43. Factiva T000000020081016e4ag0003r. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  29. ↑ "Eliasch Review on International deforestation published |". www.wired-gov.net.
  30. ↑ Hayden, Lisa (2010). Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) (PDF). Arlington, Virginia: The Nature Conservancy, Conservation International and Wildlife Conservation Society.
  31. ↑ Russell, Ben. "Johan Eliasch: A multimillionaire with a conscience". The Independent . Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  32. ↑ "Board of Directors". freefutures.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  33. ↑ "The Brasilinvest Group, created in 1975 by the businessman Mario Garnero, is the first private development agency installed in Brazil (...)", Brazilivest [ permanent dead link ]
  34. ↑ "Advisory Board - Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative". www.schwarzeneggerclimateinitiative.com.
  35. ↑ "International advisory board". www.stockholmresilience.org.
  36. ↑ Net Zero Review Analysis exploring the key issues (PDF). UK: HM Treasury. 2021. p. 128. ISBN   9781911686316.
  37. ↑ "A valuable collection of talents". the Guardian. 7 September 2007.
  38. ↑ "Johan Eliasch: Don't let politics prevent us from saving the planet". The Independent . Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  39. ↑ "Johan Eliasch Political activity". www.famous-people.net.
  40. ↑ "About Global Strategy Forum | Global Strategy Forum".
  41. ↑ "Staff & Advisory Board member Biographies". globalstrategyforum.org. Archived from the original on 7 June 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  42. ↑ Hellen, Nicholas; Ungoed-Thomas, Jon (16 February 2003). "Swedish sports tycoon backs Tories with £1m". The Times . Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  43. ↑ Ziegler, Martyn (7 March 2020). "Prince Andrew associate in line for skiing presidency". The Times . Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  44. ↑ "Naples Gold Limited" . Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  45. ↑ Kirkpatrick, David (24 August 2021). "Prince Andrew Denies Knowing of Sex Trafficking by Epstein". New York Times . Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  46. ↑ Bates, Stephen (9 March 2011). "Prince Andrew: useful envoy or liability?". The Guardian . Retrieved 16 September 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.