Rafael Peralta

Rafael Peralta is the Regional Director of the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Regional Office for North America in Washington since 1 July 2023.

Rafael has served as Chief of Staff of UNEP since April 2021, having previously worked as Acting Chief of Staff since 2019. He joined UNEP in 2018 as Deputy Chief of Staff.

Rafael has over 20 years’ experience at the United Nations and beyond, working at the intersection of sustainable development, peace and security in a number of countries and regions including Haiti, the Central African Republic, West Africa, the Western Balkans and Somalia. Prior to joining UNEP, Rafael served as Senior Political Affairs Officer in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in New York from 2015 to 2018, working in support of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic. Earlier, he worked in West Africa and the Sahel supporting political process in the region, as well as on post-conflict stabilization in Somalia and Haiti. His expertise includes international diplomacy, inter-agency UN coordination, environmental management and management of large organizations.

Before joining the United Nations, Rafael worked with international organizations in Amman, Pristina and Sarajevo in different capacities.

A Spanish national, Rafael holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from the Brussels School of International Studies-University of Kent at Canterbury and a degree in Law from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.