Rajendra Pachauri was born in Nainital, India, in 1940. He studied industrial engineering at the North Carolina State University in Raleigh, USA, where he also obtained a Ph.D. in industrial engineering and a Ph.D. in economics. In 1981 he joined the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The focus of TERI is to conduct research in the areas of energy, environment, forestry, biotechnology, and the conservation of natural resources to provide professional support to governments, institutions, and corporate organizations worldwide. In 2002, Pachauri was elected as Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Established by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme in 1988, the IPCC assesses scientific, technical and socioeconomic information relevant for the understanding of climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation.