Nicolas Hulot

Early Life

Hulot was born 30 April, 1955 in Lille, France to Monique Marguerite Marie Hulot (née Moulun) a pharmaceutical sales representative and Philippe Marie Joseph Hulot, a gold miner from Venezuela. Hulot had one brother, Gonzaga and a sister, Beatrice.

Hulot's father Philippe died when Hulot was fifteen years old. Gonzaga Hulot committed suicide on 24 December, 1974 when Hulot was 19 years old.

Hulot took up rallying as a hobby when he was growing up and took part in the 1980 Dakar Rally though he didn't finish the race due to difficulties with his vehicle.

Early career

From 1973 to 1978, Hulot worked as an agency photographer for Sipa Press where he documented the 1976 Guatemala earthquake and interviewed Ian Smith during the Rhodesian Bush War.

Hulot left Sipa Press in 1978 to move to France Inter after being offered work as a radio journalist and producer. Hulot debuted on television during the children's program Les Visiteurs du mercredi. Hulot also presented the short-lived educational programme Les Pieds au mur. Following this, Hulot became an evening reporter focusing on motorcycle events. Hulot left France Inter in 1987.

Hulot presented the television programme, Ushuaïa, le magazine de l'extrême which was focused around extreme sport and natural landscapes throughout the world. The programme was broadcast on TF1 and was co-produced by Hulot's then-girlfriend Dominique Cantien. Ushuaïa, le magazine de l'extrême made Hulot a household name in France. Ushuaïa, le magazine de l'extrême ran from 1987 to 1995. Hulot went on to present Opération Okavango (1996-1997) and Ushuaïa Nature (1998-2012) Hulot's contract with TF1 ended in December 2011 though four of the remaining Ushuaïa Nature episodes aired in 2012.

Fondation Nicolas Hulot

In 1990, Hulot founded the Ushuaia Foundation which became Fondation Nicolas-Hulot pour la nature et l'homme in 1995.

Hulot and Gérard Feldzer, a former French airline pilot, experimented with airship prototypes originally developed by Didier Costes in 1992, and in 1993, the pair attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean from Spain using an airship with pedals. The pair made it as far as 1,500km before failing near the Cape Verde Islands.

Hulot set up partnerships for the Foundation with companies such as EDF, L'Oréal and TF1. In 2006, the National Museum of Natural History formed a partnership with Fondation Nicolas-Hulot pour la nature et l'homme, organising annual events to bring people together to combat climate change.

In 2013, the foundation launched a think tank based around ecology.

Political activities

In 2007, Nicolas Hulot told candidates in the presidential election that he would stand as a candidate if ecology were not one of the main themes of the election. Some polls estimated his support at around 15%. In response to his announcement, five of the twelve candidates in the election, including Nicolas Sarkozy, signed his Pacte écologique (ecology pact), stating that ecological issues would be central to all future political decisions.

2011 Europe Écologie-Les Verts Primary

On April 13, 2011 while speaking in Sevran, Seine-Saint-Denis, Nicholas Hulot announced his candidacy in the Europe Écologie-Les Verts primary for the 2012 French presidental election. The announcement came a month after Hulot's calls for a referendum on nuclear energy following the Fukushima nuclear accident.

Hulot was invited to a televised interview on the France Inter show 7/9 by Bruno Duvic.

During the first round of the primary, Hulot came second with 40.22% despite polls indicating he would be able to beat Eva Joly who got 49.75% of the vote. Hulot lost during the second round and Joly became the Europe Ecologie-Les Verts candidate.

Hulot announced that he had voted for the Left Front's candidate, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, during the first round. He said he found Melenchon more efficient on environmental issues than Joly. He supported François Hollande in the second round.

Minister of Ecological and Solidary Transition

On 17 May 2017 he was appointed Minister of Ecological and Solidary Transition. This is following Hulot turning down offers for ministerial positions from Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande's governments. The position's responsibilities are focused around climate, air pollution, energy and transport. (The latter being done in collaboration with Transport minister, Élisabeth Borne.)

On 6 July 2017, Hulot announced the government's five-year plan to outlaw all petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040. The plan would also attempt to make France carbon-neutral by 2050. Financial incentives would be offered to people who try to look for cleaner alternatives. This followed a proposal by Norway to ban all petrol and diesel vehicle sales by 2025.

On July 10, 2017, Hulot said on RTL Radio that France may close up to 17 nuclear reactors by 2025 in a new plan to reduce its share of nuclear power. Liberal think-tank Institut Montaigne released a report stating that the plan to convert from nuclear energy to wind and solar will cost €217 billion by 2035. In 2016, France's Court of Audit estimated that prolonging the lifespan of France's nuclear reactors would cost €100 billion. France currently derives 75 percent of its electricity from nuclear power.

Criticism

Nicolas Hulot has been criticised by some commentators, like Le Canard Enchaîné and supporters of uneconomic growth and political ecology, who have criticised his use of the media and acceptance of funds from large firms, like EDF, L'Oréal and Rhône-Poulenc.

Personal Life

Hulot was in a relationship with Dominique Cantien, the TF1 director from 1987 to 1994. The relationship lasted 9 years (1986-1992) but ended due to Cantien's love affair with pop singer, Claude François. Hulot married world champion rock-climber Isabelle Patissier in Saint-Melo on September 2, 1993. Hulot and Patissier divorced on 9 April 1996. Hulot remarried in Viens on 2 October 2002 to Florence Lasserre, a former municipal councillor and mother to his two sons.