Dr. Lee obtained his PhD (1978) at Iowa State University and taught forest sciences as a professor (1981-2012) at Seoul National University (SNU). Now he teaches as chair professor (2013-) in Park Chung Hee School of Policy and Saemaul, Yeungnam University, and is a global leader working to solve international issues such as desertification and land degradation. He served as president (2006-2010) of the International of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO), president (2011-2013) of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, and dean (1999-2001) of SNU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. His work also included key roles inthe Center for International Forestry Research (1999-2004) and as president for the Korean Forest Society (2004-2006). As a former minister (2011-2013) of the Korea Forest Service, his leadership developed effective policies and practices that made the organization a global government leader. He is a fellow in the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry, and Xi Sigma Pi—an international honor society for forestry. He earned an honorary doctoral degree from Moscow State Forest University, the Yellow Stripes Order of Service Award from Korea, and the IUFRO's Honorary Membership Award.