Council for the Environment and Infrastructure
Name: Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Raad voor de leefomgeving en infrastructuur, Rli)
Established in: 2012 (The Netherlands revised the structure of its advisory bodies by merging several councils, to eventually establish the Rli by law in 2012.)
Role: The Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) is the primary strategic advisory board for the Dutch government and parliament on matters affecting sustainable development of the physical environment and infrastructure. The Council operates independently and provides both solicited and unsolicited advice.
Duties: The Council is tasked to: contribute to social debate and the political decision-making process, through its strategic advice; monitor trends and draw attention to social issues and to place those issues on the agenda; produce its advisory reports in an open process which involves close collaboration with the commissioning client and other stakeholders.
Composition: The Council has ten members, including the chair. All members are independent and are appointed on the basis of their broad expertise and experience. They are drawn from various backgrounds including public administration, the private sector and academia. At the start of its second term in August 2016, the Council decided to appoint three junior members in order to incorporate the knowledge and experience of younger generations in its work. These junior members participate fully in all the activities of the Council.
The secretariat: The Rli has a secretariat that includes 28 (part-time) staff members.
