Dominique Voynet

Voynet negotiated the Greens' place in Lionel Jospin's "plural left" coalition and served as environment and regional planning minister from 1997 to 2001. She secured the decision to close the Superphénix fast-breeder reactor and wrote a planning law requiring regions to plan for sustainable development, but had to accept continued nuclear power and road building. Her experience is the French case study in what a junior coalition partner can and cannot win.