Domestic Career
Born in Oslo as a daughter of Gudmund Harlem, Brundtland was educated as a medical doctor (cand.med.) at the University of Oslo in 1963, and Master of Public Health at Harvard University in 1965. From 1966 to 1969, she worked as a physician at the Directorate of Health (Helsedirektoratet), and from 1969 she worked as a doctor in Oslo's public school health service. She was Norwegian Minister for Environmental Affairs from 1974 to 1979 and became Norway's first, and to date only, female Prime Minister. She served as Prime Minister from February to October in 1981.
Brundtland became Norwegian Prime Minister for two subsequent terms: the first was from 9 May 1986 until 16 October 1989. This cabinet was internationally renowned for its large percentage of female ministers. Eight of the eighteen total were female. The second was from 3 November 1990 to 25 October 1996, when she resigned and retired from Norwegian politics, and was succeeded by Thorbjørn Jagland. She resigned as leader of the Norwegian Labour Party in 1992.
Gro Harlem Brundtland is a member of Human-Etisk Forbund, the Norwegian Humanist Association.
She is a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.
Read more about this topic: Gro Harlem Brundtland
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