All of us close to UNESCO and CONFINTEA will have met or known Prof. Knoll in person, or at least through his writings. In preparation for CONFINTEA VI in Bélem, Brasil he wrote a review on the history of the first five CONFINTEAs, on the political contexts, and the personalities involved. When CONFINTEA V was in Hamburg in 1997 he invited colleagues to his roof top on a higher building overseeing the harbour - and I will never forget the wonderful evening amidst Lalage Bown, Alex Charters or Paul Belanger, and many others.