ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY, TWO JOURNALISTS AND WILDLIFE ORPHANAGE AMONG 14 INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO RECEIVE UN ENVIRONMENT AWARD

Press Release
UNEP/69

ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY, TWO JOURNALISTS AND WILDLIFE ORPHANAGE AMONG 14 INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO RECEIVE UN ENVIRONMENT AWARD

NAIROBI, 1 June (UNEP) -- An aboriginal community in Australia, two journalists from Spain and the United States and a wildlife orphanage in South Africa are among this year's 14 winners of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global 500 Award. The outstanding contributions to the protection of the environment of these individuals and organizations from 12 countries on every continent will be officially recognized on Sunday, 4 June, at a special award ceremony in Adelaide, Australia. The event, hosted by UNEP and the Government of Australia, is part of the main international World Environment Day celebrations.

"UNEP is indeed very proud to recognize the achievements of these 'heroes' in the front lines of global environmental action", says UNEP's Executive Director Klaus Toepfer. "They have taken the path that most of us hesitate to take for want of time or caring."

"In honouring the Global 500 laureates, UNEP hopes that others will be inspired by their extraordinary deeds", adds Mr. Toepfer.

The laureates who will receive their award from UNEP's Executive Director are:

-- the Andyamathanha Nepabunna Community for being the first indigenous community in Australia to voluntarily declare more than 55,000 hectares of their traditional land as a protected area;

-- Asbjorn Bjorgvinsson of Iceland for countering the commercial lobby to re-establish whaling and for having Iceland rejoin the International Whaling Commission;

-- Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage of South Africa for rescuing wild chimpanzees threatened by poaching, deforestation and the bushmeat trade;

-- Chumbe Island Coral Park in the United Republic of Tanzania for preserving a pristine coral island ecosystem in an otherwise over-fished and over-exploited area;

-- Chief Larry Philip Fontaine for helping the aboriginal peoples of Canada address the issue of environmental degradation in their communities;

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-- Fuji Xerox Australia for developing a recycled paper, which reduces pressure on forest and waste;

-- Robert Hager, a correspondent for NBC News Network in the United States for alerting the American people to the environmental challenges facing the planet, particularly global warming;

-- the City of Las Pinas in the Philippines for resolving environmental problems through legislation and action;

-- Dr. Reuben Americo Marti of Argentina for devising the City of Cordoba's first environmental regulation, which established compulsory environment impact assessment;

-- Mei Ng of Hong Kong, People's Republic of China, for leading the fight against the illegal encroachment of country parks, the over-expansion of power plants, the use of pesticides, air pollution and government mal-administration; and

-- Carlos de Prada, a journalist from Spain, for bravely exposing environmental crimes.

The list of winners also includes three Global 500 laureates in the youth category. They are:

-- Australian Trust for Conservation Volunteers for managing a force of young volunteers in practical conservation projects;

-- BUNDjugend of Germany for achieving the Government's climate protection target in their schools within seven months, instead of the seven-year period set up by the Government; and

-- Globetree Foundation for using theatre and drama to mobilize young people around the world to care for the environment.

Since the inception of the Global 500 Roll of Honour in 1987, 701 individuals and organizations, in both the adult and youth categories, have been honoured with this award. Prominent past winners include: French marine explorer Jacques Cousteau; Sir David Attenborough, producer of environmental television programmes; Gro Harlem Brundtland, former Prime Minister of Norway and current Head of the World Health Organization (WHO); Anil Aggarwal, the well-known environmentalist from India; Ken Saro-Wiwa, the environmental and human rights activist from Nigeria who was executed for leading the resistance of the Ogoni People against the pollution of their Delta homeland; the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF); Jimmy Carter, former President of the United States; Jane Goodall of the United Kingdom whose research on wild chimpanzees and olive baboons provided insight into the lives of non-human primates; and the late Chico Mendes, the Brazilian rubber tapper who was murdered during his fight to save the Amazon forest.

To forge global links and to implement ideas which can contribute to a more sustainable future, a network of all Global 500 laureates has been formed. Information about this unique network can be obtained at www.global500.org. UNEP looks to the world community to identify and nominate environmental advocates, so they too can be recognized for their efforts. Nomination forms can be obtained from the contacts listed below.

For more information, please contact: Elisabeth Guilbaud-Cox, Coordinator, Special Events, UNEP Communications and Public Information (CPI), Nairobi, on Tel: (254-2) 62 3401; fax: 62-3927/3692; e-mail: elisabeth.guilbaud- cox@unep.org or Tore J. Brevik, UNEP Spokesman and Director, CPI on Tel: (254-2) 62 3292; e-mail: tore.brevik@unep.org. UNEP web site: www.unep.org. or Jim Sniffen, UNEP Information Officer, New York, tel: 1-212- 963-8094, e-mail: uneprona@un.org

Description of 2000 UNEP Global 500 laureates:

In August 1998, the Andyamathanha people of Nepabunna set an Australian and international precedent by being the first indigenous community to voluntarily declare 58,000 hectares of their traditional land an Indigenous Protected Area (IPA). The community agreed to manage the Nantawarrina IPA in accordance with regulations of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) for protected areas and agreed to a management plan, allowing for both sustainable resource use in some areas, and strict protection of landscapes in others. A new concept in Australia, the IPA programme recognizes and allows for the continuation of traditional land and resource management, sustainable development, and the conservation of priority bio-regions. IPAs are recognized by the Australian Government as part of the formal National Reserve System. This is the first time that a protected area in Australia has been formally recognized on the basis of voluntary declaration, rather than legislation. This was achieved through an interpretation of the IUCN definition of a protected area as one which is 'managed through legal or other effective means'. Five other communities in Australia have since declared IPAs, preparing their Plans of Management and IUCN management categories on the Nantawarrina model. Six additional communities are likely to declare their lands indigenous areas, bringing a total of 10,103.201 hectares of indigenous-owned land under IUCN conservation management. The process required extensive community planning and consultations, and drew on strong community commitment to managing the landscape based on both cultural and natural conservation values.

Asbjorn Bjorgvinsson's promotion of ecotourism and of the whale watching industry in Iceland has resulted in significant social, educational, economic and political benefits to his native country. Iceland has long played a pivotal role in the controversial whaling industry. Whale watching, a major influence against commercial whaling, has grown by 10.3% every year since 1991, and generates more than US$ 600 million per year. As a result, whale watching has changed the attitudes of millions of people towards the environment. In 1995, Mr. Bjorgvinsson helped set up three whale watching companies, organized an international workshop, and produced the first annual report on the Icelandic industry, which has grown by as much as 50% per year. His reports have had a significant political impact in Iceland, serving to counter the commercial lobby to re-establish whaling and to have Iceland rejoin the International Whaling Commission. In 1997, Mr. Bjorgvinsson left his engineering consulting position in Reykjavik, to establish the Husavik Whale Centre -- the first and only whale information centre in Iceland. Visitors to his not-for-profit Centre doubled in 1999 and have helped Husavik become the centre of whale watching in Iceland. Mr. Bjorgvinsson's public awareness initiatives have produced a generation of Icelanders who are respectful of the marine environment. An influential media personality, he has helped make Iceland the destination of choice for knowledgeable ecotourists.

When a badly injured chimpanzee was brought to the Zambian farm of David and Sheila Siddle in 1983, it was not expected to live. It was malnourished, dehydrated and suffering from deep cuts across its face, and its teeth had been smashed in to keep it from biting its captors. Nevertheless, the Siddles decided to nurse the chimp -- nicknamed Pal -- back to health, thereby establishing a legacy of care and respect that serves as the foundation of the Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage in South Africa. Today, Chimfunshi is the largest chimpanzee sanctuary in the world, with over 70 chimps roaming in social groups across 26 acres of free-range enclosures. Rescued from poachers or dilapidated zoos and circuses, the chimps have often suffered horribly, yet are too habituated to return to the wild. Chimfunshi gives each chimp the love and protection it deserves, and never turns an ape away. Chimfunshi exists primarily on donations, yet it is an important bulwark in the fight against poaching, deforestation and the bushmeat trade that threaten wild chimpanzees. Each year, Chimfunshi receives as many as 30,000 visitors who are educated about the plight of both wild and captive chimps. Chimfunshi has set up the Pal Award, which is given annually to those who promote chimp issues. The orphanage also provides valuable information about the re-socialization and rehabilitation of man's closest relative. It serves as a model for the primate sanctuary movement currently sweeping across Africa. In early 2000, Chimfunshi broke new ground when it opened two 500-acre chimp enclosures, which will allow apes to roam through forests, fruit groves, grassland and streams. This setting will be the closest these chimps will ever come to living in the 'wild' again.

Established in 1992, the Chumbe Island Coral Park is the first and only marine nature reserve in the United Republic of Tanzania developed by a private company. Thanks to this initiative, the Chumbe Reef Sanctuary was gazetted in 1994 as a protected area by the Government of Zanzibar. As a result, the Island is now a pristine coral island ecosystem in an otherwise over-fished and over- exploited area. For the past eight years, the Park has been and continues to be a conservation area that provides important community benefits and social services to the population of Zanzibar, particularly fishermen and schoolchildren. The Project has: secured continued protection of valuable flora and fauna; helped restock locally depleted fisheries; promoted the recovery of degraded coral reef ecosystems; contributed to biological diversity conservation and ecological restoration by a coral reef, which has at least 90% of the scleractinian coral species ever recorded in East Africa; provided a training ground for local people in conservation management; helped create environmental awareness among the fishermen in the area; provided valuable experience in the financially sustainable management of protected areas; given permanent help to local fishermen in distress; provided a direct source of income to local fishermen; contributed to capacity-building of government staff; created unique facilities for environmental education; cooperated with the Harbours Authority to keep the lighthouse functioning; and offered valuable research opportunities for Tanzanian and foreign research institutions.

For more than 25 years, Chief Larry Philip Fontaine has been working to increase awareness and understanding of Aboriginal peoples both within Canada and internationally, and to create mechanisms for Aboriginal peoples' active participation in national and international forums. He has served in the Federal Government as Regional Director in the Yukon Department of Indian Affairs and as Deputy Federal Coordinator of the native Economic Development Programme. He was Grand Chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, and since 1996, has served as National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations in Canada. Chief Fontaine has helped the aboriginal peoples of Canada address the issue of environmental degradation in their communities, and has helped them develop the skills necessary to record, interpret, monitor and solve problems dealing with the protection of their lands and resources. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Center for Indigenous Environmental Resources (CIER) in 1994. An integral component of CIER's success has been its ability to form partnerships between First Nations peoples, governments, organizations and academic institutions, both at home and abroad. In 1996, he helped develop an innovative and culturally based Environmental Education and Training Programme (EETP), which provides First Nations individuals, recruited from across Canada, with indigenous and western environmental knowledge and skills. The programme comprises a 15-month class instruction and a three-month field practicum, which is held in a First Nation community. Participants are given the tools to engage in environmental protection initiatives on First Nation lands, particularly as they relate to environmental impact assessment, auditing and monitoring. CIER was an active participant in the Traditional Knowledge Working Group Meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity held in Spain in 1997, and as a permanent member of the Traditional Knowledge Working Group of the Canadian Federal Government.

As a committed environmental corporate citizen, Fuji Xerox Australia has solved a significant environmental problem in the area of forest management by developing a recycled copy paper to precise specifications for use in digital equipment. The development of this product was in response to poor sales of existing 100% recycled papers, which the market deemed to be of poor quality, expensive and unreliable. Fuji Xerox Australia undertook extensive research, together with one of Australia's paper manufacturers, to develop and launch the first Australian-made, cost-effective recycled paper guaranteed for use in high- speed applications. The paper is made up of 50% recycled waste from Australia's cotton industry -- a feature known to significantly strengthen this paper and improve durability -- and 35% content from wood pulp from sustainably managed forests. Since its launch in 1997, the paper has experienced rapid growth -- greater than all other Fuji Xerox papers sold. It currently represents 15% of the company's total copy paper sales. The results of customers switching from 100% pulp paper to reliable recycled paper is twofold: pressure on forests is reduced and waste, which traditionally would have gone to landfill, is directed for recycling. The company's launch strategy supported the environment with a campaign, which donated 20 cents of every ream of paper sold to local land-care environment groups in the region where the paper is made. This money has allowed these groups to embark on projects addressing soil erosion, water salinity and wildlife protection. To date, an additional A$85,000 have been raised over and above the company's sponsorship of LandCare Australia. A resounding endorsement of the product has been the announcement that the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games will use the 'Green Wrap' product as its official copy paper, with an estimated usage of 34,000 reams of paper.

Robert M. Hager, a correspondent in the Washington DC bureau of the News Network of the National Broadcasting Corporation, has been a leader in covering global environmental issues on United States television, and in particular the issues of ozone depletion and global warming. He has been notably courageous among TV commentators in linking weather and climate events to global warming, and has been a positive and important voice for the environment in the media. His reports, reaching millions of Americans daily on NBC's Evening News, the Today Show and the new MS/NBC Cable News station, have been factual, direct and forceful, always emphasizing a strong and sound environmental component. As a good reporter, Mr. Hager believes that the facts must speak for themselves and those facts clearly point to a changing climate. He has been one of the few television voices alerting the American people to this major global environmental problem. In the past year, he has reported on major climatic events, such as Hurricane Mitch and the El Nino phenomenon. He related these intense storms to the threat of global warming – while elements of US industry has campaigned against this view and most TV correspondents have largely ignored or downplayed the climate change issue. Mr. Hager reported comprehensively on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scandals in the early 1980s when the EPA Administrator tried to dismantle much of the Agency's regulatory capacity. Ultimately, she was forced to resign. He covered the Love Canal, Times Beach and other toxic waste crises, such as the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant leak. Every year, since the early 1970s, he has ranked in the top 10 among major TV network correspondents based on frequency of appearance on the evening news, ranking first in 1996 and 1997 and second in 1998. He won an Emmy Award in 1990, and in 1993 he was inducted into the Silver Circle Honor Society of journalists in Washington.

The City of Las Pinas has grown from a sleepy agricultural and fishing community in the Philippines into one of the most highly urbanized cities in Metro Manila. With a population of 494,875, Las Pinas is home to big businesses such as Goodyear, Philips, Sarao Motors, Philippine Standard (Saniware) and Francisco Motors. Under the leadership of its Mayor, Vergel Aguilar, the City has drawn up a blueprint addressing the protection of the environment through legislation and action. With the purchase of 40 compactor trucks and two dump trucks, the City reached its zero-waste management goal. The average daily collection reaches about 700 cubic meters, and after three years of operation and because of its decision to have the operations managed by private contractors, the Government has been able to save about P140 million. The savings have been used to finance projects, such as the construction of roads, schools, health clinics, day care and nutrition centres and colleges. To encourage the active participation of the communities, the City and the Clean and Green Council conduct a quarterly beautification contest involving the depressed areas of the City. Business establishments are encouraged to join the City Government's Campaign through its Adopt-a-Barangay (community) programme. They donate plastic garbage bags for distribution to the different Barangays. The City, in cooperation with the MB Villar Foundation, has maintained 70 tree parks cum playgrounds in almost every Barangay. Trees and ornamental plants have been planted and landscaped to beautify the environment, and nurseries are maintained. In 1995, an Orchidarium was set up and is being maintained by the City Government and the Department of Agriculture. Through the Clean and Green Council, the City has organized a group of environmentally conscious students. Every weekend, all public schools conduct clean up activities in their institution and in surrounding areas. Environmental awareness is also included in the students' subjects, and essay and painting contests and seminars are organized.

Dr. Reuben Americo Marti is a professor at the National University of Cordoba and former Mayor of Cordoba, the second largest city in Argentina. He is the author of Cordoba's first Environment Regulation, which established compulsory environment impact assessment (EIA). The regulation, written by Dr. Marti, was used as a model by a large number of regional governments, including Tucuman, Neuquen and Mendoza. Through this regulation, two unprecedented organizations have been created, namely the State Environment Council, open to NGOs and the general public, and the Environmental Brigade of Volunteers. Known in Argentina as the Green Mayor, he empowered citizens and groups and developed an unprecedented green policy. As mayor, he created the Free University of the Environment (the first of its kind in Argentina). This University is open to every citizen, even illiterate ones, through its 'University on Wheels' programme and TV documentaries. Most of the 18 TV documentaries are broadcast on cable TV in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Bolivia and Paraguay. Dr. Marti created the 'Environment Observatory', which includes one of the best equipped laboratories in Latin America, two laboratory trucks and a network of mobile stations. He also created 10 urban parks with a total surface of 190 hectares. During his administration, 300,000 trees were planted, and he promoted the decentralization of the municipal administration, creating nine centers of popular participation. In addition to their administrative role, these centres are used as theatres, markets for handicrafts, gymnastics and training courses. He also developed a more sustainable public transport system and an unprecedented 200 km-long bicycle path throughout the City, as well as a recycling system for home waste, which today covers 60% of the City. He also created a botanical garden. Dr. Marti is President of the Latin American Chapter of the International Union of Local Authorities and Vice-President of the World Association of Mayor Metropolis.

Mei Ng, the first Chinese director of Friends of the Earth Hong Kong, is sometimes referred to as Fa Mulan -- a legendary Chinese heroine on the green battlefield. For the last eight years, she has worked tirelessly to defend Hong Kong's endangered environment and to spread the message into China. In 1993, she was appointed by the Hong Kong Government as a member of the Country and Marine Parks Board, which oversees and advises on the management and protection of 23 country parks and three marine parks, which occupy 40% of the land area in Hong Kong. She led the fight against the illegal encroachment of country parks, the over-expansion of power plants, pesticide use, sewage pollution, air pollution, excessive consumption, government mal-administration and non- transparency. She pioneered pre-school environmental education in Hong Kong and China and introduced home-audit and green housekeeping practices to families living in public housing estates. She has established links with more than 60 individuals and organizations covering 30 provinces and cities. She has participated in numerous conferences and has presented various training workshops for cadres, teachers and students. Her new millennium vision is to push for a renewable energy approach in Hong Kong, while championing the sustainability of the threatened Yangtze River, by establishing an ecological monitoring station and community afforestation programme at the source of China's longest river.

For more than 11 years, Carlos de Prada, a journalist, environmentalist and writer, has developed radio programmes, which have had a wide-ranging influence in Spain. He is considered one of the country's greatest advocates of nature conservation among those working in the media. He is also an environmental columnist in El Mundo -- one of the more influential newspapers in Spain. His articles have bravely exposed serious environmental crimes. Mr. De Prada has provided valuable input to solve Spain's water problems by inviting on his programme dissident voices, which were often silenced in other media more friendly to the establishment. His programmes helped stop the 1993 proposal of Spain's water plan, which was based on the construction of grandiose hydropower works. He has campaigned against numerous projects to build dozens of dams that would have caused serious social and environmental damage. He helped save areas such as Cabaneros, (which is today a national park in the Spanish Mediterranean forest), where the Spanish and NATO Air Force had planned to set up a dive bombing area. He was instrumental in saving Donana National Park, which had been threatened by a major urbanization plan. His work has also dealt with issues such as waste, clean energy production, biological diversity, forest fires, pollution and the preservation of ecosystems. He is a founding member of the Association for the Recovery of Autochthonous Fauna, whose aim is the recovery of specimen of threatened species and their reintroduction into their natural habitat. Mr. De Prada is the recipient of numerous awards, including the National Award for the Environment (1997), the City Council of Madrid Environment Prize (1994), the Castilla y Leon Award for Nature Conservation (1998) and the Friends of the Earth Award (1995).

Founded in 1982, the Australian Trust for Conservation Volunteers (ATCV) is a national, not-for-profit community organization, whose mission is to attract and manage a force of volunteers in practical conservation projects for the betterment of the Australian environment. ATCV completes more than 4000 week-long conservation projects in urban, regional and remote areas of Australia each year. Activities range from bush regeneration, tree planting, seed collection, endangered species protection, weed control, flora and fauna surveys, walking trail construction, fencing, environmental monitoring and the protection of world heritage areas. ATCV community participation has resulted in more than 1.8 million trees being planted in 1999, and in more than 7.3 million trees planted over the past 10 years. Community involvement totalled 200,000 project days in 1999 and more than 700,000 days since 1989. To encourage the involvement of young people, ATCV developed and manages the federal government- funded programme Green Corps. Green Corps is a six-month traineeship for 17 to 20 year-olds, which incorporates conservation projects and accredited training. Since 1997, more than 4,000 trainees have completed the Green Corps programme. ATCV is a founding member of the International Conservation Alliance, which brings together organizations working in conservation volunteering, and is a member of the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

"We bet that we can achieve the Government's climate protection target at our schools within seven months, instead of the seven-year period the Government has set for itself". This was the bet put to the Federal Minister of Environment in Germany by the members of BUNDjugend, the youth branch of the Association for the Environment and Nature Conservation. A bet the Minister accepted with pleasure. Between May and November 1999, the pupils aimed to save 10 million kg of carbon dioxide, i.e. 10% of the total emissions of their schools. They planned to reach their goal by turning down the heating, airing buildings for short intervals rather than continuously, using energy-saving light bulbs and reducing water consumption. Some schools went further by developing activities in the transport sector and in waste separation and avoidance. Some pupils even installed solar panels, laid out school gardens and covered school buildings with greenery. Younger pupils encouraged their families and friends to get involved in climate protection. The older pupils focused on technical approaches. The Federal Environmental Agency acted as judge and reviewed the results from 20 schools selected at random. Using these results to project those from the 192 participating schools, it determined that the challenger, BUNDjugend, and the 135,000 pupils involved had indeed won the bet. As a result, the German Government, as promised, invited the winner to a big party in Bonn in September 1999. The BUNDjugend initiative serves as a model for future activities involving environmental awareness and education in schools.

Since its founding in 1982, by Ben van Bronkhorst and Kajsa Dahlstrom, the Globetree Foundation has worked tirelessly to unite children in caring for their world. Globetree uses theatre and drama as its tools and has science and technology as its platform. Globetree uses the creative impulse to mobilize children and teachers to improve life and the environment. Globetree's achievements include: curriculum development in Bolivia; ecological parks in Brazil; a university technology centre in Indonesia; environmental education and technology in Kenya; GlobetreeNet (a network of children's advocates); GlobetreeTheatre; and GlobeEye (sound, picture and film archive). When Globetree hosted a meeting of 600 children in Stockholm in 1986 to discuss environmental concerns, water was found to be their common bond. In the ensuing years, Globetree hosted the `Sharing Water Ceremony' in Australia, Bolivia,

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Brazil, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Mexico, Norway and the Netherlands, and at the 1991 World Summit on Children at the UN in New York. These ceremonies culminated in Globetree's sponsorship of 5,000 young people from 70 countries in the Globe Arena in Stockholm on UN Day - 24 October 1998. Their mission was to incorporate Agenda 21 into a group vision of a safe and healed earth, which they called Future Vessel. For the first time in the history of global environmental activity, 200 computers linked the gathered participants with students from around the world. To symbolize their unity, the participants co-mingled water from their countries in a crystal bowl. Since then, 30 more countries have contributed water to this bowl. Sadly, founder Ben van Bronkhorst died three months before his Future Vessel vision was realized.

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