6 Grassroots Activists win Goldman Environment Prize 2010

This year’s Goldman Environment Prize, considered the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for the Environment, was awarded to 6 Grassroots activists. The causes ranged from saving elephants in Cambodia, sustainable agriculture in Cuba, protecting biodiversity in Poland, protecting the indigenous people against forcible evictions in Swaziland, fighting against water pollution by industrial animal farming in USA and campaigning against shark finning in Costa Rica.

Picture Credit: Goldman Environment Prize.org

The Goldman Environment Prize was set up in 1989 by San Francisco civic leader Richard N. Goldman and his late wife, Rhoda H. Goldman. So far, 139 people from 79 countries have been awarded the prize, which is based on a selection by an international jury. Nominations are submitted by a worldwide network of environmental organizations and individuals.

The 1991 Goldman Prize winner for Africa, Wangari Maathai later won the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize. 
Here is the summary video of the prize winners. (Individual videos come later)

 

 Here are the individual videos of the winners :

 
TUY SEREIVATHANA, CAMBODIA :
Tuy Sereivathana worked to mitigate human elephant conflict in Cambodia by introducing innovative low-cost solutions, empowering local communities to cooperatively participate in endangered Asian elephant conservation.

 

HUMBERTO RIOS LABRADA, CUBA
A scientist and biodiversity researcher, Humberto Ríos Labrada promoted sustainable agriculture by working with farmers to increase crop diversity and develop low-input agricultural systems that greatly reduce the need for pesticide and fertilizer, encouraging Cuba’s shift from agricultural chemical dependence.

 

THULI BRILLIANCE MAKAMA, SWAZILAND :
Thuli Brilliance Makama, Swaziland’s only public interest environmental attorney, won a landmark case to include environmental NGO representation in conservation decisions and continues to challenge the forced evictions and violence perpetrated against poverty-stricken communities living on the edges of conservation areas.

 

RANDALL ARAUZ, COSTA RICA
Drawing international attention to the inhumane and environmentally-catastrophic shark finning industry, Randall Arauz led the campaign to halt the practice in Costa Rica, making his country the new international model for shark protection.

 

LYNN HENNING, USA
A family farmer in rural Michigan, Lynn Henning exposed the egregious polluting practices of CAFOs –concentrated animal feeding operations- gaining the attention of the federal EPA and prompting state regulators to issue hundreds of citations for water quality violations.

 

MALGORZATA GORSKA, POLAND 
Małgorzata Górska led the fight to protect Poland’s Rospuda Valley, one of Europe’s last true wilderness areas, from a controversial highway project that would have destroyed the region’s sensitive ecosystems.

Short URL: http://www.ecowalkthetalk.com/blog/?p=2786

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