The environment in the news thursday, 02 September, 2010
Environmental Expert (Blog): Search begins for the 2011 Champions of the Earth
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Environmental Expert (Blog): Search begins for the 2011 Champions of the Earth1 September 2010 Nominations are now officially open for the 2011 Champions of the Earth - the United Nations' flagship environmental award. The award seeks to recognise the achievements of inspirational leaders, thinkers and, most importantly, 'doers' who have shown determination and enduring commitment towards achieving a cleaner, greener and more prosperous future. Previous winners of the award range from Prime Ministers and Presidents to scientists, NGO leaders and photographers. Members of the public from across the world can nominate their own environmental heroes for the prize. Nominations will be accepted until 31 October 2010 and can be made via the awards website: www.unep.org/champions UNEP will select a laureate for each of the following categories:
Each laureate will receive a US$40,000 cash prize and a commemorative trophy at an Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner to be held on 28 April 2011. Last year's Champions of the Earth make for a diverse and inspiring cast list. They include Bharrat Jagdeo, President of Guyana and a passionate advocate for his country's rainforests and His Excellency Mohamed Nasheed, President of the Maldives and a well-known international climate change campaigner. Prince Mostapha Zaher - Director General of Afghanistan's National Environmental Protection Agency - received the award for his advocacy on sustainability and Japanese scientist Dr. Taro Takahashi was honoured for his research into how carbon cycles through oceans, land and atmosphere. One of China's most popular actresses, Zhou Xun received a 2010 Champion award for her promotion of green living, while American venture capitalist Vinod Khosla, also known as Silicon Valley's 'Mr. Green', was recognised for his work in investing in renewable energies. The need for responsibility and leadership has never been greater. Leaders from the business world, civil society and governments are needed to build today's new Green Economy and inspire others across the world to follow in their footsteps. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ Care 2 (Blog): Plastic Bag Ban Fails in California Legislature.2 September 2010 A bill to ban plastic bags in California failed in the state assembly yesterday after lobbyists funded by the American Chemistry Council campaigned furiously for its defeat. This is the third year in a row that the plastic bag ban bill has failed to become law. An ABC news report documents the efforts of the lobbyists to kill the bill, AB 1998. The sponsor of the bill says she's never seen anything like this lobbying effort. The American Chemistry Council industry group ran ads calling the attempt to prevent landfill and pollution a "hidden tax" that would supposedly cost the economy (or at least it would cost the American Chemistry Council): Californians alone throw away 19 billion plastic bags a year, of which only a tiny fraction get recycled. The rest go to landfill, where they take 1,000 years to break down. The American Chemistry Council lost no time in spinning the bill's failure, claiming that 1,000 California jobs were saved by the bill's failure to pass. AB 1998 would have created a standard on plastic bag bans and fees across the state, replacing the patchwork of regulations currently in place. The head of the California Grocers Association supported the bill, saying “AB 1998 would have established a statewide standard designed to bring predictability to consumers and operational and competitive fairness to retailers. This bill would’ve been good for consumers, good for business and good for the environment and its defeat is a failure for Californians.” The U.N. Environmental Program (UNEP) has called for a global ban on plastic bags; Mexico City and other countries and municipalities around the world have nixed them, and China banned free plastic shopping bags in 2008. With the bill's failure, it is expected that several California communities will institute local plastic bag bans. A Care2 petition in favor of the plastic bag ban has garnered over 26,000 signatures. Back to Menu _________________________________________________________________ All Africa (US): Celebrities Join Push for Action on the Millennium Development Goals1 September 2010 UNDP Goodwill Ambassadors actor Antonio Banderas, tennis player Maria Sharapova and footballers Didier Drogba, Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane, are among a group of celebrities who, from today, will be using their social media networks to support the United Nations push for action against extreme poverty, hunger and disease. With only five years left until the 2015 target date for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - the eight anti-poverty goals world leaders agreed to at the Millennium Summit in 2000 - the UN is leading a collective effort to accelerate progress towards the Goals. A UN Summit in New York on 20-22 September will bring together close to 150 Heads of State and Government, joined by leaders from the private sector, foundations and civil society, to commit to an action agenda to achieve the MDGs. A group of UN Goodwill Ambassadors and Messengers of Peace with a track record of speaking out against poverty are now adding their voice to the call for action. Among those who have joined the effort are the following (shown in parentheses is their nationality and which UN agency they are affiliated with): Goodwill Ambassadors Goedele Liekens (Belgium / UN Population Fund (UNFPA) / media star), Angelique Kidjo (Benin / UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) / singer), Ronaldo (Brazil / UN Development Programme (UNDP) / football player), Didier Drogba (Côte d'Ivoire / UNDP / football player), Liya Kebede (Ethiopia / World Health Organization (WHO) / model); Zinédine Zidane (France / UNDP / football player), Michael Ballack (Germany / Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) / football player), Anggun (Indonesia / Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) / singer), Tetsuko Kuroyanagi (Japan / UNICEF / actress, author, TV host); Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan (UNICEF), Paul Tergat (Kenya / World Food Programme (WFP) / runner); Toumane Diabate (Mali / UNAIDS / musician); Nawal El Moutawakel (Morocco / UNICEF National Ambassador / runner), Catarina Furtado (Portugal / UNFPA / actress), Maria Sharapova(Russia /UNDP / tennis player), Antonio Banderas (Spain / UNDP / actor), Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo / UNAIDS / football player), Craig David (UK / WHO / singer), Annie Lennox (UK / UNAIDS / singer), Don Cheadle (US / UN Environment Programme (UNEP) / actor), Mia Farrow (US / UNICEF / actress), Carl Lewis (US / FAO / runner), and Ricky Martin (US / UNICEF / singer); and UN Messengers of Peace Paulo Coelho (Brazil, author), Midori Goto (Japan, violinist) and Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein of Jordan. "I thank these outstanding leaders for joining our push to advance progress towards the Millennium Development Goals," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said. "They are household names who are bringing the message of global justice and solidarity to homes and communities around the world." Some of the celebrities will be attending the UN Summit later this month. Their ongoing activities include media interviews and appearances at events and in videos and public service announcements. A number of them have joined the UN online campaign to spread the word. To find out more, follow @UNDP and @WeCanEndPoverty on Twitter. For more information on the Millennium Development Goals, the Summit and activities of the group of Goodwill Ambassadors and Messengers of Peace, as well as a list of UN System media contacts, please visit: www.un.org/millenniumgoals. 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