Happy Earth Day, week and year!

I was one of the lucky people this Earth Day/week to celebrate the 2010 Goldman Environmental Prize in San Francisco on April 19th! The largest and most prestigious environmental prize in the world. I brought 4 friends to join the celebration with a gorgeous reception after the prize ceremony at San Francisco’s city hall.

The event honors 6 people each year from a diverse selection of regions and environmental issues, this year's Goldman Prize recipients are leaders whose critical work is being recognized around the world. Each recipient addresses critical environmental issues and has won battles against overwhelming odds, often putting their lives at risk to face these challenges.

This years winners are:
Lynn Henning (USA); Humberto Ríos Labrada (Cuba); Randall Arauz (Costa Rica) Thuli Makama (Swaziland); Tuy Sereivathana (Cambodia); Małgorzata Górska (Poland)

Before each recipient comes on stage at the historic Opera House, a short 5-minute film narrated by Robert Redford tells the recipient’s story. This years USA Goldman prize winner (an award of $150,000 for each honoree) is Lynn Henning, a family farmer. Lynn exposed the egregious polluting practices of livestock factory farms in rural Michigan. Lynn is a down to earth woman who has been farming for as long as she can remember. The corporate agri-business routinely spills millions of gallons of pollutants into open areas resulting in sickness and illness of neighboring communities. As a result of her activism, Henning and her family have been subjected to harassment and intimidation. Her mailbox has been blown up, dead animals have been left on her front porch and she has been followed and run off the road while doing water quality monitoring. See the short film to learn more about her courageous work in the heartland of America.

Randall Arauz, drew 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 international model for shark protection. Over the last 50 years, global shark populations have declined by 90% as a result of overfishing, which has been exacerbated during the last decades by the growing demand for shark fins, specifically to be used as the key ingredient in shark fin soup. As many as 100 million sharks are slaughtered annually to feed global demand. This unprecedented change in shark populations significantly threatens the sensitive balance required for healthy marine ecosystems, thus endangering the fisheries and economic livelihoods of fishing communities around the world. See the short film to learn more about Randall’s courageous work.

Humberto Ríos Labrada, a scientist and biodiversity researcher, worked with farmers to increase crop diversity and develop low-input agricultural systems, encouraging Cuba’s shift from agricultural chemical dependence toward sustainability. Ríos, a folk musician and then a doctoral student in agricultural sciences at the Higher Pedagogical Institute for Technical and Professional Education, stumbled upon an age old trend while doing research in the field. Traveling to farms that had not adopted the sugar cane monoculture model, Ríos witnessed farmers using pre-industrial practices including crop rotation and experimentation with seed diversity. As coordinator of the National Institute of Agricultural Sciences’ Program for Local Agricultural Innovation (PIAL), Ríos now focuses his time on developing Cuba’s sustainable agriculture sector and has engaged in similar farmer-led biodiversity projects throughout Mexico. Humberto uses his music as a means to engage communities in biodiversity, performing songs that celebrate sustainable agriculture. See the short film to learn more about Humberto’s courageous work.

Thuli Brilliance Makama - After a grueling three-year legal battle, Swaziland’s only public interest environmental attorney, Thuli Brilliance Makama, won a landmark case to include environmental NGO representation in the Swaziland Environment Authority, reinforcing the right to public participation in environmental decision-making. The positive high court ruling provided hope for local communities neighboring privately owned game reserves that their struggles may finally be recognized by the proper authorities. For many years, these communities have endured brutality and abuse at the hands of armed reserve owners, and a number of suspected poachers have been killed in the name of conserving the fenced-in wildlife. While there is growing consensus internationally that the world’s remaining wildlife will not survive unless local people are given a stake in preserving them, Swaziland’s conservation policies have yet to incorporate these communities into the process. See the short film to learn more about Thuli’s courageous work.

Tuy Sereivathana introduced innovative low-cost solutions to mitigate human-elephant conflict in Cambodia, empowering local communities to cooperatively participate in endangered Asian elephant conservation. "I want wild elephants and local communities to live together in harmony. Protecting and conserving elephants means we also provide home for other species to live." See the short film to learn more about Tuy’s courageous work.

Małgorzata Górska’s leadership in the fight to stop a controversial highway project led to a significant legal precedent for the environment that resulted in the protection of Poland’s Rospuda Valley, one of Europe’s last true wilderness areas. "The fight to save the unique wildlife sites in Poland proved that high quality nature is an important value for society, and if there is a will, usually it is possible to find a compromising solution for economic development and nature protection." - Małgorzata Górska See the short film to learn more about Małgorzata’s courageous work.