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FIVE advocates of environment protection received the
Father Neri Satur Award for the worldwide observance of Earth Day,
last Wednesday (April 18), on the occasion of the inter-agency
roundtable discussion and exhibit to craft a creative comprehensive
cultural communications educational plan for climate change
adaptation at the Department of Foreign Affairs.
The awardees are Archbishop
Francisco Claver of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the
Philippines, the Management Association of the Philippines,
journalists Jerry Esplanada of Philippine Daily Inquirer and
Katherine Adraneda of The Philippine Star, and eco-artist Lou
Bonnevie.
Archbishop Claver was honored for
his outstanding service in championing the cause of Indigenous
Peoples, their rights, the survival of their habitat, history and
heritage. The MAP was awarded for its environment committee
activities and members’ good practices in pursuing environment
sustainability.
Journalists Esplanada and
Adraneda was recognized for their incisive reportage on issues
affecting the environment such as water and bio-cultural diversity
protection and forests as carbon sinks, and Bonnevie for her
composition and production that reach out the youth through the
conduct of the annual Earth Day Jam.
Presidential Adviser on Agrarian
Reform and Earthsavers Movement founder Heherson Alvarez
instituted the Father Neri Satur Award during his tenure in Congress
as a member of the Global Legislators for a Balanced Environment
(GLOBE) and as an advisor of Climate Institute, to posthumously
honor the martyrdom of Fr. Neri Satur in protecting the forests
against vested interests.
Among some of the past awardees
were Fr. James Reuter, Fr. Ben Beltran, Sr. Luz Emmanuel, Unilever
Philippines, late DENR Region III Executive Director Ricardo
Serrano, DENR forest guard Raul Zapatos, Buddy Lava and Rene Lozada
(posthumously given); Sister Aida Velasquez, Fr. Jose “Jet”
Villarin and fisherman Dodong Amoin.
The members of the multisectoral
GO/NGO partnership co-convened by the DFA-Unesco and Climate
Institute through EarthSavers Movement are the Departments of
Environment and Natural Resources, Education, Science and
Technology, Agriculture, Health, Social Welfare and Development,
National Economic Development Authority, Komisyon sa Wikang
Filipino, NASSA-Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines,
Art Association of the
Philippines, Klima Climate Change Center of the Ateneo Observatory,
NGO Coalition for Climate Change, Sustainable Energy and Forestry
Management, Asia Pacific Environmental Concerns, Bukidnon
Foundation for Sustainable Development, Civil Society Counterpart
Council for Sustainable Development, MAP, Bensan Indsutrial, Inc.,
Unilever Philippines, EarthSavers DREAMS Academy-Philippine Center
of International Theatre Institute and Earthlink-Guardian of Nature.
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