One World Award winner to be announced during the Organic World Congress

With just over one week until the start of the Organic World Congress in Modena, Italy, five finalists for the prestigious One World Award, which is sponsored by IFOAM, have been announced. The award aims to recognize people committed to permanently protecting and conserving the world we enjoy. The five finalists of the One World Award 2008 have all shown extraordinary commitment to protecting the viability of the planet for future generations. In doing so, they have demonstrated that the future of globalization is positive. The finalists are:

Harald Schützeichel started the foundation for solar energy in Ethiopia in 2004 with the aim of supplying the rural population of Africa with energy. He is consistently trying “to help people help themselves” by creating jobs to promote economic development and education.

Anil Rana, started the Janhit foundation in India in 1988, with the aim of providing cleaner drinking water and fighting water pollution. He also started an ecological cultivation program in 2002 to make a contribution to bio diversity.

Lal Emmanuel, started the Nagenahiru foundation in Sri Lanka in 1991, to campaign for the protection and the reforestation of Mangrove woods. To this day, about 15 hectares have been forested. He has also set up a teaching and training center, to educate teenagers about ecological issues.

Master Sheng Lyun, started the Fo Fa Shan foundation in Taiwan in 1995. Using ecological methods tea, vegetables and other agricultural products are cultivated on about 45 hactares of land. The aims of the foundation are the promotion of ecological farming, ecology and conservation, as well as cultural education.

Victor Ananias, opened his first bio store in Turkey about ten years ago and founded the organization Bugday to support the development of ecological farming and environmental protection.

The winner of this exciting competition will receive the first, hand manufactured One World Award statue and prize money of 25,000 euros made available by Rapunzel Naturkost AG. The jury members are: Joseph Wilhelm, founder of Rapunzel Naturkost AG, two previous Nobel Prize winners Vandana Shiva from India and Tewolde Egzeabher from Ethiopia, as well as the IFOAM vice-president Alberto Pipo Lernoud from Argentina.

As the patron of the OWA, IFOAM will lead the selection of the One World Lifetime Achievement Award. The Lifetime Achievement Award acknowledges pioneers and personalities who have played very active roles in the ecology movement and the winner will as well be announced in Modena during the Organic World Congress.