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Press Statement on Chevron's Objection to the Goldman Environmental Prize’s Selection of Pablo Fajardo and Luis Yanza
April 14, 2008
April 14, 2008
From Founder Richard N. Goldman
The Goldman Environmental Prize recognizes significant environmental achievements by individuals, and Pablo Fajardo and Luis Yanza are two ordinary Ecuadorians addressing a problem that impacts 30,000 of their countrymen: petrochemical waste spoiling hundreds of square miles of Amazon rainforest. Their work is motivated by a single desire: to ensure that their corner of the Amazon – one of the world’s most contaminated industrial sites – is cleaned up.
In winning the Prize, Fajardo and Yanza join the ranks of 124 individuals from 72 countries who have found the strength to take on overwhelming environmental and social problems and make a difference. Like Fajardo and Yanza, these are everyday people – grandmothers, farmers, tribesmen – who are often the most affected by industrial pollution and conflicts over natural resources, yet are the least empowered to make a change. Their triumphs are an inspiration to anyone who cares about the environment, human rights and the planet.
Over its 19-year history, the Prize has brought cutting-edge environmental issues to the fore, including the ban on oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and cleanup of the Love Canal. To uncover such innovative grassroots environmentalists, we rely on environmental experts from more than 50 organizations around the world. These nominations are researched and fact-checked over a five-month period, during which time Prize staff reviews documents and speaks to hundreds of references.
The Goldman Environmental Prize is proud to add Fajardo and Yanza to its list of impressive recipients. Many previous Goldman Prize honorees have gone on to win political office, and one was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In addition to the Goldman Environmental Prize, this past December Pablo Fajardo was chosen from more than 7,000 nominations from 80 countries for the CNN Hero Award.