2020年8月，贝鲁特港口发生大规模爆炸，留下一片狼藉，到处是混凝土、金属和碎玻璃。由大量硝酸铵产生的爆炸，在二十多公里外也能感觉到冲击。

黎巴嫩首都需要完成大规模清理工作，arcenciel 是参与其中的众多非营利组织之一，从被毁坏的街区上收集了9000吨碎玻璃。

这些玻璃将经过压碎、熔化和重塑，供日后使用。

“在贝鲁特发生爆炸后，我们开展了多个项目来帮助重建社区，收集碎玻璃。”arcenciel 环境项目负责人马克-亨利·卡拉姆（Marc-Henri Karam）表示。

这些工作体现了 arcenciel ——今年地球卫士奖激励与行动奖的获得者——过去二十年间对黎巴嫩废弃物管理工作的贡献。

这家成立于1985年的志愿者组织，在黎巴嫩这个面临着垃圾处理困难的国家，发起了从医疗垃圾到衣服的各种回收计划。凭借多年来在医疗垃圾处理方面领先的专业经验，arcenciel还协助黎巴嫩制定了国内首部废弃物管理法。

“我们发现了许多影响环境的问题，特别是那些对社区和社会健康有影响的问题。”arcenciel的总经理罗宾·里查（Robin Richa）表示，“我们一直在尝试从战略角度寻找能够产生可持续影响的活动。”

管理废弃物

arcencial 的成立旨在为黎巴嫩内战中受伤的人们提供支持。该组织服务社会的精神一直延续到如今的各项活动中，重点帮助边缘化的人群为他们的社区作出贡献，同时鼓励环境可持续性与自然资源保护。

arcenciel 通过“可持续农业和环境计划”，在黎巴嫩提供了固体废弃物管理服务、专业经验和倡导工作，而黎巴嫩要想安全、有系统地处置这些垃圾，这一系列支持必不可少。2003 年，该组织开始处理医疗垃圾，如果这些废物未经处理就被丢弃到露天垃圾场和垃圾填埋场中，就可能会造成感染、传播疾病、污染水体和生态系统。

如今，arcenciel负责处理黎巴嫩87%的医疗垃圾，利用蒸汽消毒设备将其转化为生活垃圾。在新冠肺炎疫情期间，全球范围内产生了数万吨额外的医疗垃圾，包括注射器、针头、检测试剂盒、口罩、手套和个人防护设备等，因此该组织发挥的作用更为急迫。仅在2020年一年，arcenciel 就处理了996吨医疗垃圾。

卡拉姆说：“我们正在不断降低垃圾填埋场的感染风险，减少传染性废弃物，这可以带来更清洁的土壤、更清洁的地下水，改善每个人的健康。”卡拉姆表示。

“减少废弃物、促进循环利用对于消解‘用一次就扔’的文化至关重要，而这种文化恰恰是污染我们星球并导致气候紧急状态的罪魁祸首。”联合国环境规划署执行主任英格·安德森表示， “arcenciel 在废弃物管理方面起到的带头作用是振奋人心的。这个组织正在帮助我们为子孙后代营造一个健康的环境。” 

应对危机

环保的废弃物管理措施对于保护生态系统乃至公共卫生都至关重要，这两者也是联合国生态系统恢复十年的核心目标。

arcenciel 帮助黎巴嫩最大的两个巴勒斯坦难民营和贝卡地区三个叙利亚难民营改善了废弃物管理。在贝卡地区，该组织向居民展示了如何收集、分类和回收废弃物，改善了人民的生活水平，同时也为难民创造了收入来源。

应对危机一直是 arcenciel 工作的标志性特征。2015 年，Naameh 垃圾填埋场的关闭导致贝鲁特的街道和黎巴嫩山上堆积了大量垃圾，为此，arcenciel 将其回收的物料体量增加了一倍不止，收集了852吨废弃物。该组织还出版了一本关于有效管理废弃物的手册，不仅培训各个城市如何运行自己的废弃物管理中心，也提高了公众对这一问题的认识。

该组织还将回收与再利用的理念扩展到旧家具、旧衣物领域。垃圾填埋场中任何具有再利用价值的东西都被保留，然后被改造利用、重新出售。

法律先例

arcenciel 协助黎巴嫩制定了国内第一部固体废弃物管理法律（于2018 年通过），并起草了一项废弃物处理国家战略，目前由环境部和农业部采纳。  

“这项法律规定，医院必须处理医疗垃圾，这是我们最大的成就之一。”卡拉姆表示。

面向未来

在位于贝卡地区、面积 2.3 平方公里的 Domaine de Taanayel地块上，arcenciel 建立了一个几乎完全依靠太阳能发电的农场，这是促进可持续农业工作的一部分。为了减少土壤侵蚀和水资源消耗，arcenciel 使用了灌溉施肥法——一种通过灌溉系统来更有针对性地向植物输送液体肥料的工艺。Domaine还是当地唯一一家生物杀虫剂生产商，其杀虫剂毒性残留远低于传统化学杀虫剂。此外，农场中还建立了一座生态小木屋，有助于促进负责任旅游，并对当地环境及其生态系统给予尊重。

尽管黎巴嫩接连不断的危机带来了许多挑战，但 arcenciel 的团队表示，他们下定决心继续努力，为后代保护好环境。

“面向未来是我们的动力。”里查说。

当大卫·爱登堡爵士 (Sir David Attenborough) 还是个孩子的时候，他大部分的空闲时间，都手持锤子穿梭在英国乡村废弃的采石场中。他所追寻的猎物：菊石化石，以及可追溯至恐龙时代的螺旋形软体动物。

对于年轻的爱登堡来说，这些化石就像是被埋藏的宝藏，他很惊喜自己可能是千万年来第一个关注它们的人。

自然世界让他终生陶醉。

如今，已是95岁高龄的爱登堡以“世界自然纪录片之父”的身份享誉全球。他在电视诞生之初，便开启了自己作为电视人的职业生涯，他撰写并展示了诸多极具影响力的讲述地球状况的纪录片，这其中包括他耗费十年心血拍摄而成的9部“生命”系列纪录片。

《纽约时报》称他拥有“上帝视角的叙事”和永不满足的好奇心。他花了 70 年时间揭示自然世界的美丽——并揭露它所面临的威胁。在此过程中，他为数亿观众描绘了一个更可持续的未来愿景。

环保主义者、作家西蒙·巴恩斯（Simon Barnes）写道：“如果世界真的需要被拯救，那么没有人会比爱登堡更上心、更投入。”

联合国认可大卫·爱登堡爵士对全球环保运动带来的巨大影响，授予他联合国“地球卫士奖”终身成就奖。该奖项是联合国最高级别环保荣誉，旨在表彰那些致力于解决气候变化、物种丧失和污染等危机的杰出领导者。

联合国环境规划署 (UNEP) 执行主任英格·安德森 (Inger Andersen) 为大卫·爱登堡颁奖时表示：“一直以来，您都是我们的楷模和灵感来源。”

“为地球代言，您是当之无愧的第一人，您持续为地球奔走呼号，让我们所有人都深感自身责任重大。”

除了媒体方面的工作外，爱登堡还是引领全球环保运动的关键人物之一。他曾出席多个具有里程碑意义的全球峰会，例如 2015年巴黎气候变化大会，他在会上呼吁全球共同努力应对地球面临的威胁。

大卫·爱登堡与联合国环境署合作了至少40年，为一系列活动和短片助力并发声，以凸显环境署在对抗气候危机、生物多样性丧失和污染方面所付诸的努力。所有这些工作都基于统一的理念，即没有一个国家可以单独解决全球的环境问题。

“我们所置身的这个时代，无法依靠民族主义去解决所面临的问题。”爱登堡在接受联合国环境署“地球卫士奖”终身成就奖时表示， “我们必须意识到，我们都是这个星球的公民。只有我们携手，我们才能直面挑战，解决问题。”

爱登堡于1947年毕业于剑桥大学，获得自然科学学位。踏入职场后，他很快发现自己对于从事研究工作没有太多的兴趣和热情。当时，随着电视开始走入千家万户，他在英国广播公司 (BBC)找到了工作机会。

1954年12月21日，他在电视上完成首秀，在一档名为“《动物园探奇》（Zoo Quest）

”的环球旅行系列节目中，向兴致盎然的英国观众介绍异国的生物，如红毛猩猩和科莫多巨蜥。

除了是一位才华横溢的主持人外，爱登堡也在管理领域崭露头角。他在英国广播公司一路晋升，成为 BBC 二台的首任台长。在那里，他主导制作了《巨蟒剧团之飞翔的马戏团》（Monty Python’s Flying Circus）等一系列节目。

但行政部门似乎并不适合他，1973年，爱登堡离开行政管理岗，重新投身电影制作。

自此，他所向披靡，取得了非常耀眼的成绩。1979年，他制作了具有里程碑意义的系列纪录片《生命的进化》（Life on Earth ），这是一部有关地球生命演化史的史诗级制作，开启了电视节目的一个新时代，影片从地球上的第一批微生物一直讲到人类。

该系列花了三年时间制作完成，爱登堡在拍摄期间行驶了 150 万英里。凭借其遍及世界各国的足迹和雄心，《生命的进化》重新定义了自然历史纪录片，获得了约 5 亿人的观看。

在接下来的30年里，爱登堡撰写并展示了另外8部大型纪录片，成功将全世界的注意力吸引到他所谓的自然“壮观的奇迹”上。

然而，随着事业的发展，爱登堡也目睹了自然世界的衰退。随着人口的膨胀及其需求的急剧增长，自然世界不断退化。人类活动已经改变了地球表面近3/4的区域，并导致100万种动植物物种面临灭绝的危险。

“尽管如今我们已然非常强大，我们未来势必还将变得更加强大。”他在1984年《活力星球》(The Living Planet)的结尾处说道。 “但很明显，我们有可能摧毁世界。 [地球]的命运掌握在我们的手中。”

爱登堡的电影向世界展示了荒野不仅是无限的，它还是脆弱的，需要得到保护——而人类正在激进地冒险，与自然渐行渐远。

去年，在他超过90岁的耄耋之年，他在于苏格兰格拉斯哥举行的联合国气候变化大会上，面对着世界各国领导人发表致辞。

“我们已经深陷问题的泥沼之中。”他说，“难道我们的故事就将这样终结吗？ 作为世界上最聪明的物种，我们却受困于自身太人性化的弱点，在追求短期目标的过程中，因无法看到大局而最终自我毁灭。”

但随后，和往常一样，爱登堡在致辞中仍保留了一丝乐观。他的影片反复出现的一个主题是，尽管地球处在极其糟糕的状态，但人类仍然可以修复他们对地球所造成的损害。

“并不全是厄运和悲观。”他在 2020 年的《地球上的一段生命旅》(A Life on Our Planet)中表示。这部纪录片回顾了他的职业生涯， “我们有机会弥补，完成我们的发展之旅，再次与自然达成平衡。 我们所需的只是坚定去做的意志。”

在同一部影片中，他提供了“与自然和平相处”的一剂良方。解决方案的重点在于提高较贫穷国家的生活水平以抑制人口的增长，推广太阳能和风能等清洁能源，在饮食上更多地偏向植物性食物，以及摒弃使用化石燃料。

“如果我们关爱大自然，大自然就会反过来关照我们。”他说， “现在是时候停止粗犷式地扩张和发展，而是在我们的星球上建立与自然相对平衡的关系，实现共同繁荣。”

凭借其杰出的工作和积极的行动，大卫·爱登堡两度被授封为爵士，有十多种物种以他的姓名来命名。

近年来，爱登堡仍持续为自然历史纪录片发声，并在2021年获得了两项艾美奖提名。 （在他的职业生涯中，他赢得了三项艾美奖和八项英国电影学院奖。）

几十年来，或许是被他的热情所震撼和感染，世界各国领导人都期待能与爱登堡合作，以寻求应对自然危机的方法。

2015年，他访问了白宫，与美国总统巴拉克·奥巴马进行了对话。奥巴马问他，是什么激发了他对自然世界的“深深迷恋”。

“我从没有见过哪个孩子对自然历史兴趣索然的。”他回答说，也许在英国乡村寻找化石的那段岁月已经深深印刻在他的脑海里。 “所以，问题是，我们怎么可以失去和自然的连接？”

An attorney and member of California’s Indigenous Yurok Tribe, Amy Bowers Cordalis has spent decades striving to restore the natural flow of the Klamath River in the United States.

The Klamath, which runs through the states of Oregon and California, was once the third-largest salmon-producing waterway in the Western United States. But four hydroelectric dams – built between 1911 and 1962 – stifled the river’s flow, decimating local salmon populations. The fish are a keystone species and vital to the Yurok’s way of life.

In October, though, Cordalis and the Yurok celebrated as crews razed the last of the Klamath’s four dams. The demolition was the result of a seismic 2022 decision in which federal regulators greenlit the removal of the dams and the restoration of the river.

The ruling marked the culmination of decades of Yurok advocacy, protests and legal action. Cordalis played a key role in the effort. She led the appeal to regulators and helped forge a negotiated agreement with California, Oregon and the dams’ owner that resulted in the decommissioning of the structures.

“I thought we were going to be the generation that witnessed the collapse and complete death of the river,” she says. “But now we will be the generation that sees the rebirth and restoration of our ecosystem, our culture and our lifeblood.”

For her commitment to Indigenous rights and environmental stewardship, Cordalis has been named a 2024 Champion of the Earth – the United Nations’ highest environmental honour – in the Inspiration and Action category. She is one of six laureates in the 2024 cohort .

“Indigenous Peoples are on the frontline of global conservation. Empowering them can help foster healthy ecosystems for all,” says Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). “Amy Bowers Cordalis’ relentless activism and community mobilization has led to a decisive victory for ecosystem health and environmental stewardship. This can inspire activists and Indigenous rights defenders everywhere.”

Rivers at risk

Rivers are arteries of life humans, wildlife and ecosystems. More than 140,000 species rely on freshwater habitats, rivers and lakes, for their survival.

Yet few rivers globally remain in their natural, free-flowing state, and they are increasingly threatened by myriad factors, including pollution, land conversion and climate change. River flow has decreased in 402 basins globally, a five-fold jump since 2000, according to UNEP data.

Few people understand this better than Cordalis and her fellow Yurok, who are the largest Native American tribe in California, with more than 5,000 members, according to the tribe .

Known as the “salmon people”, the Yurok have historically depended on the fish as a source of sustenance and a cornerstone of their culture. But dams on the Klamath have prompted seasonal toxic algae blooms, which change temperatures and fuel diseases, diminishing water quality, say California officials. Growth in populations and settlements has further increased pressure on the river.

In 2002, the federal government diverted water from the Klamath for agriculture, resulting in low river flows . This proved fatal for at least 34,000 adult salmon. 

“It was like seeing your entire family being murdered in front of your eyes,” Cordalis recalls. “It was a form of ecocide.”

Combining culture, science and law

The fish death traumatized but also galvanized the Yurok, who ramped up their activism to remove the dams, collaborating with other communities, scientists, commercial fishers and environmental groups.

For Cordalis, it was a defining moment that inspired her tojoin law school and later become general counsel for the Yurok Tribe.

When she took up the role in 2016, the Klamath had one of its lowest salmon runs on record, forcing the Yurok to close its commercial fishery. Inspired by her great-uncle’s legacy – his Supreme Court win in 1973 reaffirmed the Yurok Tribe’s land rights and sovereignty – Cordalis launched a series of legal actions that have helped to sustain salmon populations.

In 2020, she formed the non-profit Ridges to Riffles to provide advocacy and policy support for Indigenous communities to protect and restore their natural resources.

Gabriel Paun doesn’t know how he’s survived this long.

The 47-year-old Romanian environmental defender has been assaulted, stalked, threatened and driven off the road. After years of cataloguing illegal logging in Romania’s national forests, he says he has a bounty on his head.

“I'm not upset or angry or worried. Nothing to complain about,” Paun says with a wry smile. “I can't explain why I have survived so many times. But I'm happy because I can do more.”

There’s an unsettling ease with which Paun describes decades of run-ins with what he calls the “forest mafia” – a collection of rogue loggers that observers say are wreaking havoc on some of the last remnants of Europe’s old-growth forests.

“I'm not fighting only for the trees, but for the entire forest ecosystem, including the thousands of species that live under and above ground,” Paun tells the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). “Primary and old-growth forests are of the utmost importance. I have all the reason to dedicate my life and career to them.”

For his efforts to defend the environment in the face of grave danger, Paun has been named a 2024  Champion of the Earth – the United Nations’ highest environmental honour – in the Inspiration and Action category. Paun is one of six laureates in the 2024 cohort. 

“As ecosystems around the world are degraded and destroyed, environmental defenders stand as nature’s truest allies. Yet they continue to endure physical attacks, smear campaigns and other hardships,” says Inger Andersen, UNEP’s Executive Director . “Gabriel Paun’s brave, impactful actions make him an inspiration to envrionmental defenders across the globe who are seeking to protect forests and ecosystems from destruction.”

Treefall

Romania is home to two-thirds of Europe’s last remaining old-growth forests, according to the European Union . Those forests are primarily nestled along the Carpathian Mountains. They provide essential ecosystem services, climate regulation and flood control, to millions. They’re also home to some of Europe’s largest populations of big carnivores, including lynx, brown bears and wolves.

Yet forests in the country have been under siege for decades. In 2019, Romania’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, said over half of all logging in Romania was unauthorized. The European Union says the practice is fuelling deforestation.

In 2009, Paun founded the non-government organization Agent Green to expose environmental crimes in Romania. Despite a limited budget and small team, Agent Green says it has helped save tens of thousands of hectares of primary and old-growth forests. In December 2023, it reported that it prevailed in years-long lawsuits against logging in the Domogled-Valea Cernei National Park, effectively protecting over 29,000 hectares of forests.

“The name ‘Agent’ speaks for itself: We stand for investigations,” Paun says. “But we also work with scientists to document particular forests and show the authorities – or the owners, if it's a private one – that it's a precious forest, and it's worth preserving.”

Paun says his organization is dedicated to non-violence. But his opponents don’t always sing from the same hymn sheet.

Bodily harm

On a chilly winter day in 2014, Paun tracked a truck exiting Romania’s oldest national park, the Retezat, loaded with lumber. Paun covertly followed the truck until it arrived at a sawmill. Camera in hand, he approached the factory entrance to document the crime.

In response, one security guard pepper-sprayed him.

In another incident in the Retezat in 2015, Paun says he was attacked and suffered serious injuries to his ribs, head and hand. Footage of the incident has since garnered nearly 150,000 views.

A European Parliament briefing in 2023 expressed “particular concern” after investigations revealed that “cases of violence and murder against whistle-blowers and foresters are surging” in the country.

Globally, over 1,700 environmental defenders from 61 countries were murdered between 2012 and 2021, according to a UNEP report .

“Environmental defenders are in terrible isolation. Our opponents are more or less happy that we are very few, and that makes us very vulnerable,” Paun says.

In the courts

Agent Green says it has filed “hundreds” of lawsuits to prevent illegal logging. The group has brought some of its cases to European institutions in a process Paun terms “a never-ending story.”

Yet Paun remains optimistic that environmental justice will prevail. He’s also extending his work beyond Romania, advocating at international summits and meetings with development agencies.

His latest project is the establishment of a shared peace park in the Carpathians, one of Europe's few truly wild areas at the Ukraine-Romania border.

“For wildlife and all the other species, there are no boundaries. The only boundary exists in our very own minds,” Paun says. “Our vision is also for people to live without borders. So it's a very symbolic project. And I think it's ecological diplomacy at its best.”

Ultimately, Paun says his inspiration comes from the beauty of nature.

“All the threats I've endured mean little or nothing to me,” he says. “I have to keep going because I cannot unlearn what I learned. And I learned that the planet is suffering and needs healing. If I stopped, then I would be morally dead. And to me, moral death is the most painful death of all.”

中国，乌兰布和沙漠。在连绵的沙丘和嶙峋的石柱间，数百名科学家齐聚沙漠林业实验中心。

在中国林业科学研究院首席科学家卢琦的悉心指导下，科学家们在内蒙古巴彦淖尔市钻研数据，培育抗旱树苗。他们的目标是抵御荒漠化，在中国最艰苦的自然环境中培育出一片绿洲。

乌兰布和沙漠是中国的主要沙漠之一，也是覆盖中国土地面积五分之一以上的沙漠生态系统的一部分。几千年来，中国一直致力于防沙治沙。气候变化导致荒漠化更加严重。不断蔓延的沙地威胁着农田和村庄，每年造成的直接经济损失超过90亿美元。

不过，中国有一个看似简单的解决方案：种植和养护防沙林，从而遏制沙漠扩张。然而，防沙林的成功与否取决于对缺水问题的严谨研究、技术进步甚至多边合作。

在应对这一系列挑战方面，卢琦都具备专业知识。他在长达30余年的职业生涯中牵头了50多个科研项目，发表了180多篇经过同行评审的论文，撰写了20本专著，并协助中国落实《联合国防治荒漠化公约》。这位61岁的老人正在利用这些经验，让沙漠重焕生机。

卢琦告诉联合国环境规划署（环境署）：“防治荒漠化的重要驱动力，不仅仅是为了保护自然，更是为了保护我们自己的生存环境。”

凭借其通过科学研究和多边参与应对荒漠化问题的努力，卢琦被授予联合国最高环境荣誉——2024年“地球卫士奖”（科学与创新奖）。卢琦是2024年度的六位获奖人之一。

“荒漠化和干旱正在破坏地球和人类福祉，”环境署执行主任英格·安德森表示，“但是，通过将科学与政策相结合，卢琦表明：我们可以解决土地退化问题，帮助社区适应气候变化，为数百万人构建更美好的未来。”

于荒漠见森林

卢琦早年的学术追求以林学为中心，直到三十多岁获得生态学博士学位后才开始关注沙漠。防治荒漠化被划分到林业的范畴，这也反映出中国的立场是，植树造林——在没有树的地方种树——是关键的解决方案之一。

卢琦说，“探索未知的热情”引领他走向了中国标志性的“三北工程”。这项也被称为“绿色长城”的计划于1978年启动，据研究人员称，它是世界上最大的植树造林项目。“三北工程”覆盖了中国北部地区的3000多万公顷土地。中国希望到2050年，该项目的面积扩大到4亿多公顷——这比印度和埃及国土面积的总和还要大。

卢琦在该项目中发挥了重要作用——包括早期在野外收集数据，在实验室分析防沙治沙策略等等。他是三北工程研究院的创始院长，研究院位于北京，为国家重大生态项目提供技术支持。研究院还通过培训讲习班和会议的形式参与多边合作，卢琦说，通过这种方式，就能让其他国家分享“中国的智慧和方案”。

“森林在涵养水源、保持水土方面具有重要作用。森林还与人们的生活品质、经济收入和食品安全密切相关。”卢琦说。据报道，今年早些时候，中国政府承诺出资约120亿人民币加强“三北工程”建设。

据中国国家林业和草原局的数据显示，该项目取得了令人欣喜的成果。20世纪末，中国的沙漠面积以每年3436平方公里的速度扩大。相比之下，从2009年开始，中国的沙漠以每年2424平方公里的速度缩小，自2016年以来，中国多达880万公顷的沙漠化地区变成了绿地。这些进展遏制了水土流失，改善了沙漠社区的生活条件，为村庄甚至北京等大都市提供了抵御沙尘暴的缓冲地带。此外，森林的固碳量是其排放量的两倍，有助于减缓气候变化。

“三北工程不仅是一项生态治理工程，更是将区域经济发展与人民生活幸福紧密结合起来的综合性战略规划。”卢琦表示。

新领域

在一个秋高气爽的日子里，卢琦凝视着乌兰布和沙漠崎岖的地形。电力线穿过一片片沙地，原本灰褐色的大地上已经出现了星星点点的绿芽和树木。远处，工程车和农民正在改造地形，扩建从黄河引水的灌溉渠。

卢琦说，数百年来，这片土地一直在与沙漠的侵蚀作斗争。现在，它已成为中国荒漠化治理工作的典范。

在卢琦的指导下，研究人员找出并收集了适合该地区生长的抗旱植物苗。研究院已经将乌兰布和沙漠超过1.1万公顷的土地转变为沃土。

但这场斗争远未结束。

“防治荒漠化需要全过程、全方位和全域的参与。”卢琦说，“我们的工作不仅限于政策建议，还包括提供技术支持、数据分析和解决方案，这些都是我们研究团队的成果。”

卢琦向联合国开发计划署、全球环境基金和其他一些处于全球荒漠化行动前沿的国际组织提供了他的专业知识。他的许多研究论文和著作也关注政策制定，并提供了通过多边合作减缓荒漠化、土地退化和干旱的最佳实践。

中国国务院于2024年任命卢琦为国务院参事，协助政府处理重大问题。这一任命既是卢琦在政策制定领域影响力不断扩大的最新里程碑，也证明了他和中国在以创新方法应对一个长达数百年的问题。

“我们生活在一片‘沙海’之中，”他说，“这样的景象既令人震撼，也充满了潜力。因此，我的祝愿和期待是希望更多的人能够意识到这一点，积极参与到沙漠治理和生态恢复的伟大事业中来。”

Indian ecologist Madhav Gadgil learned from a young age the importance of respecting the rights of the least fortunate.

One of Gadgil’s most formative early memories was accompanying his father – an economist and statesman – on a visit to a hydroelectric project in India’s Maharashtra state. Deforestation was rampant in the surrounding areas and Gadgil’s father often questioned the trade-offs India was making.

“My father said to me: ‘We need this electricity, and we need India to progress industrially. But should we be paying the price, which is environmental destruction and suffering for local people?’” recalls Gadgil.

“This empathy for people, along with a love of nature, was imbued in me at a very young age.”

Such experiences shaped Gadgil’s approach to ecology. In a scientific career that has spanned six decades – taking him from the halls of Harvard University to the upper echelons of India’s government – Gadgil has always considered himself a “people’s scientist”.

His research has helped to protect marginalized people, promote the community-driven conservation of ecosystems, from forests to wetlands, and influence policymaking at the highest level.

Of the seven books and at least 225 scientific papers he has written, Gadgil’s landmark work, dubbed the Gadgil Report , called for the protection of India’s ecologically fragile Western Ghats mountain range in the face of growing threats from industry and the climate crisis.

For his vast contributions, Gadgil has been named a 2024 Champion of the Earth – the United Nations’ highest environmental honour – in the Lifetime Achievement category. He is one of six laureates in the2024 cohort.

“Science can help us find solutions to the devastating loss of nature our world is experiencing. Madhav Gadgil has demonstrated this for decades,” says Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme. “His work has advanced conservation while demonstrating a deep respect for people and community knowledge, bringing to the fore lasting solutions for some of India’s most-pressing environmental challenges.”

Land degradation and disasters

Nearly a third of India’s land is degraded, leaving communities dangerously exposed to disasters. Landslides in the southern state of Kerala in 2024 killed more than 200 people in one of the region’s worst disasters in years. The rainfall that triggered the landslides was made more intense by human-caused climate change, while quarrying and deforestation may have weakened the affected slopes, according to a recent report by a global network of scientists.

The Gadgil report raised the alarm in 2011 about the negative impacts of unchecked development on the area. Commissioned by India’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Gadgil and other scientists recommended categorizing ecologically sensitive areas across the Western Ghats and ensuring development is “environment-friendly and people-oriented”. The report has gathered significant media attention over the years, making a strong push for ecological protection in the region. The World Heritage Committee and the International Union for Conservation of Nature also reviewed the report’s findings when considering the Western Ghats’ nomination as a World Heritage Site.

While the area remains under pressure, Gadgil believes he has helped reframe the discourse around ecological protection and restoration efforts across India.

“Communities are exercising their rights to their land and natural resources. They are getting organized, and we must work with them,” he says. “We must continue along the path of inclusive development and conservation.”

That’s a well-trodden path for Gadgil.

Throughout his decades-long tenure at the Indian Institute of Science, where he founded the Centre for Ecological Sciences Gadgil has worked closely with forest dwellers, farmers and fishing communities , not to mention activists and policymakers.

One of his biggest achievements through the centre was the establishment of India’s first biosphere reserve in 1986. Gadgil carried out ecological reconnaissance in three states in the Western Ghats and recalls how he spoke and trekked with, and even lived among the forest communities in sacred groves.

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve is now the largest protected area in India, and Gadgil’s championing of community-led conservation efforts and resource management has proved vital in preserving land and biodiversity in a region where habitat degradation and forest fragmentation have long been rife.

As a member of several government agencies and committees, including the Prime Minister's Scientific Advisory Counci l, Gadgil was one of the architects of India’s Biological Diversity Act and involved in the implementation of the Forest Rights Act 

With these laws, Gadgil has helped forest communities establish register to monitor biodiversity in local ecosystems. These also enable communities to take stock of and make best use of forest products such as bamboo, fruits, fish and plants.

In one village in Maharashtra, local conservationists found toxic chemicals discharged into a river were hurting fish populations, according to Gadgil. Several nearby villages agreed to ban the chemicals and the river’s biodiversity has since improved, he explained.

Some villages have also used the biodiversity registers to document the environmental fallout of quarrying and fight against the practice in court, the ecologist added.

“Positive things are happening in many villages, and it is heartening to see,” Gadgil says.

Inspiring India’s youth

Gadgil’s wide-ranging contributions throughout the years have earned him some of India’s highest civilian honours – including the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awards – as well as the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement and the Volvo Environment Prize .

Despite his storied career, Gadgil is not one to rest on his laurels.

Looking to the future, Gadgil has been mentoring village youths about their community forest rights while helping them to better understand their surrounding ecosystems.

He proudly cites the example of one boy, who was trained to take photos of plants and identify species with his smartphone. Local botanists saw an unusual flower he had posted online, identified it as a rare ground orchid, and published a scientific paper that featured the boy as a co-author, according to Gadgil.

Ultimately, the ecologist believes that technological advances and the increase in publicly available scientific information will inspire more communities to fight for their rights. That is critical, he believes, with India facing the worsening effects of the climate crisis.

In his early 80s now, Gadgil plans to keep pushing for the conservation of India’s most fragile ecosystems.

“I have the satisfaction that as a scientist, empathetic to the people, I have been able to do various things which have helped in changing the direction of what is happening,” Gadgil says. “I'm a durable optimist – and hopeful that this progress will continue to gather pace.”

联合国环境规划署很荣幸与微博成为合作伙伴，共同表彰和庆祝地球卫们为保护环境做出的杰出成就。

正是得益于合作伙伴的支持，我们可以将这一奖项常态化，每一年都评选出为环保做出杰出贡献的地球卫士们，庆祝他们取得的成绩。我们感谢合作伙伴一直以来为地球卫士奖给予的的支持。    

微博

微博持续致力于加强环境保护以及推进可持续发展的努力，近年来通过其平台和网络，支持了联合国环境规划署发起的多个社交媒体活动，包括世界环境日和“为生命呐喊”倡导活动。 

对于大多数人来说，水肺，面罩、脚蹼和潜水服都是用来休闲娱乐的设备。但是，对于今年地球卫士奖“激励与行动奖”得主，非营利团体美拉尼西亚群岛的海女 (SWoM)而言，这是她们推动变革的工具。

穿戴好潜水设备，30多位成员开始追踪记录美拉尼西亚群岛周边脆弱的珊瑚礁系统的健康状况，这里汇集了很多南太平洋岛屿国家。他们的目标是教授当地女性潜水和生物学技能，训练她们独立监测珊瑚礁的健康，并推动创建并恢复海洋保护区。

“我依稀记得第一次去附近渔村招募当地女性加入我们团队时的情景。”团队成员伊瑟瑞尔·阿图尔(Israelah Atua)回忆道， “起初，她们根本不理睬我们。但我们最终说服了她们，让她们意识到海洋保护是确保所有人生计的基础和必要条件。“

美拉尼西亚群岛的海女主要的工作区域集中在“珊瑚三角洲”(Coral Triangle)，它位于大堡礁和美拉尼西亚及东南亚的岛屿群岛之间，占地570万平方公里。这里是世界上最受欢迎的旅游目的地，也是渔业重地，孕育了丰富且多样化的海洋生物。但如今这一区域业受到人口数量激增以及日益严峻的废弃物问题的威胁。

全球的珊瑚礁都受到气候变化，过度捕捞和污染的威胁。根据联合国环境署最新的报告，2009年至2018年间，海洋温度的持续上升已经导致全球14%的珊瑚礁消失了。尚存的多数珊瑚礁也濒临灭绝。

健康的珊瑚礁对于承受气候变化的影响至关重要，包括海洋酸化和极端天气事件。但报告表明，即使全球采取最强有力的行动将全球升温幅度控制在1.5°C范围内，截至2050年，世界上70-90%的珊瑚礁仍然会消失。

但令人欣慰的是，珊瑚礁有极强的复原力，如果海洋环境得到保障，珊瑚礁就能够得到恢复。由珊瑚海基金会开展的 “海女”倡议(SeaWomen)，自2018年以来，就致力于在巴布亚新几内亚和所罗门群岛内推进珊瑚礁的修复，并支持建立禁渔区。它还支持在这两国设立海洋保护区，以确保村民未来能够拥有丰富的鱼类资源来维持生计。

“海女倡议” 也同时改变着人们对于女性在社区中所能承担的角色以及女性领导力的看法。

“在社区中有一位能够使用当地语言倡导海洋保护事业，向大家普及如何开展海洋保护工作的女性非常重要。”珊瑚海基金会执行董事安迪·刘易斯（Andy Lewis）表示。 “如果不充分认可土著文化的重要意义，就无法在这些国家开展保护工作。”

对于海女团队而言，将土著知识与科学相结合，是他们调动社区参与的核心。从社区成员那里了解到一年中什么时候鱼类资源最丰富；珊瑚礁的颜色变化与水下调研数据如何进行匹配等，对于她们宣传保护海洋以及设立海洋保护区的价值至关重要。

但同样，海女们表示，她们正在挑战女性在家庭，社区和社会中被定义的传统角色。

“当你培养了一个女性，你实际上就是培养了一整个社会” 总部设于巴布亚新几内亚的海女组织的联合负责人伊娃杰利斯塔·奥佩利斯(Evangelista Apelis)表示。“我们正在努力培训女性。待她们通过考核，她们就会重返社区，并在自己的家庭和社会中产生影响。”

所有海女们都要经过严格的海洋科学的训练，并辅以珊瑚礁调研技术和珊瑚礁生态实践培训。随后，她们还要学习潜水。

“我很爱我的工作，它能够让我体验到水下世界的美丽，” 奥佩利斯说。，“在潜水前，你会想像水下多姿多彩的世界，但现实的情况则更迷人——各种各样的鱼，沉船的残骸......就好像一切都活了过来。”每个海女都要考取国际认可的潜水证书，并学习如何使用GPS定位技术，水下相机来拍照和录像，以调查“珊瑚三角洲”鱼类和珊瑚礁的数量。自 2018 年以来，在美拉尼西亚海女们的努力下，巴布亚新几内亚和所罗门群岛水域新增了 20 多个建立海洋保护区的提案。

“珊瑚礁是海洋生物的避难所，支持无数沿海社区的经济，”联合国环境署执行主任英格·安德森(Inger Andersen)表示， “珊瑚礁对我们星球的未来至关重要，美拉尼西亚群岛的海女们为保护这些美丽的，多样化的生态系统所作的工作令我们备受鼓舞。”

对于海女组织在巴布亚新几内亚西新不列颠省的团队领导者Naomi Longa而言，帮助创造海洋保护区意味着她不仅是所在社区的领导者，而且还在为未来铺路。随着人口压力的增长，海洋面临的压力也不断加剧，海洋保护区计划是对一个易受压力和冲击的社区长期福祉的投资。

“我们实际上正在为未来一代节省粮食。”她说。 “物种不断在灭绝，所以当我们的后代出生时，生活在那些海洋保护区中的海洋生物可能是届时唯一还存活的物种。”

联合国环境规划署的“地球卫士奖” 和“地球卫士青年奖” 旨在表彰对环境产生变革性影响的个人、团体和组织。地球卫士奖每年颁发一次，是联合国最高级别的环境荣誉，表彰来自政府、民间社会和私营部门的杰出领袖。 

联合国大会宣布“2021-2030年为联合国生态系统恢复十年”。在联合国环境规划署 (UNEP) 和联合国粮食及农业组织 (FAO) 的共同领导，以及合作伙伴的支持下，这一倡议旨在防止、遏制并扭转全球生态系统的丧失和退化趋势，恢复数十亿公顷的土地，其中涵盖陆地和水生生态系统。作为一项全球性号召，“联合国十年”倡议汇集了政治支持、科研和财政力量，以实现全球范围内的大规模恢复。

浙江，古称“折江”，因省内最大河流钱塘江弯曲如“之”字而得名，是海内外闻名的文物荟萃之邦，景点集中之地。长期以来，浙江省的河流对沿岸社区有着非常重要的意义。水道川流在传统的白墙和黑瓦房屋间，流经古老的城镇，灌溉了稻田，滋养了生命。浙江也是中国最富裕、最发达的省份之一。然而，浙江也因快速的工业发展付出代价，曾经清澈的水质开始发黑变臭。

阅读完整故事

联合国环境署于授予印度总理纳伦德拉·莫迪（Narendra Modi）地球卫士奖，表彰他在全球环境治理中发挥的领导性作用。在他的领导下，印度将于2022 年全面禁止一次性塑料制品。此外，他还倡导成立了国际太阳能联盟，这一国际伙伴关系旨在推动“太阳能资源丰富的国家”扩大太阳能的应用，减少人类对化石燃料的依赖。