The ENERGY GLOBE World Award was established in 2000 by Wolfgang Neumann from Austria and has become the most prestigious international environmental prize. Every year approximately 1000 projects are submitted by over 100 countries for the prize, which is awarded in the categories earth, fire, water, air and youth.
Top-ranking UN VIPs, famous environmental champions, a glamorous gala, and, above all, the world’s best environmental projects comprised the ENERGY GLOBE Gala Rwanda 2010.This year the top environmental gala served as the official opening event for the UN World Environment Day, demonstrating what importance the ENERGY GLOBE has achieved.
A colourful spectacle kicked off the evening's proceedings: prize-winners of the national Energy Globes from various countries introduced themselves to the guests - including prominent names: top-ranking Rwandan politicians, Achim Steiner, UNEP Executive Director, Luo Hong, UNEP Climate Hero, Peter Rae, Vice President of the environmental campaign REN21 and Ian Redmond, patron of the Great Apes Survival Project.
When the winner of the ENERGY GLOBE in the category WATER was announced there was a moment of high emotion in the hall: rejoicing broke out among the submitters of the Indian project "Aakash Ganga" ("River from Heaven"), whose aim is to provide water to rural areas. Then the announcements came in rapid succession: the ENERGY GLOBE in the category EARTH went to Mauritius "Seeds of Hope." Their project provides reforestation and biodiversity. "Floating wind power stations" from Norway were honoured with the fire award, while an economical CO2 engine from Taiwan won in the category Air. The category YOUTH went to a school from Argentina and its self sufficiency concept, which provides pupils with good nutrition and familiarizes them with sustainable agriculture.
Here were the nominees:
Category Earth
• Federated States of Micronesia: On the island of Korae, Micronesia Eco Inc. has established a recycling system that conserves resources and generates income for inhabitants.
• Mauritius: The seedling program of Flora Marketing CO LTD offers residents new sources of income while ensuring biodiversity and combating massive deforestation.
• Austria: Meeting the German passive house standard with the renovation of an energy-hungry old apartment building was a challenge. A special solar façade enabled GIWOG to succeed. Category Fire
• Bangladesh: Shobuj Angira Foundation supplies portable solar energy in rural Bangladesh. Centrally located solar panels and portable batteries now bring light to villagers.
• Nepal: The improved water mills of the Centre for Rural Technology not only make work easier; they also deliver urgently needed, clean power in rural Nepal.
• Norway: Statoil ASA New Energy has constructed a prototype of a floating wind power plant. Now wind energy can also be harvested on the open sea. Category Water
• India: Networked underground rain water tanks supplied by Sustainable Innovations already provide 10,000 residents of rural India with clean drinking water.
• Pakistan: The extensive water and hygiene program of Aga Khan Planning and Building Service delivers water supply systems and health training to Pakistani villages.
• Germany: HelioTech Türk GmbH has implemented an economical desalination plant that uses solar energy to make salt water drinkable and works even in remote areas. Category Air
• Taiwan: Less CO2 through more efficient engines was the idea behind Epoch Energy Technology Corp.’s Hybrid Fuel System. It can be retrofitted into any engine and produces a hydrogen/oxygen mixture as additional fuel.
• USA: The city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, has saved money and energy since transforming its street lighting to LEDs. This perfectly combines economy and CO2 reduction.
• Sweden: The Malmö Environment Department supports public photovoltaic projects and so advertises for CO2-free energy production. Category Youth
• Argentina: The self-sufficiency program of Ciudadanía Solidaria provides healthy nourishment at the school in La Soledad while teaching pupils and teachers about sustainable organic farming.
• Slovenia: The project “Ustanova Ekosola kot nacin zivljenja” lets pupils in the school center in Velnje test how energy saving works. This prototype is affecting all of Slovenia.
• Morocco: Under the motto “Ecology live”, the Mohammed VEX Foundation for Environment Protection supports schools toward becoming eco-schools.
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