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17/09/2013
Winners of Japan Awards for Biodiversity 2013 announced

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Mr. Takuya Okada, Chairman of the AEON Environmental Foundation, announced the winners of the Japan Awards for Biodiversity 2013 on September 17, 2013.  The winners of the 2013 Awards are as follows.

 

 

● Joint Tagging Survey of Skipjack off the Pacific Coast of Japan and a Series of Cooperative Projects and Enlightenment Activities  (Ajinomoto Co., Inc.)

● Restoration of Rice Paddies Devastated by the Tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake using Resilience of the Ecosystem  (NPO Tambo)

● Project of Bamboo Papers  (Chuetsu Pulp & Paper Co., Ltd.)

● Evergreen Broad-leaved Forests Project  (TERUHA Forest Conference)

● System Construction for the Creation of Nature Technology  (Society for Nature Technology, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University)

 

The Japan Awards for Biodiversity were established in 2009 in commemoration of the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) in Nagoya, Japan.  The aims of the Awards, the Grand Prix and four Excellence Awards, are to honor five projects carried out by organizations or individuals in Japan that have made outstanding contributions and have had an impact on future activities for biodiversity.

 

In this, the third year, projects of research and education were newly added to the categories to be awarded from a perspective that encourages research and development or technological innovation related to biodiversity.  Applications were solicited from a broad range of fields in order to focus on and highlight unknown but outstanding projects.

 

In 2013, the number of applications was 104 in total.  Regarding the projects nominated for the final selection, a public on-line session was held to enable open evaluation incorporating live views, and environmentally conscious participants exchanged opinions on the website.  Dr. Ryo Kohsaka (Kanazawa University) and Ms. Yoko Aoki (environmental journalist) joined in the session as facilitators.  The participants, 34 men and women in their 20s to 60s selected from all over the country, earnestly discussed a variety of issues including the conservation of animals and plants, the sustainable use of natural resources, mainstreaming of biodiversity, understanding the ecosystem, and contributing to the Tohoku restoration and environmental education.

 

On the basis of the preliminary evaluation by the Working Group of Specialists, the Judging Committee selected five distinguished projects as Excellence Awards.  The comments given by the live participants were also referred to by the Judging Committee. 

 

The Grand Prix of the Japan Awards will be selected from the five awardees and announced at the award ceremony to be held at U Thant Hall of the United Nations University (Tokyo, Japan) on October 29, 2013.  

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