fbpx
Skip to content

ORDINARY PEOPLE. EXTRAORDINARY IMPACT.

Watch the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize ceremony.

Indigenous Leaders Deliver Resolution to UN Delegates

June 22, 2012

Indigenous groups from around the world, including Japan and the Philippines, gathered yesterday to deliver a resolution to UN delegates at Rio+20. Goldman Prize staff was on site as the groups marched in solidarity to the Rio Center, the official site of the UN summit.

A group of leaders representing the various indigenous groups met with a representative from the UN and the Brazilian Environment Ministry to delivery their declaration. For the full declaration, please click here.

Though the marchers were greeted by armed military police, the feeling at this year’s conference was markedly different from the first Rio conference in 1992, when indigenous people were treated like second class citizens. It was a struggle just to arrange for one indigenous leader to address the delegates and even then, they were only allotted a few minutes to speak.

This year, indigenous representatives are a regular sight, walking around talking to delegates all over the conference site- a welcome change from year’s past.

photo4-21 photo2-31
photo8-11 photo7-11
Marchers are swarmed by the press and greeted by military police.
photo5-21
Goldman Prize staff member Melina Selverston-Scher stands outside the official entrance to the UN conference site.

Recent Posts

New York Climate Week: Energy and Optimism in the Big City


September 27, 2023

On Sunday, September 17, Goldman Prize winners from all around the world participated in New York City’s March to End Fossil Fuels. The march was the kickoff to New York Climate Week, a whirlwind of a week full of networking, learning, and storytelling for the fight against climate change. Throughout the week, Goldman Prize winners played…

Read more

Highlights from Africa Climate Week


September 13, 2023

Last week, representatives from the Goldman Environmental Prize attended Africa Climate Week in Nairobi, Kenya. The week was a kickoff for many upcoming climate events this fall, and an opportunity to convene regional Prize winners as well as those unable to travel to the US during the Covid-19 pandemic. Enjoy this photo journal from an impactful week. At…

Read more

Protecting the Remarkable Coral Reefs of Raja Ampat, Indonesia


August 21, 2023 – By Michael Sutton

Zafer Kizilkaya of Turkey won the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize for his successful efforts to establish an expansive network of marine reserves off the Turkish coast. But his marine conservation expertise extends far beyond the Mediterranean. For many years prior to his campaign in Turkey, Zafer worked as a marine biologist and National Geographic underwater…

Read more