SEC. BEBET GOZUN: UNEP'S 2007 CHAMPION OF THE EARTH

This is going ahead of my other postings. But I am forced to post this now to join the nation in honoring former Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Elisea "Bebet" Gozun for winning UNEP's "2007 Champions of the Earth" alongside with six other awardees, including former US Vice President Al Gore (for his video documentary "An Inconvenient Truth"). UP-NCPAG honored her through a lecture (yes, we made her work in her honor) entitled, "Reflections on Environmental Leadership in the Philippines: Triumphs and Tribulations" held on 15 March 2007 at UP-NCPAG's Audio-Visual Room. The affair was graced by prominent environmentalists and DENR officials and employees. A picture posted here shows Sec. Gozun together with Miss Earth-Water 2006 Catherine Untalan, and Dr. Angelina P. Galang, Executive Director of Mirriam College's Environmental Studies Institute. Thank you to Dean Alex Brillantes, Jr. for supporting the lecture, and to former Dean Jose Endriga for assisting us in giving the tokens of appreciation to our guests. Sec. Gozun's PowerPoint presentation, and hopefully, the video shoot, will be posted here, if I will learn how to upload them. For copies, e-mail me at efloranoy@yahoo.com.

By the way, Sec. Gozun will receive her award on 19 April 2007 (if I am not mistaken) in Singapore.

Below is the citation for Sec. Gozun for winning UNEP's 2007 Champions of the Earth. Information are available at www.unep.org/champions/

ELISEA “Bebet” GILLERA GOZUN

Mrs. Elisea “Bebet” Gillera Gozun’s commitment to public service and her passion for the environment has given her the energy to overcome obstacles, persuade disbelievers, and shape alliances.

Her leadership in World Bank projects resulted in tangible results such as the introduction of pollution charges for industrial effluents in the Philippines, the establishment of the ECOWATCH program – an innovative public disclosure program of environmental performance of priority industries – and the "Brown Fund"- the first tripartite funding source for local urban environmental initiatives, jointly managed by non-governmental organizations (NGOs), business, and government.

Mrs. Gozun recognized that without the local communities, the private sector, and local governments on board led by mayors, no national policy could succeed. She has pushed for the introduction of community-based waste recovery, recycling and reuse in the Philippines and has also worked for the establishment of materials recovery facilities, and on upgrading the quality and capacity of landfills for the residual wastes. To implement the pilot schemes in environmental management, she has attracted international funding, and mobilized local resources. As a result, today there is a wide network of participating communities, with dramatically improved health situations due to better solid waste management.

Her personal integrity, combined with a keen pragmatic sense for what is politically feasible to constitute a viable solution, have won her the trust of business leaders, NGOs, and political decision-makers alike.

Source: www.unep.org/champions/