A Green Economy is Possible

“A green economy is possible,” hailed Mexican President Felipe Calderon as he was honored by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as a 2011 Champion of the Earth at New York City’s American Museum of Natural History on May 10, 2011.

Since his induction into office in 2006, Felipe Calderon has been a beacon for the environment on the world stage, most recently hosting the 2010 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Cancun.  The conference resulted in the substantial bolstering of the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanisms along with the creation of a new international institution, the Green Climate Fund, designed to finance the long-term address of climate change within developing nations.

“What can we do to build a green economy for the world?  I think that we need to transfer into action the creativity and innovation that we can see around the world.  We need to transform.  We need to change individual actions in favor of massive actions through public policy,” said Calderon at the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) award ceremony as he discussed the quickly merging lines of the global economy and economic preservation.

The United Nations Environmental Programme was organized in 2005 to create and promote leadership and cultivate partnerships in the care of the environment by “inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.”

This year, Felipe Calderon was one of five Champions of the Earth honorees, joining adventurer Louis Palmer and global music legend Angelique Kidjo.  The UNEP Champions of the Earth award has recognized 46 individuals and organizations since its inception for their engagement, leadership, foresight and inspiration within the environmental action and policy plight.

Calderon now joins the ranks of past recipients, renowned environmental advocate Zhou Xun and former United States Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore in the crusade for environmental preservation in the face of an ever-expanding global community and economy.

For Felipe Calderon, the green economy is “the only solution that we have in order to face the challenges of the future.”