World Challenge 2010 finalist BlueVentures wins 2011 Buckminster Fuller Challenge

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 17:09
Blue Ventures, a conservation organisation that protects marine environments while improving the standard of living in some of the world's poorest coastal communities, has won the 2011 Buckminster Fuller Challenge.
The Buckminster Fuller Challenge is an annual global competition with the stated aim to recognise "bold, visionary, tangible initiatives that take a comprehensive, anticipatory, design science approach to radically advance human well being and the health of our planet's ecosystems".
London-based non-profit company Blue Ventures - a finalist in last year's World Challenge - was awarded the US $100,000 prize in recognition of its success in "validating the economic viability of conservation". The company has created the largest community-run Marine Protected Area in the Indian Ocean, bringing direct economic benefits to more than 10,000 people in 25 traditional fishing villages through ecotourism. At the same time, Blue Ventures diving volunteers have contributed valuable ecological research which has helped pave the way for new conservation legislation. Blue Ventures says the money will be used to expand its work in Madagascar and other countries.
"Blue Ventures integrates the regeneration of the environment, on which people depend, with the stabilisation of population and resources," said Allan Savory, whose project Operation Hope won the Challenge in 2010 and who served as a juror on the 2011 prize. "With continued success this could carry through multiple generations as the 'norm' which is key to lasting sustainability, and I see no reason to confine their overall strategy to marine environments."
"Participatory Mapping as a Means of Protecting Forests in the Congo Basin," a project of the Rainforest Foundation UK, was named runner up, and 'honourable mentions' were awarded to FrontlineSMS and Tara Akshar+.
For more information about the Buckminster Fuller Challenge and the 2011 finalists, visit http://challenge.bfi.org/
Blue Ventures, a conservation organisation that protects marine environments while improving the standard of living in some of the world's poorest coastal communities, has won the 2011 Buckminster Fuller Challenge.

London-based non-profit company Blue Ventures - a finalist in last year's World Challenge - was awarded the US $100,000 prize in recognition of its success in "validating the economic viability of conservation". The company has created the largest community-run Marine Protected Area in the Indian Ocean, bringing direct economic benefits to more than 10,000 people in 25 traditional fishing villages through ecotourism. At the same time, Blue Ventures diving volunteers have contributed valuable ecological research which has helped pave the way for new conservation legislation. Blue Ventures says the money will be used to expand its work in Madagascar and other countries.
"Blue Ventures integrates the regeneration of the environment, on which people depend, with the stabilisation of population and resources," said Allan Savory, whose project Operation Hope won the Challenge in 2010 and who served as a juror on the 2011 prize. "With continued success this could carry through multiple generations as the 'norm' which is key to lasting sustainability, and I see no reason to confine their overall strategy to marine environments."
"Participatory Mapping as a Means of Protecting Forests in the Congo Basin," a project of the Rainforest Foundation UK, was named runner up, and 'honourable mentions' were awarded to FrontlineSMS and Tara Akshar+.
For more information about the Buckminster Fuller Challenge and the 2011 finalists, visit http://challenge.bfi.org/
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