กรุงเทพฯ--15 มิ.ย.--TQPR (Thailand)
This year marks 30 years since the inception of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise. This October the 30th anniversary will be celebrated with the announcement of five new Laureates at a ceremony in Singapore.
The Awards, which recognise individuals who seek to advance human knowledge and well-being, have been granted to scores of enterprising men and women across the world, 10 of whom are from Asia. Today, communities throughout the region, including Thailand, are still reaping the benefits of the endeavours of these visionary people.
In Thailand’s Trang Province, Thai environmentalist Pisit Charnsnoh (Associate Laureate, 2004) has campaigned to save the dugong from extinction for more than a decade. He teaches local people to love the dugong, and then involves these villagers in projects to restore its coastal habitat. He has been working with them to replant Trang Province’s mangroves and protect the seagrass pastures where dugongs graze.
Charnsnoh’s efforts have been rewarded: dugong numbers are increasing in the restored areas and the dugong has become a symbol of the improving coastal environment of Trang Province. But more recently, when the tsunami hit Thailand in December 2004, the impact on Trang Province was limited. The newly planted mangroves proved crucial in robbing the tsunami of its fury, saving human lives and shielding communities behind them from the waves. In addition, in spite of damage to coral, none of the dugong was killed.
“The dugong is fundamental to Thai culture and folklore — we even have three names for it! We call it Pha-Yoon, the official name for dugong; Nang-Nguag, the name of the female mermaid and Duyung in Malay. I am passionate that as a nation we cannot allow this wonderful creature to disappear from our coastal waters. Slowly but surely our efforts are being rewarded. We are beginning to see a change in people’s attitudes towards this beautiful creature. I am more confident now that the dugong will continue to be part of our culture and environment for generations to come,” said Charnsnoh.
Kikuo Morimoto (Laureate, 2004) was a dye artisan for a kimono-maker in Kyoto, Japan. He moved to Thailand in the 1980s to take a job supervising the local operations of a major textile company. While in Thailand, Morimoto taught people in the rural communities the techniques for naturally dyeing hand-woven cloth. He also spent many years in the north-east of Thailand working with natural dyes and silk weaving projects, including working with Khmer (the dominant ethnic group of Cambodia) weavers located in this region.
During his period in Thailand, Morimoto was impressed when he saw solid management techniques being applied to the rejuvenation of local, craft-based economies. He was inspired to leave his job to start up his own non-governmental organisation in Cambodia to help impoverished villagers resurrect silk production. Morimoto obtained silkworms from Thailand to help reintroduce sericulture — the process of raising silk worms and producing silk yarn — to the region.
“I owe a great deal to Thailand. My inspiration to help Cambodian villagers came from the years I spent working in rural communities in Thailand. Without the valuable knowledge I acquired there, I would not have made such progress. In addition, we are completely dependent on Thailand for our most important raw material: silk worms. It is exhilarating to be able to see two countries helping each other in this way,” commented Morimoto.
Thailand is also helping Cambodia in another way: Cambodian woven material is dyed using five basic colours: yellow, red, green, blue and black and the most basic red dye is made from the nest of an insect called “lac”. Thailand is now the main country for lac breeding. In fact, lac is now one of the ten major export products of Thailand.
“One of the goals of the Awards is to encourage people to think about the community they live in,” commented Rebecca Irvin, programme director of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise. “It is important that people understand the value not only of protecting precious resources but also improving the welfare of those around them. The vision and persistence of one individual can touch the lives of thousands. It is truly inspiring to see so many communities in Asia benefiting from the enterprising spirit of our Laureates and Associate Laureates.”
The Rolex Awards for Enterprise recognise individuals whose innovative, life-enhancing projects have a major impact on humanity. The Awards recognise five key areas: Science and Medicine; Technology and Innovation; Exploration and Discovery; The Environment and Cultural Heritage. Five winners — or Laureates — each receive a gold Rolex chronometer and US$100,000 to fund new or on-going work and assist in the completion of outstanding initiatives rather than rewarding past achievements. Up to five Associate Laureates are also selected and receive a cash prize and a steel-and-gold Rolex chronometer.
www.rolexawards.com
For further information, please contact: Or
Polly Steeds / Lim Siow Joo Tom Van Blarcom / Ruthaiwan Tanwongwan
Grayling TQPR (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
Tel: 65 6325 4606 Tel: 0 2260 5820
Email: [email protected] Fax: 0 2260 5847-8
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