26
children's paintings sold as part of UNEP's
Paint for the Planet event in New York
New York, 26 October 2008 - In a ray of
hope amid the current economic crisis, children
from around the world have pulled together
and raised US$21,000 for the fight against
climate change.
As part of the Paint
for the Planet event organized by the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), children's
paintings were auctioned at New York's Harvard
Club to raise money for children in areas
affected by climate-related disasters. Proceeds
will go to UNICEF, the United Nations Children's
Fund.
The 26 paintings on auction
were chosen from around 200,000 entries
from UNEP's International Children's Competition.
Showcasing children's fears and hopes for
the planet, they are a powerful plea from
children for leadership on climate change
before it is too late - reflecting an all-new
UNEP-commissioned survey that shows that
90 per cent of young people across the globe
think world leaders should do "whatever
it takes" to tackle climate change.
In a sign that the children's
message truly resonated, all the paintings
in the auction were sold, with the two most
sough-after paintings - by 14-year-old Brit
Charlotte Sullivan and13-year-old American
Renee Wang - fetching US$2,200 each.
Charlotte was one of
the six young artists from around the world
who came to New York to see their paintings
get auctioned, alongside Katherine Liu,
9, from Saratoga (California); Gabrielle
Medovoy, 13, from Glenview (Illinois); Guy
Jayce Nindorera, 14, from Burundi; Daniela
Melendez, 14, from Colombia, and Andrew
Bartolo, 15, from Malta.
The auction was attended
by UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner,
UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman and
Yvo de Boer, the Executive Secretary of
the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC), as well as many other distinguished
guests from the worlds of art, business
and philanthropy.
Paint for the Planet
is the launch pad for the 'UNite to Combat
Climate Change' campaign to support the
call for a definitive agreement at the climate
change talks in Copenhagen, Denmark, in
December 2009.
All proceeds from the
auction will go to UNICEF's crucial work
addressing climate-related emergencies around
the world. In 2007, UNICEF responded to
230 emergencies globally, over half of which
were caused by natural disasters. Children
are primary victims of natural disasters
and many of the main killers of children
- malaria, diarrhoea and undernutrition
- are highly sensitive to climatic conditions.
Recent examples of UNICEF's
emergency work on climate-related disasters
include the response to Cyclone Nargis in
Myanmar in May and to the storms that battered
Haiti in recent months.
In Myanmar, UNICEF provided
critical emergency needs including water
purification, health kits and food, as well
as essential school supplies and learning
materials. After Haiti was battered by a
series of storms that killed hundreds of
people, UNICEF - working with the World
Food Programme - mobilized 7.5 metric tons
of food and 60,000 litres of drinking water
for the affected population.
As well as the auction
on 25 October, the Paint for the Planet
event features an exhibit at United Nations
headquarters which will travel to various
climate-related events and meetings around
the world over the next year, culminating
in Copenhagen in December 2009.
Paint for the Planet
is made possible through the generous support
of Bayer, Nikon and the Foundation for Global
Peace and Environment, which have been UNEP's
key partners for the International Children's
Painting Competition and other children
and youth initiatives for many years.
The curatorial partner
for Paint for the Planet is the Natural
World Museum (NWM), which presents art through
innovative programs to inspire and engage
the public in environmental awareness and
action.
Notes to editors:
About the art and the artists:
Maltese student Andrew
Bartolo is a keen environmentalist and Scout.
He says: "I have painted a scene that,
though slightly extreme, gives an insight
into a possible future, one where animals
lose their homes and are forced to migrate
to unfamiliar territories."
Katherine Liu is a fifth
grade student at Foothill School, Saratoga,
California, USA. She says: "If everyone
did their part in preventing global warming,
we might be able to stop climate change."
Katherine does her bit by recycling, turning
off lights whenever she leaves a room, and
taking short showers to save water.
Gabrielle Medovoy is
an honour student in Springman Middle School,
Glenview, IL, USA. Through her painting
of penguins on the move she asks "Where
are they going? That will be the question
when there is no decent place for the penguins
to live."
Fourteen-year-old Daniela
Melendez goes to Colegio Hacienda Los Alcaparros
in Bogotá, Colombia. She explains:
"In my painting I was showing today's
reality, that we TOGETHER are doing it,
together we can work it out. We know it's
not who, what or where we are, but what
we do that counts."
Guy Jayce Nindorera
from Burundi says that his painting was
inspired by the situation in his country
but also by reading various articles around
the world "where people are dying of
hunger and other catastrophes such as the
Tsunami, floods and deserts, due to human
actions. As a result human beings become
victims of their own interventions."
Charlotte Sullivan lives
in Surrey, England and goes to Busbridge
Junior School. Earlier this year Charlotte
won her age category (11-13 years) on the
theme 'Saving Planet Earth'. This pottery
piece was exhibited at the Natural History
Museum along with exhibits from all over
the world. She says: "The silhouette
of a figure in my painting represents the
governments' and global businesses' idle
hold over the world. In the background red,
oranges and yellows represent the fossil
fuel power plants and the warming of the
planet while those that could act use the
umbrella to shelter behind."
About UNEP's survey
on young people's views on climate change:
The online survey of
12-18 year olds across Brazil, India, Russia,
South Africa and the United States was conducted
for UNEP and carried out by the international
polling firm GlobeScan during the month
of October 2008. The survey shows that 88
per cent of young people in the five countries
agree that "World leaders should do
whatever it takes to tackle climate change".
Young people in South
Africa, the United States and Brazil are
particularly critical of world leader's
efforts to address climate change; seven
in ten or more across these three countries
say world leaders are not doing enough (South
Africa, 82%; the United States, 79%; Brazil,
73%). There is a great sense of urgency
among youth in most countries, with a majority
of young people in each country except India
saying "It is necessary to take major
steps starting very soon" (Brazil,
89%; South Africa, 81%; Russia, 75%; the
United States, 61%).
Four in five youths
surveyed believe they can make a difference
on climate for our future (89%); however,
a majority also say they need more information
about what they can do to tackle climate
change (84%).
More information on the survey results is
available at www.unep.org
For more information, visit www.unep.org/paint4planet
or contact:
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson/Head of
Media
Anne-France White, UNEP Associate Information
Officer,
