Shanghai (China),
5 July 2010 - Chinese actress Zhou Xun and
French film director Yann Arthus-Bertrand
on Monday launched the premiere of the Chinese
version of HOME at the Shanghai Expo.
Using the stunning aerial
footage that is Mr. Arthus-Bertrand's trademark,
the film - shot in more than 50 countries
- makes an urgent appeal for our planet
in peril and all its treasures.
The Chinese version
of HOME has been dubbed by Zhou Xun, one
of China's leading actresses and a highly
recognized environmental advocate. She was
named a UNDP Goodwill Ambassador for China
in 2008, with a special focus of promoting
environmental sustainability, won UNEP's
Champion of the Earth award this year and
is the Green Ambassador for the 2010 World
Expo in Shanghai.
"I have been nurturing
this film for more than fifteen years. What
I saw and learned as I flew over the Earth
has changed me forever," said Yann
Arthus-Bertrand, who is also a UNEP Goodwill
Ambassador. "We are living in exceptional
times. Scientists tell us that we have 10
years to change the way we live, to avert
the depletion of natural resources and the
catastrophic evolution of the Earth's climate.
The stakes are high for us and our children,"
he warned.
The film depicts how humans
have disrupted the fragile balance on which
the Earth has existed for four billion years.
Global warming, a shortage of resources
and endangered species are threatening the
very existence of human beings. By the end
of the century, the film predicts, current
consumption patterns will have exhausted
almost all the Earth's natural resources
and only changing the way humans live can
reverse the trend.
Said Zhou Xun: "I
suggest people take the nearly 100 minutes
to watch this film called HOME. Let us pay
more attention to this crisis that might
happen on this Earth in the future."
The film first premiered
globally on World Environment Day in 2009
and has been seen in more than 108 countries
and territories.
Mr. Arthus-Bertrand,
a photographer as well, is renowned as one
of the world's strongest advocates for protecting
nature and insisting on the need for sustainable
development. His 'Earth Seen From Above'
exhibit of large-scale aerial photography
explores the link between humans and nature
and encourages viewers to think about the
challenges the planet faces. The exhibit,
which started in Paris in 2000 has since
travelled to cities around the world and
has reached over 130 million people. Most
recently, his film '6 Billion Others', which
is currently showing in the UN Pavilion
in the Shanghai Expo, captures the testimonials
of the lives of 6,000 people facing the
challenges of climate change in more than
65 countries.
Zhou Xun also regularly
promotes 'tips for green living' through
Our Part, a campaign she runs jointly with
the United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP). The popular actress encourages people
to reduce their carbon footprint through
simple changes in lifestyle, something that
can make a huge difference in a country
with the challenges of a large population
such as China.
Shared Learning in Aftermath of China Earthquake
Shanghai, 7 July 2010
- A new publication from the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) reflects on
two years of cooperation with the Chinese
Government to address the environmental
impacts of the devastating earthquake that
struck the Sichuan Province on 12 May 2008.
UNEP in China: Building
Back Better outlines the shared learning
from UNEP's work in China to help rebuild
lives and landscapes in the aftermath of
the 8.0 quake that affected 70 million people,
destroyed some 6.5 million homes, and caused
15 million people to be evacuated.
The publication is being
released today to coincide with UNEP's "Nature
of Cities" exhibition in the UN Pavilion
at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.
At the request of the
Chinese Government, UNEP engaged in the
post-disaster recovery effort immediately
after the disaster, deploying experts to
assess the situation on the ground, advising
national and provincial authorities on managing
the environmental impacts of the disaster,
and providing guidance on the best approaches
for "greening" the reconstruction.
The UNEP team was able
to raise awareness of environmental and
ecological considerations within the overall
state planning processes for post-earthquake
recovery and reconstruction, and to ensure
that these considerations were duly included.
As the primary environmental
actor on the ground, UNEP was also able
to bring together the best international
experts to share practical knowledge with
Chinese civil servants on a wide range of
environmental issues linked to disaster
recovery and reconstruction, including contamination
of water and soil resources, disposal of
hazardous healthcare waste, and the management
of vast quantities of building rubble.
A welcome feature of
the post-earthquake intervention in China
was that UNEP experts were also able to
learn from Chinese best practices.
For example, the Government
issued clear guidance to communities on
what areas could be used for rebuilding
and what areas should remained untouched,
on the basis of an environmental and disaster
risk assessment. This enabled local communities
to rapidly deploy their resources, rebuild
their homes where possible, while ensuring
that reconstruction was not undertaken in
environmentally sensitive or disaster-prone
areas.
This type of knowledge
is invaluable and can be applied to other
post-disaster situations around the world.
UNEP's former China
Project Coordinator, Muralee Thummarukudy,
will travel to Shanghai on 17-18 July to
take part in a series of events on post-earthquake
recovery and reconstruction in the UN Pavilion
at Expo 2010.
UNEP's post-earthquake activities in China
were supported with funding from the Government
of Norway.
