Turkish campaigner honoured

Ça?an ?ekercio?lu received £50,000 grant London - James Campbell The annual Whitley Fund for Nature Awards took place in London, England, on Wednesday night. The award ceremony, dubbed the "Green Oscars," marked the 20th anniversary of the organisation, which has benefited over 160 conservationists in more than 70 different countries worldwide. Over £295,000 of funding was awarded to winners, adding to the nearly £10 million awarded by the fund so far. During the ceremony HRH Princess Anne presented a special award to Professor Ça?an Hakk? ?ekercio?lu of Turkey. ?ekercio?lu, a previous recipient of the WFN award, accepted the WFN Gold Award becoming the first conservationist to win the award twice. ?ekercio?lu has previously won in 2008 for his role in creating a protected wetland in Turkey. Sir David Attenborough, the revered broadcaster, naturalist, and Whitley Fund trustee said that: “For 20 years, the Whitley awards have pioneered effective ways to protect wild nature. The range of challenges the winners face is remarkable, the solutions are diverse; and together their reach is truly global.” Sir David also added in a press statement, that the greatest legacy of the charity is: “The growing network of winners, who represent some of the best conservationists in the world.” HRH Princess Anne, who awarded the winners on the night, said that: “Whitley award winners hail from all over the world, but they all have in common a fierce commitment and determination to make a real difference to local people and wildlife in their home countries.” WFN offers grants of up to £35,000 to “resource-poor” conservationists in “bio-diversity rich” countries.  In addition to financial support, the WFN helps grant winners to “accelerate their career paths” with projects often growing in scale from national to international after winning the Whitley award.