By Joseph Edegbo
Former US Vice President, Al Gore on Sunday presented the Alfredo Sirkis Memorial Green Ring Award to local climate activist Gloria Kasang Bulus at the 44th Climate Reality Leadership Corps Global Training, a virtual event to train attendees with practical skills and knowledge to build an equitable and inclusive movement for climate action and climate justice.
The award honours Climate Reality Leaders who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to their roles as climate communicators and activists.
The latest honorees – Kasang Bulus, Nana Firman, Ximena Loría, and Tim Guinee – have led efforts to educate their communities about the climate crisis, worked to build support for critical solutions, and collectively mentored hundreds of trainees through the process of becoming a Climate Reality Leader.
Previously called the Green Ring Award, the Alfredo Sirkis Memorial Green Ring Award was recently renamed to honor the life and legacy of former Brazil Branch Director and climate champion Alfredo Sirkis, who passed away earlier this year. His family honored his request that he go to his final rest wearing his Climate Reality green ring.
“Nana, Gloria, Ximena, and Tim exemplify the purpose and heart of what it means to be a Climate Reality Leader,” said Al Gore. “Their tireless dedication to educating and mobilizing people around urgent climate action is exactly the kind of inclusive, community-based leadership we need to solve the climate crisis and create a better future for ourselves and future generations.”
Gloria Kasang Bulus was trained as a Climate Reality Leader in Washington State in 2017. She lives in Kaduna, Nigeria and directs Bridge that Gap, an NGO working on the climate crisis, and a variety of other humanitarian issues, furthering the education of women and children.
The Climate Reality Leadership Corps Global Training is the 44th Climate Reality Leadership Corps training, and the first to be held entirely in a virtual format. In response to COVID-19, Climate Reality moved programming online to ensure that climate activists around the world could participate in the movement for climate solutions safely and effectively.
More than 10,000 people signed up for the virtual training, which included educational panel discussions, keynotes, and presentations from world-class scientists, NGO and business leaders, and grassroots organizers.
Upon completion of the program, participants joined a network of more than 21,000 Climate Reality Leaders from 154 countries around the world. These activists work together to build public awareness of global climate challenges, share the good news about the practical solutions in our hands today, and strengthen public support for leaders at all levels of society, who are committed to climate action.
The Climate Reality Project is founded by Nobel Laureate and former US Vice President Al Gore.
