Mandela honoured for protecting the environment

Former president Nelson Mandela was yesterday honoured for his role as a statesman and in promoting environmental care when council members of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) handed him a copy of the latest Red Data List of endangered species.

The presentation was done at the Nelson Mandela Foundation offices in Johannesburg by Valli Moosa, as president of the influential conservation organisation, Julia Marton-Lefevre, its director-general, and Dr Holly Dublin, head of its species survival commission.

Mandela attended the lUCN’s World Parks Congress in Durban in 2003 and he is an honourary founder of the Peace Parks Foundation which facilitates the creation of transfrontier parks – Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park between Kruger Park, Mozambique’s Limpopo Park and Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou Park.

The Red Data List categorises 16 306 of the 41 415 species listed as being in danger of extinction.