The EU Commissioner for the Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries ,
Karmenu Vella receives German Ocean Award (“Deutscher Meerespreis”)

Today, the European Commissioner for the Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Karmenu Vella receives the German Ocean Award 2018. During his tenure, the Maltese politician has worked intensively for the protection and sustainable use of the oceans. In particular, he has sought to contain illicit fishing and negotiate biodiversity protection in international waters.

Karmenu Vella donated the prize money to the Sustainable Ocean Alliance, an international nonprofit that empowers young innovators to become leaders in preserving the health and sustainability of the ocean.

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The ‘Deutscher Meerespreis’ (German Ocean Award), donated by Deutsche Bank AG, is awarded by the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel under the auspices of the Prime Minister of Schleswig-Holstein.

With a value of €10,000, the ‘Deutscher Meerespreis’ is awarded to well-known individuals from the fields of politics, business, science or the media who have shown special commitment to the cause of preserving and protecting the world’s oceans or to communicating knowledge and educating the public about them. Awarded since 2009, the ‘Deutscher Meerespreis’ is the successor prize to the Elisabeth-Mann-Borgese-Meerespreis of Schleswig-Holstein that from 2006 to 2009 was likewise awarded to notable public figures. Past prize winners include Dr. Joe Borg, formerly the EU commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries; Prof. Dr. Boris Worm, renowned internationally as a marine ecologist, and Prof. Dr. Klaus Töpfer, formerly the executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).