Fatima Jibrell
Fatima Jama Jibrell | |
---|---|
Fadumo Jibriil | |
filmmaker | |
Children | Five daughters, including Degan Ali |
Awards | Goldman Environmental Prize National Geographic Society/Buffett Award for Leadership Champions of the Earth award Takreem award |
Fatima Jibrell (
Biography
Jibrell was born on December 30, 1947, in
In 1969, she returned to Somalia and worked for the government, whereafter she married her husband, Abdurahman Mohamoud Ali, a
Environmentalism
Spurred on by the civil war in Somalia that began in 1991,[3] Jibrell along with her husband and family friends co-founded the Horn of Africa Relief and Development Organization, colloquially referred to as Horn Relief, a non-governmental organization (NGO) for which she served as the executive director. In 2012, Horn Relief officially changed its name to Adeso.[5] While Jibrell retired as executive director in 2006, she maintains a role on the organization's board of directors and in its Somalia programs.[6] Adeso describes its mission as grassroots level work aimed at uplifting local communities.[5]
Jibrell was instrumental in the creation of the
In 2008, Jibrell wrote and co-produced a short film entitled Charcoal Traffic, which employs a fictional storyline to educate the public about the charcoal crisis.[9] The film was directed by the filmmaker Nathan Collett.
In 2011, Jibrell along with retired Australian diplomat James Lindsay also published Peace and Milk: Scenes of Northern Somalia, a photography book on Somalia's nomadic countryside and life. The work has received international accolades from environmental organizations, including the Goldman Environmental Foundation and Résistants pour la Terre.[10]
Anti-charcoal campaign
Through Horn Relief, Jibrell mounted a successful campaign to salvage old-growth forests of acacia trees in the northeastern part of Somalia.[1] These trees, which can grow up to 500 years old, were being cut down to make charcoal since this so-called "black gold" is highly in demand in the Arabian Peninsula, where the region's Bedouin tribes believe the acacia to be sacred.[1][11]
However, while being a relatively inexpensive fuel that meets a user's needs, the production of charcoal often leads to deforestation and desertification.[11] As a way of addressing this problem, Jibrell and Horn Relief trained a group of adolescents to educate the public on the permanent damage that producing charcoal can create.
In 1999, Horn Relief coordinated a peace march in the northeastern Puntland region of Somalia to put an end to the so-called "charcoal wars." As a result of Jibrell's lobbying and education efforts, the Puntland government in 2000 prohibited the exportation of charcoal. The government has also since enforced the ban, which has reportedly led to an 80% drop in exports of the product.[6]
Awards
For her efforts environmental degradation and desertification, Jibrell has received a number of awards. In 2002, she was presented the
In 2014 Jibrell received the
Additionally in 2016 Jibrell received the Takreem Award for Environmental Development and Sustainability.
Notes
- ^ a b c Geoffrey Gilbert, World poverty, (ABC-CLIO: 2004), p.111
- ^ "Horn Relief:Goldman Prize". Archived from the original on 12 July 2010. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ^ a b c d Dorothy Otieno "Environmentalist Who Returned From USA to Salvage Forests" East African Standard (June 26, 2002)
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-03-26.
- ^ a b Neo Creative. "History". Archived from the original on 3 May 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ^ a b c d Fatima Jibrell - Goldman Prize Archived May 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tekla Szymanski, "Fatima Jibrell: Nursing Nature", World Press Review (July 2002)
- ^ "Sun Fire Cooking :: About us". Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- IMDb
- ^ Neo Creative. "Fatima Jibrell and Jim Lindsay's photographic tribute to peace - Adeso". Archived from the original on 12 February 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ^ a b "International Women's Day - 8 March, 2006". Archived from the original on 4 August 2009. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ^ "AWARDEE | FATIMA JAMA JIBRELL". www.nationalgeographic.org. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
- ^ David Maxwell Braun. "Conservation Heroes Honored by National Geographic, Buffett Foundation". Archived from the original on 12 September 2009. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ^ "Somalian environmentalist bags UN award". ZNews. 7 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014.