The New Nation - Internet Edition

Dr. Rajendra K Pachauri.

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom's love for the natural environment dates back to his early childhood years, when he accompanied his father on tours to many parts of the Maldives' archipelago.

After his overseas education and early career as an academic, he held a number of prominent Government posts, including Special Undersecretary to the Prime Minister, Permanent Representative of the Maldives at the United Nations and Minister of Transport. As Special Undersecretary to the Prime Minister, he travelled to every single atoll south of the capital Male'. Yet again, he had the opportunity to experience the intrinsic link between the country's way of life and its pristine marine ecosystems.

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was elected President of the Republic of Maldives in 1978. It was during his first two terms of presidency that scientific studies and reports first began to appear on the sea-level rise phenomenon. President Gayoom was, of course, deeply concerned. He feared for the security of his people.

Following the 1987 sea-swell flooding of the capital Male', during which he himself experienced a traumatic incident, he was convinced that anthropogenic climatic changes were occurring, and that they posed a grave danger to the low-lying Maldives.

In 1987, with back-to-back addresses at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Vancouver and the UN General Assembly, he began his quest to alert the international community of the perils facing the Maldives. In the two decades since then, he has carried the plea of the Maldives and other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) at important global and regional forums. The highlights include the 1987 United Nations General Assembly on the Issues of Environment and Development, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the Rio Earth Summit) of 1992, the 1997

United Nations General Assembly Special Session to Review and Appraise the Implementation of Agenda 21, and-the United Nations Millennium Summit.

President Gayoom is credited with firmly placing the problem of sea-level rise on the climate change diplomacy agenda and securing universal recognition of the fact that the SIDS face unique development challenges, and deserve special status in the UN framework. He had a direct hand in the formation of both the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and the United Nations' Small Island States Network (SIDSNet).

In 1998, President Gayoom was included on the UNEP "Global 500" roll of honour for outstanding practical achievements in the protection and improvement of the environment. The Lega Navale Italiana (Italian Naval League) presented him with the coveted Man of the Sea Award for 1990, for his contribution to bringing the problem of global warming and sea-level rise to the attention of the world. He also won the DRV International Environment Award of Germany in 1998. On 7 February 2008, The Energy and Resources Institute of Indiq. (TERI) presented President Gayoom with the "Sustainable Development Leadership Award 2008"

Among his many local environment campaigns are the Greening Campaign of 1983, the Two Million Tree Programme and the Independent Maldives - Clean Maldives Programme.

Following the devastating effects on his country of the December 2004 Asian Tsunami, President Gayoom called on the international community to ensure the security of vulnerable countries such as the Maldives. Lately, he has been campaigning for universal recognition of environmental safety as a fundamental human

right. In November 2007, he also took the initiative to host an international conference to develop an AOSIS common platform for the Bali Climate Summit.

"Paradise Drowning" is an anthology of some of the most memorable environment-related speeches by President Gayoom's. The book commemorates twenty years of environmental diplomacy by President Gayoom, and also includes selected quotes from his some of his interviews on the subject.

The foreword of this book was contributed by the Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Dr. Rajendra K Pachauri.