Paris, 8 November, 2012 - Two Swedish students today scooped a new award aimed at alerting the world to the huge benefits of fast action on crop, health and climate-damaging substances, known as Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs).
Frans Wiberg and Staffon Druid, ages 17 and 18, took first place for their production entitled, A Short Video About SLCPs, at a meeting of the Coalition in Paris, France.
Other winners included Nonyelum Umeasiegbu from Nigeria who took second slot for a new slogan on SLCPs and Linnea Fahlstrom and Hilda Broqvist, also from Sweden, for their video entry which took third place.
Answering the call for young video producers and budding social media experts between the ages of 12 and 25, Wiberg and Druid teamed up lending their creative vision to raise awareness of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) as part of a school project in their home town of Linköping, Sweden.
"Our School principal learnt of the contest and alerted our teachers to the opportunity," said Wiberg. "We were studying sustainable development in our Social Studies class and our teacher made an assignment of the project."
The students submitted a video under the category for Best Audio-Visual Product addressing the impact of SLCPs, which are responsible for a substantial portion of current global and regional warming trends effecting health, agriculture and ecosystems.
"Our video gets the message through easily, without being too technical or simplistic in tackling the issue," Druid commented. "If we don't work towards protecting the earth, the future seems very dark for the planet."
Fast action to reduce these pollutants - especially methane and black carbon - has the potential to slow down the warming expected by 2050 by as much as 0.5°C, as well as prevent over two million premature deaths each year and avoid annual crop losses of over 30 million tons.
Both young men plan to pursue careers related to the environment.
Frans plans on studying Green Economics and Staffan would like to pursue a career in either hydrology or geology.
While they have yet to receive a grade on the project, the CCAC has awarded them top marks and looks forward to following their future successes.
The duo were last night given each a signed photograph by award winning film maker Jan Arthaus Betrand who is also a goodwill ambassador to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
The presentation, conducted by UNEP Spokesperson, Nick Nuttall, happened during a meeting of the Coalition in Paris to which the Swedish students were invited.
About The Climate and Clean Air Coalition
The Climate and Clean Air Coalition to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (CCAC), is a voluntary partnership of governments, intergovernmental organizations, private sector representatives, environmental actors and other members of civil society. Established in February, 2012, CCAC's primary focus is to catalyze action for the reduction of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) in the atmosphere such as black carbon, methane and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
SCLPs responsible for a substantial portion of current global warming with particularly large impacts in urban areas and sensitive regions of the world like the Arctic, and have harmful health and environmental impacts. Reducing SLCPs can have immediate, multiple benefits, protect human health and the environment immediately and slow the rate of climate change within the first half of this century.
