The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2019 will be conferred on renowned naturalist and broadcaster Sir David Attenborough.
His name was selected for the prize by an international jury chaired by former president Pranab Mukherjee, the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust announced on Tuesday.
“Few individuals have come to be as identified with the well being of our planet, of all living creatures, and their relationship with human beings, as Sir David,” the Trust said in a statement.
The trust also stated that the prize was awarded to Sir David for a lifetime of doing more to reveal the wonders of the natural world than perhaps any other individual, and for tirelessly working to awaken humankind in the need to preserve and protect the biodiversity of the planet.
Suman Dubey, secretary of the trust, said Attenborough had tirelessly worked to “awaken humankind to the need, to preserve and protect the biodiversity on our planet, to live in a sustainable and harmonious way with all life, and to stop being what he has called: ‘a plague on earth’.”
Sir David’s work has received widespread recognition across the world. Apart from his knighthood, he has received awards from the Royal Geographical Society, UNESCO’s Kalinga Prize, the Micheal Faraday Prize, the Descartes Prize and Fellowship of the Royal Society, and several Emmy and BAFTA awards.