Staff Reporter, Dhaka : Bangladesh Lifetime Achievement Award by Balipara Foundation has recently been conferred on Golam Mainuddin, the Chairman of BAT Bangladesh for his outstanding contributions towards protecting and conserving the environment.
The 10th Balipara Foundation Awards 2022 was held at the main auditorium of Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB), located in the capital, on 11 December 2022. Mr. Saber Hossain Chowdhury MP, Chair of the parliamentary standing committee, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change; Mr. Shyam Saran, former foreign secretary of India and Prime Minister’s special envoy for nuclear affairs and climate change and Mr. Ram Madhav, member of the governing council of India Foundation, were present as the Guest of Honor at the event.
Mr. Mainuddin has been serving BAT Bangladesh since August 2008 as the Chairman with sincerity and exhibited commendable leadership. In continuation of such phenomenal leadership, he spearheaded an afforestation project in 1980 to increase the area of tree covered land across Bangladesh. He has been instrumental since the beginning of the afforestation journey in addressing the climate crisis issues through planting trees and the socio-economic needs of the local communities. His passion is still alive and now in its 42nd year, his initiated programme has so far distributed 120 million fruits, forestry and medicinal plant saplings across 22 districts free of charge to diverse beneficiaries. In recognition of his farsighted steps to deal with a global crisis through such an innovative project and his lifetime commitment to the cause, Mr. Golam Mainuddin has been honoured with Bangladesh Lifetime Achievement Award.
In a statement, Mr. Mainuddin expressed, “I am really delighted to have received this lifetime award. When we rolled out our afforestation project, we had to face a lot of challenges including a lack of awareness among people about climate change and tree plantation. We worked our way through those challenges to do something meaningful for saving the environment and empowering communities. This award will inspirit us to continue our unwavering effort to protect the environment for a better tomorrow.”
Bangladesh Lifetime Service Award, introduced by Balipara Foundation, is conferred on an individual who has been playing a significant role in conserving the environment. So far, 121 persons have been awarded by the foundation. Balipara Foundation has been relentlessly working towards creating social, economic, and environmental impacts through its different efforts that will yield impactful results in terms of protecting natural resources and restoring the beauty of the Eastern Himalayas to its full glory.