VOA标准英语2012--Goldman Environmental Prizes Honor Diverse Group of Activists

Goldman Environmental Prizes Honor Diverse Group of Activists¹

Kenyan Ikal Angelei is a hero to the people who live around Lake Turkana. She received a Goldman award for her efforts to halt construction of a dam on a river in neighboring Ethiopia that feeds the Kenyan lake. Critics say the dam would harm the lake and prevent water access for people who live nearby. 

“The biggest challenge was working with a community who are already having a lot of problems. It’s hard when you’re talking about environmental rights,” Angelei said.

Angelei organized the Friends of Lake Turkana movement. Its campaign against the dam was successful, and the project has been halted - for now. 

The Philippine island of Mindoro is home to tribes that live off of the land’s natural resources. When a Norwegian company moved in to explore mining nickel, Edwin Gariguez said the mine's toxic² waste would contaminate the island’s water and destroy the tropical forests. The Catholic priest began a movement to stop it. 

“Part of this mission, or calling, is really to be the voice of the voiceless. So given the situation, we really need to take the challenge of leading the people against this destructive project,” Gariguez said.

His actions, including a hunger strike, spurred the government to revoke³ the company’s mining permit. 

In China, Ma Jun is working with corporations to clean up their pollution. The institute he founded has an online database and digital maps identifying factories that violate air and water regulations.

“And our idea is to give people access to this information on water quality, the amount of discharge, and also a whole list of companies that have been penalized⁴ for breaking the water standards,” Ma Jun said.

He hopes the public will use the information to try to stop violations⁵. 

Sofia Gatica is from a town in Argentina where the soybean fields are routinely sprayed with pesticides⁶ -- and the rate of cancer is high. Believing that exposure to pesticides led to her newborn's death, Gatica mobilized other mothers and obtained a ban on the use of agrochemicals near populated areas.

Evgenia Chirikova is demanding that a highway planned to cut through a protected forest in a Moscow suburb be re-routed. Although she and her followers⁷ have been arrested and detained, her campaign has gained widespread public support. 

And Caroline Cannon⁸, a community leader in Point Hope, Alaska, is fighting to keep Arctic waters safe from offshore⁹ oil and gas drilling. She’s concerned an oil spill would endanger her coastal¹⁰ village and its abundant wildlife. 

“There’s no technology on how to clean an oil spill out in the Arctic. They have not done an actual cleanup in that kind of an environment,” Cannon said.

Cannon and the other Goldman Environmental Prize winners each received $150,000. Cannon says some of the money will go to help her village.

1 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

3 revoke   

v.废除，取消，撤回

参考例句：

• The university may revoke my diploma.大学可能吊销我的毕业证书。
• The government revoked her husband's license to operate migrant labor crews.政府撤销了她丈夫管理外来打工人群的许可证。

4 penalized   

对…予以惩罚( penalize的过去式和过去分词 )； 使处于不利地位

参考例句：

• You will be penalized for poor spelling. 你拼写不好将会受到处罚。
• Team members will be penalized for lateness. 队员迟到要受处罚。

5 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

6 pesticides   

n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物

参考例句：

• vegetables grown without the use of pesticides 未用杀虫剂种植的蔬菜
• There is a lot of concern over the amount of herbicides and pesticides used in farming. 人们对农业上灭草剂和杀虫剂的用量非常担忧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

8 cannon   

n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮

参考例句：

• The soldiers fired the cannon.士兵们开炮。
• The cannon thundered in the hills.大炮在山间轰鸣。

9 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

10 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。