Hans Rudolf Herren nominated for SwissAward

The internationally renowned Swiss entomologist and president of Biovision Foundation, Hans Rudolf Herren (picture), has been nominated for the SwissAward in the category "society“. With this nomination, he is also a candidate for the Swiss of the Year award. The gala event of Swiss television SRF on 11 January will award five personalities from the categories politics, business, culture, show business and society who have shown particular achievements in 2013 or stood out with a particular commitment. The highlight of the show, presented by Susanne Wille, will be the live election of the “Swiss of the Year 2013” by the TV audience. 
 
Herren was nominated for his persistent commitment to fighting hunger and poverty in Africa, for which he has already won the Right Livelihood Award in 2013 (see our previous news) as the first Swiss laureate. Hans Herren was presented with this award also known as the alternative Nobel prize in Stockholm in December 2013. Back in 1995, Herren was the first Swiss to win the World Food Prize. With the prize money he founded Biovision Foundation, the main aim of which is to fight hunger and poverty at its roots in Africa. This primarily involves support for the rural population in boosting their yields from agriculture with sustainable ecological methods.
 
As co-chair of the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), published in 2008, Herren recognised the importance of the international and national political frameworks if the urgently needed change in course of global agriculture was to happen. The IAASTD report, written by over 400 scientists from all over the world over four years, clearly states that industrial agriculture has no future and that only a sustainable ecological agriculture has the potential of eliminating hunger on the planet, even with a growing population.

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