Chima Williams, executive director of the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), has been named one of the winners of this year’s Goldman Environmental Prize.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Goldman Environmental Foundation listed other winners as Niwat Roykaew (Thailand), Marjan Minnessma (the Netherlands), Juliet Vincent (Australia), Nalleli Cobo (US), Alex Luciatante and Alexandra Narvaez (Ecuador).
Williams, ERA/FoEN’s executive director in October 2020, was recognised based on his work with two Niger Delta communities to hold Royal Dutch Shell liable for environmental damage caused by a spill from its facilities between 2004 and 2007.
After 13 years of legal proceedings, the Court of Appeal sitting in The Hague ruled in favour of three Nigerian farmers from two of the communities.
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On January 29, 2021, the court ruled that not only was Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary responsible for the oil spills, it also had an obligation to prevent the spills as the parent company.
This was the first time a Dutch transnational corporation would be held liable for the violations of its subsidiary in another country.
Nigerian who previously won the Goldman Environmental Prize include the late playwright and environmentalist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, and Odiga Odigha.
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“The Goldman Environmental Prize honours the achievements and leadership of grassroots, environmental activists, from around the world, inspiring all of us to take action to protect our planet,” the foundation said in its statement.
The prize was founded in 1989 in San Francisco by philanthropists and civic leaders Rhoda and Richard Goldman.
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