Home » 2 South African Heroes Win World’s Most Prestigious Environmental Award, Goldman Prize

2 South African Heroes Win World’s Most Prestigious Environmental Award, Goldman Prize

Two South African women – Makoma Lekalakala and Liziwe Mcdaid – have won the most prestigious environmental award in the world… for taking on the State, and stopping a proposed nuclear deal in its tracks. The winners of the international Goldman Prize were announced on 23 April 2018. Tonight, current affairs programme Carte Blanche will profile […]

By SAPeople
30-04-18 08:41
in Environment

Two South African women – Makoma Lekalakala and Liziwe Mcdaid – have won the most prestigious environmental award in the world… for taking on the State, and stopping a proposed nuclear deal in its tracks.

The winners of the international Goldman Prize were announced on 23 April 2018. Tonight, current affairs programme Carte Blanche will profile these incredible women… who fought tirelessly for years, and refused to give up. (This episode will be available to South Africans abroad to watch from Tuesday if you’re a Showmax subscriber.)

The proposed new nuclear deal, which was pushed heavily by former President Jacob Zuma, would have been the largest procurement ever undertaken in South Africa. It was supposed to be transparent and affordable, but it was neither, as the Department of Energy drove the process in secret, says Carte Blanche.

But two small NGOs – Earthlife Africa and SAFCEI – refused to accept that the trillion rand procurement was a done deal. Leading their campaign, were two activists forged in the struggle, Lekalakala and Mcdaid.

With limited resources and a massive cause to fight for, these anti-nuclear activists took on the government and won.

The Goldman Prize organizers said each of the winners had moved mountains to protect the environment and their communities, and changed the world in ways large and small.

“As grassroots activists, Makoma Lekalakala and Liz McDaid built a broad coalition to stop the South African government’s massive secret nuclear deal with Russia. On April 26, 2017, the High Court ruled that the $76 billion nuclear power project was unconstitutional — a landmark legal victory that protected South Africa from an unprecedented expansion of the nuclear industry and production of radioactive waste.”

As winners, the Goldman Prize gives them international recognition that enhances their credibility, worldwide visibility for the issues they champion, and financial support to pursue their vision of a renewed and protected environment.

According to Goldman, Makoma Lekalakala (53) was raised in Soweto and is the director for Earthlife Africa. “She divides her time between her home in Johannesburg and the Earthlife satellite office in the Limpopo province, where pollution from power stations and coal mines has contaminated local communities to such an extent that farmers can no longer safely grow crops. Lekalakala got her start as a youth activist through her church, moving to trade unions, then women’s rights, social and economic justice, and finally environmental justice.”

Liz McDaid (55) grew up in Cape Town and is the climate change coordinator for Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute (SAFCEI), says Goldman. “Based in Cape Town, McDaid started out as a teacher-turned educational advocate and activist against apartheid before turning to faith-based environmental justice. She has campaigned against nuclear energy for decades, thwarting previous attempts by South Africa to develop a nuclear industry.”

Goldman said “the size of their achievement is immense for South Africa: Today, any attempt to revive a nuclear deal in South Africa would certainly face strong public opposition and legal precedent thanks to Lekalakala and McDaid’s work.”

Carte Blanche says they have likely changed the course of history.

Watch a full 90-minutes episode of Carte Blanche this week to meet the #GoldmanAwards Heroes… as well as view stories on Snake Park, SA Kidnappings and Global Warming. Available to South Africans abroad from Tuesday if you subscribe to Showmax. (FREE 14-day trial!)