The Equator Prize , organized by the Equator Initiative within the United Nations Development Programme , is awarded biennially to recognize community efforts to reduce poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity .
7-824: The Equator Prize 2015 was awarded on 7 December to 21 local and indigenous community initiatives. Each winning initiative received US$ 10,000 was supported to participate in a series of special events at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, France in December 2015. The prize winners in 2019 included the Millet Network of India who sent their representative to collect the award. This group of women farmers are demonstrating how millet can be grown organically with less need for water or specialist fertilisers. Equator Prize winners are selected based on
14-673: A monetary award, and an opportunity to shape national and global policy, all nominees are invited to join the Community Knowledge Service (CKS) and are profiled in the Equator Knowledge Zone (EKZ) database of practice. Millet Network of India The Millet Network of India supports millet farmers. It was created by one hundred women who realised the qualities of the traditional crop. The group have helped village farmers to grow millet with low water usage and organic fertiliser while highlighting
21-635: The National Food Security Act amended so that millet would be included in the subsidised food that is made available to the poor . The month long campaign was designed to end on World Food Day . By 2018, the network had 5,000 members and Moghulamma received the Nari Shakti Puraskar on behalf of the network on International Women's Day in 2018. This is the highest civilian honour for women, given for an outstanding contribution to women's empowerment and presented by
28-558: The President of India Ram Nath Kovind on 8 March 2018. The network was one of 39 recipients from all over India. Moghulamma, who collected the award, was aged 36 and had become a full time farmer after her husband and his mother died. It was her mother-in-law who had got her involved with the Millet Network and she has gained attention for her success at organically growing millet. The network supplies advice on pest control and
35-875: The following criteria: Equator Prize nominations are accepted from three regions of eligibility within the equatorial belt (23.5 degrees north and south of the equator): Asia and the Pacific, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean. A Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) selects the twenty-five Equator Prize winners, a pool that is further narrowed to five special recognition communities by a jury of conservation and development professionals. Representatives of winning communities are sometimes sponsored to participate in Equator Initiative “dialogue spaces” and an award ceremony. In addition to recognition for their work,
42-405: The harvested crop can be kept for a long time. Millet can be fed with natural fertilisers, but not many farmers still grow it, stopping because there is little demand. White rice is more popular and rice growing attracts a government subsidy. In 2016, the network was campaigning and lobbying government to get millet recognised by legislation which currently excludes it. They wanted
49-571: The injustice of government subsidies which encourage competitor crops like rice. It has received both the Nari Shakti Puraskar and the Equator Award . Millet is a traditional grain in India and the Millet Network of India promotes it because the crop will grow with less water than other crops. This is particularly apparent when it is compared with rice which enjoys a subsidy in India. Millet will grow on poor soil, it suffers from few diseases and
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