Borboroglu Wins Indianapolis Prize
Photo Credit: National Geographic LA
Dr. Pablo Borboroglu was recently named the 2023 winner of the Indianapolis Prize, the world’s top animal conservation award. Borboroglu is the co-founder of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Penguin Specialist Group and founder and president of the Global Penguin Society headquartered in Argentina. He is also a marine biologist who has spent more than three decades “studying penguins and leading conservation efforts across four continents” (“Protector of Penguins,” 2023).
Photo Credit: Global Penguin Society
In an interview with Mongabay, a conservation news web portal, Borboroglu stated he felt “… so honored and grateful for this recognition. As a conservationist, you often work alone. You are isolated in your country, sometimes facing big interests from the private sector or politicians … and sometimes you feel like it’s just you and your team working against all those interests. When you receive this award, it’s like a validation that what you do is important. It’s a way to legitimize everything we’ve been doing and recognize the effort we’ve made” (Alberts 2023).
Borboroglu is the ninth winner of the Indianapolis Prize, awarded by the Indianapolis Zoological Society (IZS) in Indianapolis, Indiana. The prize recognizes conservationists who have made significant progress in saving an animal species, or multiple species, from extinction, according to the IZS. Borboroglu will receive $250,000 which is “the largest monetary award in the world that supports conservationists” (“Protector of Penguins,” 2023) and will be celebrated at the Indianapolis Prize gala September 30, 2023, in Indianapolis. He is the first recipient of the award from South America.
REFERENCES
Alberts, E.C. (2023, June 16). Penguins ‘enrich our lives’: Q&A with Pablo Borboroglu, protector of penguins. Mongabay. https://news.mongabay.com/2023/06/penguins-enrich-our- lives-qa-with-pablo-borboroglu-protector-of-penguins/
Protector of Penguins (2023, May 16) Retrieved from https://www.indianapoliszoo.com /prize/protector-of-penguins-earns-worlds-leading-award-for-animal-conservation/#:~:text=announced%20Pablo%20Borboroglu%2C%20Ph.,and%20land%20and%20sea%20conservation.
