Client News
2010 Indianapolis Prize Honorary Co-Chairs Announced
INDIANAPOLIS --- The Indianapolis Prize, developed to reward a conservationist with significant achievements in advancing the sustainability of an animal species or group of species, has once again attracted an outstanding and diverse group of individuals who will contribute their support as Honorary Co-Chairs. The third biennial $100,000 Indianapolis Prize will be awarded in September 2010 and represents the world’s largest individual monetary award for animal conservation.
Honorary Co-Chairs
- Christel DeHaan is both a global business leader and advocate of corporate social responsibility and philanthropy. Her philosophy “To care, to share, to make a difference” is manifested in her charity, Christel House, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to helping orphaned and abandoned children in developing countries. DeHaan also serves on several boards and is the recipient of numerous national and local awards.
- Harrison Ford, best known for being an award-winning actor, is also a conservationist serving on the board of Conservation International for more than 15 years. He is actively involved in the organization’s emergence as one of the world’s greatest forces for conservation. Ford has received several environmental honors, including the 2002 Global Environmental Citizen Award from Harvard Medical School and the World Ecology Award from the International Center for Tropical Ecology. Among his many memorable films are Star Wars, the Indiana Jones trilogy, Witness, The Fugitive and Air Force One.
- Carl Hiaasen is an American journalist, columnist and novelist. Upon graduating from the University of Florida, Hiaasen joined the Miami Herald in 1976, where he pens a weekly column. In the 1980s, he embarked on a career as a novelist, writing “environmental thrillers.” Hiaasen gained a following among young readers after his first children's novel, Hoot, which received the Newbery Honor Award and was later made into a movie in 2006. Hiaasen has received numerous state and national honors, including the Damon Runyon Award from the Denver Press Club, for his journalism and commentary.
- Senator Richard G. Lugar is a fifth-generation Hoosier and longest-serving U.S. Senator in Indiana history. A former mayor of Indianapolis, Lugar was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1976 and won a sixth term in 2006. He is the ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee and a member and former chairman of the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee. In April 2006, Time magazine selected Lugar as one of America's 10 Best Senators.
- Roger Sant co-founded the international power utility Applied Energy Services Corporation (AES) in 1981. Holding a variety of positions, such as the company’s Chairman of the Board and president and CEO, Sant retired in 2006 after nearly 25 years of service. Sant founded the Energy Productivity Center and is currently chairman of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution and Chairs the Boards of Trustees of The Summit Foundation, The Summit Fund of Washington and the National Museum of Natural History. He is Vice Chairman of the National Symphony Orchestra Board and Treasurer of the World Wildlife Fund – United States.
- Bren Simon is one of the most distinguished and active supporters of civic causes in the country. President of MBS Associates, Inc., a property management company, Bren, along with husband Mel Simon, is co-chairman of Simon Property Group headquartered in Indianapolis. In addition, she founded and serves as director of the Mel and Bren Simon Charitable Trust and the Max Simon Charitable Trust. She co-founded the Family Support Centre and serves on the board of the Coalition from Homelessness Intervention and Prevention. Simon serves on the boards of advisors of the Indiana Children’s Wish Fund, Heartland Film Festival and Dance Kaleidoscope. Through the Charitable Trust, she supports many cultural and civic organizations, including the Indianapolis Zoo. In 1998, Bren and her husband were honored as “Man and Woman of the Year” by the Anti-Defamation League.
“We’re honored for our co-chairs’ continuing support of this important program,” said Myrta Pulliam, Indianapolis Prize Chair. “The Indianapolis Prize strives to inspire local and global communities to appreciate conservation, education and research, and the prominence of these co-chairs gives weight to that message.”
The biennial $100,000 Indianapolis Prize represents the largest individual monetary award for animal conservation in the world and is given as an unrestricted gift to the chosen honoree. The Indianapolis Prize was initiated by the Indianapolis Zoo as a significant component of its mission to inspire local and global communities and to celebrate, protect and preserve our natural world through conservation, education and research. This award brings the world’s attention to the cause of animal conservation and the brave, talented and dedicated men and women who spend their lives saving the Earth’s endangered animal species. It was first awarded in 2006 to Dr. George Archibald, co-founder of the International Crane Foundation and one of the world’s great field biologists. In 2008, the Indianapolis Prize went to Dr. George Schaller, the world’s pre-eminent field biologist and vice president of science and exploration for the World Conservation Society. The Eli Lilly and Company Foundation has provided funding for the Indianapolis Prize since 2006. More information is available at indianapolisprize.org.