Boris Herrmann to headline Peace and Sport Forum

The 2019 Peace and Sport International Forum will welcome Boris Herrmann, sailor and skipper of Team Malizia, as its first headline speaker.

Boris Herrmann recently sailed teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg to the United Nations World Climate Summit in New York in his zero-carbon racing yacht Malizia II with Pierre Casiraghi. In December, the German yachtsman will give a masterclass on ‘Safeguarding our planet through sport’ and will provide concrete inputs and recommendations for taking action through sport to safeguard populations and our planet.

Herrmann has completed three laps around the world, one non-stop, and will soon be attempting this challenge single handed for the 2020 Vendée Globe – the first German to compete in the race. In addition to sports competition, Malizia II is used for research, environmental protection and youth education. A sensor is attached to the boat which collects data on the temperature, pH, salt levels and carbon dioxide content of the water for marine research.

“It is exciting to have the opportunity to share the inspiring experience of Malizia II in its race to protect our planet,” said Boris Herrmann. “Through collective action and courageous leadership, sport has the power to inspire people to create sustainable changes. We are convinced that sport in general can raise awareness, and that the sport of sailing in particular has a great influence on fighting for Climate Action Now.”

“When ocean racing, we are performing in the most extreme elements nature has to offer, whilst also showcasing clean technologies in order to circumnavigate the world emission free,” added Herrmann. “This is a race we must win.

Joining Boris Herrmann at the forum will be Champion for Peace and Olympic medallist Sylvia Poll, Founder and CEO of Futurous Philippe Blanchard, and Co-Founder of Humankind Jorn Wemmenhove.

Sylvia Poll

Sylvia Poll was the first Costa Rican athlete to win an Olympic medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, is currently Deputy Ambassador in the Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations in Geneva and Head of the Project Support Division at ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau. She will speak at the plenary session on ‘Sport for good in an age of technological revolution’, alongside Philippe Blanchard. They will contemplate the role of sport in addressing new technological challenges, whilst remaining a platform to foster dialogue, human relationships and peacebuilding within online communities and beyond.

Speaker JJorn Wemmenhove

This year’s Peace and Sport International Forum will be a hub for over 600 key decision-makers including Heads of State, strategical leaders from business and the sports world, Nobel Peace Prize laureates, representatives from civil society and international organisations, and bright young talents, who will all embark on a journey to explore the theme ‘Investing in Peace, Acting through Sport’.

The 12th edition will be held at the conference centre in One Monte Carlo from 11th to 13th December. The event will also mark the 10th anniversary of the Champions for Peace club, paying tribute to a decade’s worth of commitment by more than 100 high-level athletes.

New ties formed with Ghana and North Macedonia

Monaco has formed diplomatic ties with Ghana and the foundation was laid for a similar agreement with North Macedonia at the 74th United Nations general debates held recently.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Gilles Tonelli first met with Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, where the pair signed a joint statement to open diplomatic ties between the two nations.  

The Republic of Ghana is now the 147th country to have formed such ties with the Principality.  

According to a statement from the Principality, Ghana’s relatively stable and democratic government makes it a clear choice for developing new relations with Monaco. The African state holds a prominent position in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a 15 member regional group established in 1975 to promote “collective self-sufficiency” and a vision of common purpose for its adherents.

Mr. Tonelli then met with Nikola Dimitrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia, where they signed a joint communique to open diplomatic relations.  

The Parliamentary-led Balkan country is part of the former Yugoslavia, which declared its independence in 1991 and is currently petitioning for full-fledged membership in the European Union and NATO.

 

Written by Stephanie Horsman