Award for film on International Climate Initiative project in Brazil

Germany's international TV station Deutsche Welle (DW) has won a World Television Award in the science category for a report in its Global Ideas series about a Brazilian refrigerator recycling scheme. The Asia-Pacific Europe Partnership Committee and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) jointly awarded the prizes for selected films.

Germany's international TV station Deutsche Welle (DW) has won a World Television Award in the science category for a report in its Global Ideas series about a Brazilian refrigerator recycling scheme. The Asia-Pacific Europe Partnership Committee and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) jointly awarded the prizes for selected films. The filmmaker Vanessa Fischer accepted the prize at an awards ceremony in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi on 24 May. The Global Ideas series is funded by the International Climate Initiative (ICI) at the German Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). The project described in the award-winning film is also part of the International Climate Initiative.

The film is about a pilot plant in Brazil - the first of its kind in the country - where old refrigerators running on climate-damaging refrigerants are recycled in their entirety. This prevents harmful greenhouse gases from being emitted and makes a significant contribution to climate change mitigation. The project serves as an example for Brazil and other countries looking to set up a comprehensive recycling system for old refrigerators. 

ICI has funded Deutsche Welle to produce 68 short television films and five full-length documentaries to provide people around the world with information on best practice climate projects. The films are broadcast throughout the world and are also available on the internet at www.ideasforacoolerworld.org, along with additional information about the projects. They focus mainly on emerging and developing countries and on successful projects that have been funded under the ICI. The films are currently available in German, English, Spanish, Arabic and Chinese.