User:Maria Luisa Cohen

MARIA LUISA COHEN

President and Founder of the ASSISI NATURE COUNCIL

Born March 1939 in Gorizia ( Italy) B.A. in Philosophy at Trieste University Diploma in Arts  and Design at the St. Martin School of Art, London. Living in Switzerland ( Lausanne) since 1972.

Maria Luisa Cohen has left in the Seventies a remunerative career in Art and Design to dedicate completely to the cause of education for conservation. The originality of her approach and the courage with which she has faced enormous difficulties and threats in her efforts to establish the Park of Mount Subasio (hunters, developers, landowners, politicians)  has been recognised  internationally. ( Gary P. Nabhan, Sonbirds, Truffles and Wolfes, An American Naturalist in Italy, Penguin Books, pp.79/208) Joined the Commission on Education of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Activities and achievements:

With the support of the major international environmental organisations  which signed  the  Mount Subasio Declaration, to make Assisi and the figure of its best known son, S.Francis,Patron Saint of Ecologists ( Pope 's edict of 1982) an icon for the environmental movements worldwide.

Determinant in the establishment of the Regional Park of Mount Subasio and a moratorium on bird hunting and for the inclusion of Assisi in the World Cultural List of UNESCO. ( Assisi Bird Campaign,originated in San Francisco) in 1982. Founded in 1984 the Assisi Nature Council, an umbrella organisation for Italian environmental associations, to develop, study  and convey  an environmental ethic. . Initiated a cooperation with the Franciscan International Centre for Dialogue, helping to initiate a series of conservation-related activities for an environmental ethics. Author of the "Manifesto for Gardens for the Third Millennium: from the Garden of Eden to Urban Paradise", for the regeneration of urban life and Sustainable Cities ( "greening of cities”) see also Environmental ethics in the West. Presently involved in the coordination of the Campaign for the Earth Charter and the research into the relation of resources depletion and overpopulation, through cooperation with the Italian Radical Group Rientrodolce.

Awards and Nominations:

Award "Tree of Learning " from the Commission on Education of IUCN. Nomination for the Disney Child Summit Award (1998) for the creation of a Medieval herb Garden in the historic centre of Assisi.

Affiliations & collaboration with :

Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Earth Island Institute and the major Italian environmental organisations:(Green Cross, Italia Nostra, LIPU, WWF). OPT ( Optimum Population Trust, UK)

'''Contributes regularly to many publications, organises seminars, conferences and events and is consulting editor of the Journal "Environmental Awareness".

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