Nippon Foundation Executive Director Mitsuyuki Unno and Japanese screen star and Palau’s Goodwill Ambassador to Japan Minako Tanaka signed on Wednesday the Palau Pledge during a special ceremony at the Palau Royal Resort.
During the signing, the Japanese version of the Palau Pledge website was also launched.
The ceremony was witnessed by President Tommy E. Remengesau Jr., First Lady and Chairwoman of the Palau Legacy Project, Debbie Remengesau, and children from across the Republic who helped create the Palau Pledge campaign.
The signing will help spread the message about how visitors can protect Palau during their stay, raise awareness of the new Japanese version of the Palau Pledge website, and enhance Palau’s reputation as a premier eco-destination in Japan.
Unno is in Palau to oversee the handover of the new patrol vessel, command center, support staff and resources that the Nippon Foundation and the Sasakawa Peace Foundation has gifted to Palau to help Marine Law enforce the Palau National Marine Sanctuary (PNMS).
Tanaka also flew in from Japan especially for the signing ceremony, which was planned to coincide with Unno’s visit.
The Palau Pledge is a direct outcome of two of the Marine Sanctuary’s six key pillars: Education and Awareness and Tourism Marketing.
Created to link the larger PNMS objectives to both local and visitor communities, the Palau Pledge campaign was designed to help communicate the important role both communities play in preserving and protecting the Palauan environment and culture.
Like the tradition of bul, the campaign aims to make enforcement of Palau’s environmental laws, everyone’s job. In addition, the Palau Pledge helps support and deliver on the promise of Pristine Paradise Palau.
The Palau Pledge was launched on December 7, 2017 and is now part of Palau’s official immigration stamp and landing procedure.
Visitors are required to sign the Pledge (which is printed in their own language) in their passport, to agree to respect Palau’s environmental laws and culture during their stay. As worldwide momentum and interest in the campaign grows, more versions of the supporting website are being launched with Japanese, Korean, Simplified and Traditional Chinese going live this week.
Tanaka and Unno join a long list of celebrities and high-profile people around the world who support the Palau Pledge including, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, former US Secretary of State, John Kerry, businessman Sir Richard Branson and environmental activist and explorer, Dr. Sylvia Earle.(PR)
The message of the Palau Pledge has reached and resonated with millions of people worldwide via social and traditional media, with many people calling for their own countries to follow Palau’s lead and create a pledge to protect the environment for their children.