The Nature Conservancy’s Work to Revive a River Receives Award

Swiss Re Awards $70,000 Runner-Up Prize to Rio Grande Valley Project in Jamaica

Arlington, VA— March 22, 2007— Swiss Re has awarded The Nature Conservancy’s Rio Grande Valley Project the runner up prize for the ReSource Award for Sustainable Watershed Management.

The Rio Grande flows between the Blue and John Crow mountains in Jamaica and discharges more freshwater than any other Jamaican river. In the last 10-15 years some local fishermen have been using poisons to harvest fish, shrimp and crayfish from the river. This has caused a noticeable decline in the health of the river, as well as to the health and way of life of the people who use the water.

“We are working with local groups to conserve the life within the river and the Rio Grande way of life,” says Kimberly John, the Conservancy’s freshwater specialist. The project aims to significantly reduce the use of poisons to harvest fish, shrimp and crayfish in the Rio Grande valley. The Conservancy is building partnerships and local capacity to eliminate these unsustainable inland fishing practices by the end of 2009, by educating and training the local communities on the dangers of river poisoning and developing and promoting alternative sustainable fishing methods.

This is part of The Conservancy’s Waters for Life program to restore the health of rivers and lakes around the globe. Waters for Life supports projects that demonstrate innovative ways of striking a balance for people and nature, and will help leverage resources to replicate lessons, ideas and expertise in other places around the world.

“The Award from Swiss Re is an important step towards our goal of restoring the river’s health and also improving the livelihoods of the communities that live in the valley,” said Terry Williams, Southeast Caribbean Program Director for The Nature Conservancy.

John has also been conducting research on traditional water usage of the centuries-old Windward Maroon community in Rio Grande. She says that the Maroons intend to use her work to conserve and teach their history and that there is an understated link between the health of freshwater ecosystems and rural culture and livelihoods in Jamaica.

With this award, the International ReSource Award jury demonstrates its support for mainstream watershed management efforts by governmental and non-governmental parties in order to catalyze further implementation within the region and ultimately to influence government water supply and management policy.

The ReSource Award is part of Swiss Re’s Sharing Solutions programme. The programme focuses on sustainability and humanitarian projects and on supporting the communities in which the Group operates. Sharing Solutions aims to go beyond simply providing funds and to create lasting social and commercial value.

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The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.