DiCaprio Lays The Foundation For A Greener World
- The Green Gatsby
- Jul 23, 2016
- 2 min read
The first intersection between pop-culture and sustainability that we will highlight is the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation (LDF). As you may have guessed, this organization was founded in 1998 by Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio and has since awarded over USD$59.6M in grants. The LDF currently sponsors over 70 projects across more than 40 different countries. More recently, in July 2016, the LDF raised USD$45M at the foundation’s third annual charity gala which took place in St. Tropez. DiCaprio, with the help of some of his famous friends (who include, Chris Rock, Mariah Carey, Jonah Hill, Tobey Maguire, Edward Norton and countless others) indulged in an event which included live-musical entrainment from Andrea Bocelli, The Weeknd and Lana del Rey to raise money for the LDF.
As stated on their website, the LDF core areas of focus are fourfold. The LDF aims to protect wildlife, save our oceans, restore wildlands and empower communities. It is because of this multifaceted approach that the LDF is able to form impactful partnerships with organizations such as the Conservation Land Trust, World Wildlife Fund and International Fund for Animal Welfare to carry out diverse projects. From protecting the blue economies in Seychelles, to reintroducing keystone species such as Jaguars to areas where they have been locally extinct in Argentina, the LDF is truly shining their green light to not only inspire hope for the future, but actively ensure that once marginalized communities are not left behind.
DiCaprio has been an avid and vocal supporter of taking action against climate change, which was evident during his acceptance speech during the 2016 Oscars where he said:
Making The Revenant was about man's relationship to the natural world. A world that we collectively felt in 2015 as the hottest year in recorded history. Our production needed to move to the southern tip of this planet just to be able to find snow. Climate change is real, it is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species, and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating. We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters, but who speak for all of humanity, for the indigenous people of the world, for the billions and billions of underprivileged people out there who would be most affected by this. For our children’s children, and for those people out there whose voices have been drowned out by the politics of greed. I thank you all for this amazing award tonight. Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted. Thank you so very much.
It is because of everything DiCaprio does to flex his celebrity muscle for the betterment of the environment that we commend him and his foundation. If you would like to learn more about the projects the LDF is currently undertaking, visit their website at http://leonardodicaprio.org/projects/
Yours Truly,
The Green Gatsby
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