CEHRD Congratulates Prof. Nenibarini Zabbey For Winning The Aslo 2022 Ruth Patrick Award
The Board of Trustees (BOT), Management and Staff of the Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD), a foremost national human and environmental rights non-governmental organization based in Port Harcourt, congratulate the coordinator of the organization, Prof. Nenibarini Zabbey, as he receives the 2022 RUTH PATRICK AWARD by the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO). The award was presented to him Wednesday, May 18, 2022, at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA.
A statement by Styvn Obodoekwe, Project Director, CEHRD and Chief Constance Meju, BOT Chairperson, CEHRD made available to National Network said “Nenibarini Zabbey is an accomplished professor of hydrology in the Department of Fisheries at the University of Port Harcourt. We thank the foremost research-based group, ASLO, for the choice of Zabbey for the prestigious award and commend them for their great efforts in advancing aquatic science for societal benefits.”
We consider the award a well-deserved honour and a reward for hard work. We trust that Zabbey will see the prestigious award as a stimulus to maintain the niche he has created for more wins and greater accomplishments and impacts. We say we are proud of Zabbey and congratulate the amiable and energetic CEHRD Coordinator on this honour, which he has brought not only to CEHRD but to the entire Niger Delta and Nigeria.
Zabbey is a consummate researcher, a university lecturer, and a courageous and untiring environmental justice crusader whose commitment to using scientific methods in solving societal problems has remained unwavering over the years.
According to ASLO, “the 2022 Ruth Patrick Award was presented to Prof. Zabbey for his research and engagement with a critical impact on the recovery of the Niger Delta ecosystem from oil spills and environmental justice for affected communities.” It is an award for his enormous and sustained contribution to building limnological knowledge in the Niger Delta.
It was further noted that Zabbey’s pre-and post-oil spill impact ecological studies of Bodo Creek following the 2008 and 2009 major oil spillages that ravaged Bodo Creek have played a significant role in providing environmental justice for the affected communities. His work was also said to be crucial in resolving a landmark litigation case involving the effects of oil spills on the livelihoods of people who rely on Bodo Creek.
According to the President of ASLO, Roxane Maranger, Zabbey represents the utmost courage one could expect in a researcher. He is committed to justice based on hard scientific evidence and service to the community.
ASLO is an international aquatic science society founded in 1948. We gathered that for more than 60 years, it has been the leading professional organization for researchers and educators in the field of aquatic science. The purpose of ASLO is to foster a diverse, international scientific community that creates, integrates, and communicates knowledge across the full spectrum of aquatic sciences; advances public awareness and education about aquatic resources and research; and promotes scientific stewardship of aquatic resources for the public interest. Each year, the Association honors an aquatic scientist whose research leads to the identification, analysis, or solution of important environmental problems with the Ruth Patrick Award.
With the award conferred on our coordinator, CEHRD is emboldened to continue on the chosen path of environmental justice work for which we are known.
CEHRD’s over 20 years of intervention in Nigeria focuses on sustainable environmental management advocacy, community development, policy research and influence, human rights, and good governance.
