by guest contributor Janet Staihar
Photo credit: Jeffrey Dubinsky – PBOA
As H.S.H. Monaco’s Prince Albert II chuckled, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) praised his mother, the late American film star Grace Kelly who became Princess Grace of Monaco when she married Prince Rainier III. “Princess Grace was an inspiration to fellow Irish Catholics because she made it possible to be Irish and royalty – it’s not an oxymoron,” said Markey.
Senator Ed Markey, HSH Prince Albert and guests
The good natured ribbing came at the 8th Annual Peter Benchley Ocean Awards Ceremony where Prince Albert personally picked up an honor for helping to protect the world’s oceans. It was the “Excellence in National Stewardship of the Ocean” accolade presented by Dr. Enric Sala, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence and founder of the Pristine Seas project.
Dr. Enric Sala, Roger Sant and his daughter Shari Sant Plumber.
Certainly, Prince Albert has had a busy time of late. He and his wife Princess Charlene got world-wide attention when they baptized their 5-month-old twin girl and boy on Sunday, May 10th at the Cathedral de Monaco in the Principality of Monaco.
Wendy Benchley and HSH Prince Albert
The world’s preeminent ocean honors are named after the late author of “Jaws” and lifelong marine conservationist Peter Benchley. The awards program, held Thursday at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC, was co-founded by Wendy Benchley, an ocean conservation and policy advocate and David Helvarg, author and executive director of Blue Frontier.
Senator Ed Markey and Catherine A. Novelli
Often referred to as the “Academy Awards” for the ocean, the Benchley Awards recognize excellence across a range of expertise, including national leadership, policy, science, media, youth and grassroots activism.
Markey was onstage to present the Excellence in Policy award to Secretary of State John F. Kerry, who, the Senator noted, was in mid-air across some ocean some place on some official mission. Accepting the award on Kerry’s behalf was Catherine A. Novelli, Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and The Environment. Kerry sent a letter of acceptance read to the audience of about 300.
A toast at the luncheon in honor of HSH Prince Albert
Earlier in the day, Prince Albert participated in a forum at National Geographic delving into how the oceans will survive through mid-century and beyond.
HSH Prince Albert
“Together, we need to invent a new model – more sustainable, more responsible – and I believe, more beneficial for all,” he said. “Our future and the future of our oceans is in our own hands. It is up to all of us, individually or collectively, to be able to make all the right choices.”
Main slider photo: Dr. Sylvia Earle, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence; Dr. Enric Sala, Monaco’s Prince Albert II, and U.S. Coast Guard Vice Admiral Charles D. Michel
Second slider photo: David Helvarg with Prince Albert II
