British Conservationist Honoured
Added to website: 01 January 2004
Peter Raines MBE FRGS FIBiol CBiol MInstD, founder and managing director of Coral Cay Conservation (CCC), recently received an MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in The Queen’s New Years Honours List for “services to preservation of biodiversity”.
CCC is a British-based not-for-profit, international award-winning organization, dedicated to providing resources to help sustain livelihoods and alleviate poverty through the protection, restoration and management of coral reefs and tropical rainforests.
Peter has dedicated his life to the conservation of coral reefs and tropical forests. With a background in marine biology and a passion for diving, he was responsible for the foundation of Coral Cay Conservation in 1986. Since then, CCC has helped create numerous marine reserves and wildlife sanctuaries in the Indo-Pacific and Caribbean, including the designation of the Belize Barrier Reef as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the creation of the Danjugan Island Marine Reserve and Wildlife Sanctuary (Philippines).
Upon receiving news of his MBE, Peter said: “On behalf of CCC, our pioneering project partners and the thousands of international CCC Volunteers who have contributed so much, I am delighted and honoured to receive this award, and look forward to doubling our contribution to the protection of biodiversity and poverty alleviation in 2004 and beyond”.
In the United Kingdom, honours are awarded twice a year, in June and at the New Year. Recipients are selected by the Queen based on the advice of the Prime Minister and other relevant ministers, to whom recommendations are made by their departments or members of the public. Peter’s name was submitted to The Queen by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.
