Latest news with #WCPA
Borneo Post
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Borneo Post
‘Little Borneo Birdie' treats pre-Gawai Dayak event guests to award-winning dance show
Dion stages a delightful performance for the guest at the SDNU Taman Heng Guan's pre-Gawai dinner. — Photo by Churchill Edward KUCHING (May 26): Young talent Dion Das Louis, who is globally known as 'Little Borneon Birdie', staged an award-winning show at a pre-Gawai Dayak dinner at the Christian Ecumenical Centre Jalan Stampin here last Saturday. The event, hosted by Sarawak Dayak National Union (SDNU) Taman Heng Guan branch, featured the nine-year-old talented performer. At the World Championship of Performing Arts (WCPA) held at Long Beach in California, USA last year, Dion was declared winner in the 'Mini Solo National and Folklore' category. At the All Division Champion (ADC), he triumphed in the Junior Ethnic Dance category. When met, SDNU Taman Heng Guan chairman Peter Moni Selat said he felt honoured and proud that Dion, like himself, is a resident of Taman Heng Guan in Matang. 'Dion has been given monetary incentives by this SDNU branch in acknowledgement of his efforts, including his contribution towards promoting Malaysia and Sarawak in particular, and encouraging him to further develop his art. 'The dance was, in fact, inspired by the traditional Iban 'ngajat', blended with the stances of the 'Peacock' and the 'Hornbill',' said Peter. Dion was accompanied by his parents, Louis Lansam and Edina Lanying at the event. The 'Little Bornean Birdie,' has been selected to represent Malaysia at the Dance World Cup Finals in Burgos, Spain, scheduled for this July 3 to 12. He earned a spot after winning the Dance World Cup Malaysia Qualifier in the 'Mini Solo National and Folklore' categories, held at the Sabah Culture and Arts Department premises in January this year. In addition to this achievement, Dion clinched the prestigious 'Best Solo Mini' title during the competition. Meanwhile, in representing SDNU president Tan Sri William Mawan Ikom at the dinner, union secretary-general Gerard Joseph said it would be imperative for all Dayak members to register with SDNU so that it would have a bigger voice. 'With 50 branches across Sarawak, SDNU is currently seen as a platform to unite all Sarawakians through social, welfare, and recreational programmes,' said Gerard. Mawan, also advisor in Sarawak Premier's Office (Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development), had pledged a government grant of RM10,000 to SDNU Taman Heng Guan. Moreover, Ooohaa Cafe donated RM10,000 to the branch. dance performance Dion Das Louis Gawai Dayak lead Little Borneon Birdie
The 961
11-02-2025
- General
- The 961
Who is Nizar Hani, Lebanon's New Minister of Agriculture
Since 2010, Nizar Hani has held the position of Director of the Shouf Cedar Reserve and serves as an advisor to the Protected Areas Department at the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Roadmap for Vision 2030 for Protected Areas). He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Food Sciences from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, with the highest honors and a commendation from the committee, and a Master's degree in Agricultural Economics from the Lebanese University. Hani also worked as an environmental specialist overseeing the Shouf Biosphere Reserve at the Ministry of Environment between 2014 and 2020, and as a professor at the faculties of agriculture at the Saint Joseph University and the Lebanese University. In addition to his work, he was elected in 2021 as Vice President of the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for North Africa, West Asia, and the Middle East. He has been a consultant for the Natural World Heritage for Lebanon's representative at UNESCO since 2023. Hani has also received the Michel Batis UNESCO Award for Humanity and Biosphere Reserves, the Kenton Miller Award from the WCPA of IUCN, and recently, in 2021, the Knight's Cross of the Order of the Star of Italy as a token of appreciation from the Italian Republic.
