The Nature Conservancy’s Young Professionals Group Announces Fifth Annual Cocktail Benefit to be held in New York City at the Prince George Ballroom.

For the fifth consecutive year, The Nature Conservancy’s Young Professionals Group will hold a cocktail benefit to raise support for the Conservancy’s vast conservation efforts.  Last year’s celebration highlighted restoration in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest by bringing together more than 400 young people to raise more than $82,000.

This year, the event will raise funds for the Conservancy’s work in the Coral Triangle, the epicenter of our planet’s marine diversity.  Nestled in the heart of the Asia Pacific, these coral reefs are nurseries, feeding grounds and home for nearly 40 percent of the world’s reef fish species, six out of the world’s seven species of sea turtles, and an incredible diversity of marine mammals.  The reefs also provide food, income and livelihood to more than 126 million people.

The Coral Reef Triangle

The Nature Conservancy is joining with supporters and partners around the world to celebrate a suite of stunning achievements for conservation of the planet's greatest concentration of coral reefs — the Coral Triangle.

At a summit in Manado, Indonesia on Friday, May 15, 2009, six governments launched the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) — an agreement that will fundamentally transform resource use and protection across the region. Heads of government of all six countries that lie in the Coral Triangle — Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, the Philippines, Timor Leste and Malaysia — resoundingly adopted the CTI, setting in motion a Regional Plan of Action that contains unprecedented goals and commitments for MPAs, fisheries protection and climate change adaptation.

These and other governments, including the U.S., pledged nearly $17 million in new funding for conservation of resources that sustain more than 120 million people. Indonesia created an 8.5 million acre Marine Protected Area (MPA) — now the largest in the Coral Triangle.

The Nature Conservancy’s Young Professionals Group brings together a cross-section of the city’s brightest men and women who share a love of nature, a concern for the environment and a belief that hope and action are indispensable to make a difference.  Visit us on the web at www.nature.org/ypg.

This is a guest post from The Green Living Guy , Seth Leitman. Seth is the Editor of the McGraw-Hill, TAB Green Guru Guides. Seth is also an Author, Radio Host, Reporter, Writer and a Environmental Consultant on green living. The Green Living Guy writes about green living, green lighting, the green guru guides and more. Seth's books range from:

• Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brant and Seth Leitman
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