Hollywood, Bollywood and Beyond: Celebrities Get Onboard for World Environment Day

With only two days to go, Gisele Bündchen has narrow lead over Don Cheadle in WED Challenge

Nairobi, 03 June 2011 - As the world gears up for World Environment Day (WED) on 5 June 2011, celebrities across the world are squaring up to their fellow stars – all in the name of the environment. ,Bollywood’s Priyanka Chopra and Rahul Bose, as well as Chinese actress Li Bingbing and entrepreneur Wang Shi are joining supermodel Gisele Bündchen and actor Don Cheadle to take part in the WED Challenge.

The celebrities are facing off in an online competition to encourage members of the public to take up a green activity for World Environment Day.

In the run-up to 5 June, individuals, groups, families and schools – even entire communities - can post details of their green activities online athttp://www.unep.org/wed/

When registering, you’ll have the opportunity to pledge your WED activity to Don or Gisele, Priyanka or Rahul, Li Bingbing or Wang Shi, depending on your location.

Like Gisele, former Miss World Priyanka and fellow actress Li Bingbing have pledged to plant a tree for every WED activity registered in their name. Full of confidence, Don, Rahul and Chinese real estate tycoon Wang Shi have pledged to plant two trees.

Don and Gisele were the first stars to face off in the WED Challenge earlier this month and with only two days to go before World Environment Day, the supermodel is leading the Hollywood actor by a mere 70 votes.

To tip the balance in Don’s favour, or to extend Gisele’s lead, simply register a WED activity before 5 June at www.unep.org/wed 

Whether it’s switching from plastic bags to cloth bags, car-pooling with colleagues or organizing a tree-planting day, WED activities can be big, small, local, international, noisy, quiet….just as long as they’re green.  

World Environment Day 2011 – hosted for the first time in India - is all about positive action for the environment. Thousands of people across the world will take part in WED activities on June 5th, ranging from litter clean-ups around Mount Everest to mini-marathons in India, to music festivals in Belgium.

This year’s theme, Forests: Nature at Your Service, celebrates the multitude of services, such as providing clean air, housing rich biodiversity, supplying water, performed by the world’s forests. 

Simply visit www.unep.org/wed  to browse the A-Z of WED ideas, find your inspiration and tell the world what you’re doing. And most importantly, decide which star will get your vote.

Download Don and Gisele’s WED Challenge video here:http://www.vimeo.com/23525041

Download Priyanka and Rahul’s WED Challenge video (English) here:http://www.vimeo.com/24408192

Download Priyanka and Rahul’s WED Challenge video (Hindi) here:http://www.vimeo.com/24418415

Download WED Challenge India radio spots here:http://rcpt.yousendit.com/1134982137/5a066eb9f64bce7c404f6edff38e194f

Download Li Bingbing and Wang Shi’s WED Challenge video here:
http://www.vimeo.com/24468606

For more information, please contact:

Satwant Kaur, UNEP Regional Information Officer for Asia and the Pacific, Tel: +91 78 3865 3391, E-mail: satwant.kaur@unep.org

Rajiv Chandaran, National Information Officer, UN Information Centre for India and Bhutan,Tel:  +91 11 4653 2237, Mobile:  98106-06833, E-mail:chandran@unicindia.org

UNEP Newsdesk / Nairobi, Tel. +254 7062 3088 or E-mail:unepnewsdes@unep.org