Chess Master Viswanathan Anand has been appointed as the new Ambassador for World Wide Fund (WWF) India’s Environment Education program.
The Environment Education Program was formed in 1976. It reaches out to school children, youth and citizens across the country. The main objective of the organization is to generate critical thinking, problem-solving, and environmentally-conscious individuals. The Environment Education program impacts over 5 million children across 2000 schools.
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF):
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) was established in 1961. It is headquartered in Vaud, Switzerland. The NGO works in the field of wilderness preservation, and the reduction of human impact on the environment. With over 5 million supporters worldwide, WWF India has become the world’s largest conservation organization. WWF aims to stop the degradation of the planet’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature.
Viswanathan Anand:
Viswanathan Anand was born on 11 December 1969 at Mayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu. In 1983, he won the National Sub-Junior Chess Championship with a score of 9/9. He won the Asian Junior Chess Championship in 1984, which earned him the International Master norm.
In 2007, Anand entered the (Fédération Internationale des Échecs) FIDE World Championship Tournament in Mexico as the world’s top-ranked player. Anand stood as the World Chess Champion from 2007 to 2013. He won the World Chess Championship five times in 2000, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2012. He became one of the 6 players who broke the 2800 mark on the FIDE rating list.
In 1985, he was conferred the Arjuna Award for Outstanding Indian sportsperson in Chess. In 1987, he was awarded the Padma Shri. He received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in the years 1991-92. In 2000 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan and he was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 2007.
