Standing together for the future of Humanity

 

Sharon Stone, Orlando Bloom, Mélanie Laurent, Pom Klementieff, Lucas Bravo and Gaspard Ulliel attended this exclusive event at the Princely Palace to mark the 15th anniversary of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the 5th edition of the Monte-Carlo Gala.

 

A unique opportunity to act for the Ocean, the Earth and Humanity and support the missions of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation.

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This Thursday September 23, in Monaco, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation celebrated Sharon Stone as Guest of Honour at the Foundation’s Fifth Annual Monte-Carlo Gala for Planetary Health.

 

HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco presented Sharon Stone with the Foundation’s “Lifetime Achievement Award” in acknowledgment of her remarkable involvement for the empowerment of women, and her relentless humanitarian efforts throughout the world.

 

Sharon Stone acknowledged her special bond by stating, “It is a joy and an honor to share this evening with my long-time dear friend and compatriot His Serene Highness Prince Albert of Monaco. We have known each other our entire adult lives and once again our friendship deepens as we share this common goal. It is with great humility that I accept this honor to serve at His command.” 

 

In her speech and in reference to the health of our world and ourselves during the pandemic, Ms. Stone stated, “One of the things that happens most directly during these times that we stay alone is that we understand the importance of being present. When you see what’s happening to our environment, we understand most predominately what being present in ourselves and in our world means.”

 

She reminded the Gala audience that walking past a plastic bottle in the street should instead be a simple thing to pick up and recycle. “You can change your individual behavior and your individual sense of responsibility and care” ending with, “I would like to ask all to consider doing this effort that you’ve made this evening a regular daily basis. When you go out, don’t be too proud to pick up the trash.”

 

Though perhaps known best for her work in films such as Basic Instinct and Casino, Ms. Stone has been honored with a Nobel Peace Summit Award, a Harvard Humanitarian Award, a Human Rights Campaign Humanitarian Award, and an Einstein Spirit Award, among others. She has been a fierce advocate for AIDS research for decades, and a shining example of survival as documented in her recent biography, The Beauty of Living Twice. Her role as producer in the documentary, My Name Is Water contributed to both awareness and funding towards clean water, wells, rainwater harvesting structures, and more in rural Sub-Saharan, Africa.

 

HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco addressed the Monte-Carlo Gala audience with a reminder of the continuing theme of the Gala – the protection of our environment and the impact of climate change.

“Our Lives have Changed, our society has changed, our future has changed,” declared the Sovereign. “…the world has grasped the dramatic scale of the climate challenge we are facing. …Because what unites us is not only the urgency…It is also a sense of responsibility.

“We must refuse closing our eyes faced with situations that concern us all, whatever our circumstances and wherever we live” because “the deterioration of the ocean has devastating effects on the coastal population and on humanity as a whole…plastic pollution contaminates the food chain and contaminates each one of us. …that the disappearance of the most fragile ecosystems, such as the corals, will deprive us of essential resources in the future.”

 

Through the Gala’s signature auction funds are raised to support the foundation’s critical and comprehensive portfolio of conservation projects—to protect endangered species from illegal wildlife trade, to expand marine protected areas, to promote renewable energy and resource efficiency in emerging economies, to eliminate deforestation, and to better understand climate change in particular in the polar regions.

 

For this exceptional edition, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation was proud to join forces with the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, through a series of lots auctioned in support of their relentless efforts for the well-being and development of children. The Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation is committed to save lives by fighting against drowning and to develop the education of children through the values of sport, by supporting and funding educational projects internationally.

 

HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco addressed a special message to the guests “My Foundation and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation joined forces a few years ago to develop a number of projects directed to clean our Mediterranean Sea of plastics, and more largely, oceans around the world. I was not able to join this evening, but I would like to thank you all for your support and generosity. It is My strong engagement and determination to support these projects, as we have an immense responsibility towards our future generations with the state of the Planet, they will inherit from us.”

 

Auction items this year included an arctic expedition to the North Pole with HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, a custom-made Van Cleef & Arpels sapphire and diamond pendant created from the Ocean tiara of HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco, a Porsche Taycan Turbo S (the very first electric Porsche) from HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco’s personal collection and a studio visit and creation of custom artwork from Jeff Koons.

 

Mr. Olivier Wenden, Vice-President and CEO of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation reflects on the tremendous work done thanks to the past four editions of the Monte-Carlo Gala. “This battle to protect our Planet and our lives from negative effects of climate change, loss of biodiversity, pollution or water scarcity, requires a collective and urgent action. We are very thankful to all the philanthropists and artists who help us since the start to both raise awareness and conduct worldwide effective missions on the ground. Their unconditional support is a boost of energy for our teams and partners as well as a strong message of hope that together we can build a greener and compassionate future.”

 

A French scene committed to global planetary health.

Actress and environmental activist Mélanie Laurent was alongside French actors who are also committed to preserving the environment, such as Pom Klementieff, Lucas Bravo and Gaspard Ulliel. Alerting us to the consequences of our inaction in the face of the major ecological crisis we are experiencing, they each invited us to mobilise and take our individual and collective responsibilities.

 

“I have the impression that we are all very concerned by these issues, but we are late. We made this film called “Tomorrow”, we should have called it “Yesterday”. I have the impression that nobody is aware of this timing. We spend our time talking about these alarmist scenarios, but it’s time for the decision-makers to get together and defend humanity’s assets,” declared Mélanie Laurent, interviewed on the red carpet.

 

Pom Klementieff called to action :  « « The need for action on climate change is now. We are facing an emergency and how we act will affect generations to come. We can’t allow ourselves to be the ones who stood by and watched as our planet fell into crisis. Let’s be the ones who save it! »

 

Gaspard Ulliel was also keen to point out the urgency of the situation, saying: “We are facing an unprecedented ecological crisis. Never before have our planet and life on earth been under such threat. Over the past century we’ve been insidiously destroying the biosphere, killing life, and slowly but surely setting the ground to our own extinction. And what we see now is nothing compared to what will come if we do not act for a change. Science is clear. Read the studies, check the facts. We need immediate action and a fundamental shift in our system and mentalities from both every individual and our governments in order to avoid the global catastrophe that is on it’s way. I want to be part of those who are actively fighting to leave a fit planet to our future generations. Let’s see it as a hopeful wake up call. It’s still within our reach, but not for long -we have now entered these highly decisive times. Today, there are no higher concerns or priorities to address.”

 

Presided by HSH the Prince Albert II of Monaco, the Monte-Carlo Gala for Planetary Health is organised by His Foundation and Mr. Milutin Gatsby, Global Fundraising Chairman, with the support of the Monaco Yacht Show, the Oceanographic Institute, the Yacht Club of Monaco, the Société des Bains de Mer and the Monaco Private Label.