Ma Jun (; born 22 May 1968) is a Chinese

environmentalist An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

, environmental consultant, and journalist. He is a director of the Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs (IPE).

Biography

In the 1990s Ma became known as an investigative journalist, working at the '' South China Morning Post'' from 1993 to 2000. There, he began to specialize in articles on environmental subjects. He eventually became the Chief Representative of SCMP.com in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

.National Geographic
Explorers:Ma Jun
Accessed 07-26-2012. Ma's 1999 book ''China's Water Crisis'' (Zhongguo shui weiji) has been compared to

Rachel Carson Rachel Louise Carson (May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist, writer, and conservationist whose influential book '' Silent Spring'' (1962) and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental ...

's ''Silent Spring'' – China's first major book on the subject of that nation's environmental crisis.Ed Norton
2006 TIME 100: Ma Jun
Time, 8 May 2006. He directs the IPE (Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs), which developed the China Water Pollution Map (), the first public database of

water pollution Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. ...

information in China. He also serves as environmental consultant for the Sinosphere Corporation. Ma said: "Water pollution is the most serious environmental issue facing China. It has a huge impact on people’s health and economic development. That is why we have begun to build this database. To protect water resources, we need to encourage public participation and strengthen law enforcement. In some places, polluting factories and companies are being protected by local governments and officials." In 2010, Ma, addressing

air pollution Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different typ ...

particularly in the wake of efforts made at the time of the Beijing Olympics, said "many of the government’s efforts to curtail pollution had been offset by the number of construction projects that spit dust into the air and the surge in private car ownership." In 2016, Ma Jun appeared in the National Geographic film, '' Before the Flood'', directed by

Fisher Stevens Fisher Stevens (born Steven Fisher; November 27, 1963) is an American actor, director, producer and writer. As an actor, he is best known for his portrayals of Ben in ''Short Circuit'' and '' Short Circuit 2'', Chuck Fishman on the 1990s televi ...

and narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio. In 2020, Ma Jun launched the Institute of Finance and Sustainability, located in Beijing.

Recognition

He was named as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' magazine in May 2006, in an article written by Hollywood film star Ed Norton. He was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2009. In 2012, Ma received the

Goldman Environmental Prize The Goldman Environmental Prize is a prize awarded annually to grassroots environmental activists, one from each of the world's six geographic regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, Islands and Island Nations, North America, and South and Central America. ...

. In 2015, Ma Jun became the first Chinese social entrepreneur to win the Skoll Award.

Selected publications

; Books * ''China's Water Crisis'' (中国水危机; 2004) ; Articles Ma Jun has written for the online journal

chinadialogue China Dialogue () is an independent, non-profit organisation based in London and Beijing. It was launched on July 3, 2006. China Dialogue is funded by a range of institutional supporters, including several major charitable foundations. It focuses ...

since 2006. Articles are available in Chinese and English. * "Tackling China's water crisis online" (21 September 2006) * "A path to environmental harmony

(30 November 2006) * "How participation can help China's ailing environment" (31 January 2007) * * "Getting involved" (24 May 2007) * "Disaster in Taihu Lake" (8 June 2007) * "After green GDP, what next?" (8 August 2007) * "Tackling pollution at its source" (14 August 2007) * "Ecological civilisation is the way forward" (31 October 2007) * "Your right to know: a historic moment" (1 May 2008) Ma Jun wrote for Hong Kong's South China Morning Post from 1993 to 2000.
Green Choice Apparel Supply Chain Investigation - Draft Report (PDF, 41 p., April 9., 2012)

References

Citations

Sources

* *

External links

Ma Jun page
from ''Time'' magazine
Ma Jun interviewInstitute of Public & Environmental Affairs
founded by Ma Jun {{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Jun Living people Chinese environmentalists People's Republic of China journalists 1968 births Place of birth missing (living people) Writers from Qingdao Ramon Magsaysay Award winners Winners of the Nikkei Asia Prize Goldman Environmental Prize awardees University of International Relations alumni