Adjany Costa

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Adjany Costa
Born1989 (age 34–35)
EducationUniversity of Oxford (PhD)
Occupations
Notable workServed as the Angolan Minister of Culture, Tourism and Environment from April to October 2020.

Adjany da Silva Freitas Costa (born 1989) is an Angolan biologist and conservationist from Huambo who served as the Angolan Minister of Culture, Tourism and Environment from April to October 2020.[1][2][3]

Career[edit]

Conservation and environmentalism[edit]

Costa has a master's degree in biology and a PhD in International Wildlife Conservation Practices from the University of Oxford.[1][2]

In 2015, Costa was part of a trip from Angola to the town of Maun, Botswana via mokoro to demonstrate the connectivity of the Okavango River and the impact of the Angolan Civil War on the environment of the country.[1] This formed the basis of the 2018 documentary film Into the Okavango, in which she appears.[2]

Costa was the African winner of the United Nations Environment Programme Young Champions of the Earth award in 2019 for her advocacy to protecting the Okavango Delta.[4][5] She was also awarded the Angolan First Order of Civil Merit in 2019.[6] She received this in recognition for her community-based conservation work with the Luchaze people of the Eastern Angolan highlands and the Okavango Delta.[7][8] She is a National Geographic Explorer.[9]

Political career[edit]

She was appointed the position of Minister of Culture, Tourism and Environment in April 2020 at the age of 30, making her the youngest minister in Angolan history.[2] She was later removed from the position in October 2020 by President João Lourenço and kept as a consultant to the President.[10]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c van Zyl, Melanie (2020-05-26). "'With Covid-19, See How Resilient Nature Is'". Forbes Africa. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  2. ^ a b c d "Who is Adjany Costa, the youngest minister in Angola's history?". VerAngola. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  3. ^ "WildCRU's Adjany Costa appointed as Angola's Minister of Culture, Tourism and the Environment | WildCRU". Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  4. ^ UNEP. "Adjany Costa". Young Champions of the Earth - UN Environment Program. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  5. ^ "Young Champion of the Earth 2019: Adjany Costa". UNEP. UNEP. 2019-08-18. Retrieved 2021-08-30.
  6. ^ "2019 Young champion for Africa receives civil award". UN Environment. 2019-11-13. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  7. ^ "Adjany Costa". National Geographic Expeditions. 2019-02-04. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  8. ^ UNEP (2019-09-17). "Young environmental prize winner for Africa is saving the world's last wild hotspots". Young Champions of the Earth - UN Environment Program. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  9. ^ "'Into the Okavango': Film Review | Tribeca 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2021-03-09.
  10. ^ "João Lourenço exonerates Adjany Costa from her position as Minister of Culture, Tourism and Environment". VerAngola. Retrieved 2021-03-05.