200m euro lottery win used to help “save the planet”

200m euro lottery win used to help “save the planet”

200m euro lottery win used to help “save the planet” Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Joaquimalbalate&action=edit&redlink=1

A retiree living in the South of France is using his 200m euro lottery win to set up an environmental foundation that he hopes will be used to help save the planet.

The man, who has chosen to remain anonymous, said the foundation will focus on protecting forests and biodiversity naming the foundation Anyama after a city in Ivory Coast where he lived for some time.

The winner said in an open letter: “My dream has never been to acquire boats, castles or other sports cars, it is to be useful and to give meaning to this money, with maximum positive impact.”

“The Anyama endowment fund is the result of an imperious desire to act for nature and human beings that I have had for years.

“Above all, it is the expression of a conviction that I want to share with as many people as possible: giving makes people happy, and constitutes a tremendous lever for transforming indignation into concrete and useful actions.”

The money from the winning lottery ticket in December 2020 will see the foundation focus on the France mainland and its overseas territories.

Talking about his reasons for setting up the foundation on its website he said: “During my life, I have witnessed in Ivory Coast the incessant passage of trucks loaded with cut trees in the forests of Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta. This ballet of trucks marked me a lot, indignant.”

While the team working for the foundation is well documented on the website, the name of its founder remains a mystery. The man told French newspaper Le Parisien that his plan is to continue living “peacefully” and as discreetly as he can.

La Française des Jeux (FDJ), the company which manages lotteries in France, has confirmed his donation. Head of Big Winners Relations Isabelle Césari said: “The gain was already exceptional, but to do a work of generosity of this proportion is quite exceptional.

“So that’s what I’m doing today by creating Anyama, which acts for the benefit of the common good of all, with one watchword: protect the living.”

She added that: “The man said that he used to play only during “important jackpots,” just so he could set up a foundation that would support environmental protection.”

The foundation, which is registered in Paris, will use the 200m euro lottery win to focus on protecting biodiversity, preserving and regenerating forests and supporting family caregivers.


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Written by

Peter McLaren-Kennedy

Originally from South Africa, Peter is based on the Costa Blanca and is a web reporter for the Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com.

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