June Haimoff
Encyclopedia
June Haimoff is an English environmentalist
who lives in Dalyan
in the Turkish province of Muğla
. In the period from 1984 – 1988 she and fellow-environmentalists such as David Bellamy
, Lily Venizelos
, Günther Peter, Nergis Yazgan and Keith Corbett launched a successful campaign to preserve İztuzu Beach
as a habitat for the endangered loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta). This beach is one of the main nesting places of the species in Turkey and the Mediterranean.
as Joan Christine Fairey, daughter of Christopher and Madeleine Fairey. As her father was a prominent petroleum engineer, the family often lived abroad (a.o. in Uganda and Iran).
In her adult life, she pursued the ambition of becoming an opera singer and did her studies in music, dancing and ballet. When married with Charles Haimoff, she was seriously engaged in painting and had her own art gallery in Gstaad, Switzerland.
.
Between 1975 and 1981 she occasionally stopped at İztuzu Beach and Dalyan on her boat trips and was therefore called "Kaptan June" (Captain June) by the locals.In 1984 she settled in Dalyan in her own baraka (beach hut) on İztuzu Beach.
When it became clear that there were plans to exploit the beach for mass tourism, she started a campaign to preserve İztuzu Beach as a breeding habitat for the loggerhead turtle, which is on the IUCN Red List
.
In April 1987 building started on a 1800-bed hotel complex by the name of Kaunos Beach Hotel. This caused a storm of protests world-wide. There were protests from the IUCN, Greenpeace
, the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoologische Gesellschaft Frankfurt. Particularly in the former Federal Republic of Germany the building caused a major uproar, because the German DEG (Deutsche Finanzierungsgesellschaft für Beteiligungen in Entwicklungsländern) wanted to use an amount equivalent to 5 million euros from public means under the pretense of development aid
.
June Haimoff approached the WWF and consequently Prince Philip --then President-- asked the Turkish Prime Minister Turgut Özal
for a moratorium, while awaiting the outcome of an Environmental Impact Assessment
. In the meantime the German Federal Government had forbidden DEG to invest development aid money for the building of the Kaunos Beach Hotel.
The project was stopped in September 1987 and in 1988 the Turkish government decided to forbid future building at the beach. The Köyceğiz-Dalyan region then obtained the status of Special Environmental Protection Area (SEPA).
Since then, June Haimoff has dedicated her efforts to assure conservation of the site as well as for attracting international attention to the fate of the turtles ".
She herself related the struggle and the victory for the preservation of the turtle species in her book titled "Kaptan June and the Turtles" published for the first time in 1997. A second edition published in 2002 and titled, this time, "Kaptan June and the Dalyan Turtles", features a new prologue, two additional chapters, bringing the story up to date, and an index.
June Haimoff currently pursues her efforts in a wider frame, and is also concerned with the preservation of the nature in a more general sense with focus on the unique flora and fauna of the Köyceğiz-Dalyan Special Environmental Protection Area
. She is particularly concerned for the protection of the soft-shelled Nile Turtle and the Oriental Sweetgum trees (Liquidambar orientalis
), another endemic species proper to the region.
Her work has been recognised by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2011 British New Year's Honors List.
June Haimoff still lives in Dalyan in a traditional Turkish house, named "The Peaceable Kingdom". She lives a very active life, supported by many friends and surrounded by her many dogs and cats.
Environmentalist
An environmentalist broadly supports the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that seeks to improve and protect the quality of the natural environment through changes to environmentally harmful human activities"...
who lives in Dalyan
Dalyan
Dalyan is a town in Muğla Province located between the well-known districts of Marmaris and Fethiye on the south-west coast of Turkey. The town is an independent municipality, within the administrative district of Ortaca....
in the Turkish province of Muğla
Mugla Province
Muğla Province is a province of Turkey, at the country's south-western corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its seat is Muğla, about inland, while some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as Bodrum, Ölüdeniz, Marmaris and Fethiye, are on the coast in Muğla....
. In the period from 1984 – 1988 she and fellow-environmentalists such as David Bellamy
David Bellamy
David James Bellamy OBE is a British author, broadcaster, environmental campaigner and botanist. He has lived in County Durham since 1960.-Career:...
, Lily Venizelos
Lily Venizelos
Lily Venizelos is the founder and president of MEDASSET . Ever since 1983 she has committed herself to protecting the sea turtles that occur in the Mediterranean.- History :...
, Günther Peter, Nergis Yazgan and Keith Corbett launched a successful campaign to preserve İztuzu Beach
Iztuzu Beach
İztuzu Beach is a 4.5km long beach near Dalyan, in the Ortaca district of the Province of Muğla in southwestern Turkey. The beach is a narrow spit of land, which forms a natural barrier between the fresh water delta of the Dalyan river and the Mediterranean...
as a habitat for the endangered loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta). This beach is one of the main nesting places of the species in Turkey and the Mediterranean.
Background
June Haimoff was born in EssexEssex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
as Joan Christine Fairey, daughter of Christopher and Madeleine Fairey. As her father was a prominent petroleum engineer, the family often lived abroad (a.o. in Uganda and Iran).
In her adult life, she pursued the ambition of becoming an opera singer and did her studies in music, dancing and ballet. When married with Charles Haimoff, she was seriously engaged in painting and had her own art gallery in Gstaad, Switzerland.
Conservation campaign
She visited southwestern Turkey for the first time in July 1975, when the region was still outside the usual tracks of international tourism, by means of a boat (Bouboulina) purchased in GreeceGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
.
Between 1975 and 1981 she occasionally stopped at İztuzu Beach and Dalyan on her boat trips and was therefore called "Kaptan June" (Captain June) by the locals.In 1984 she settled in Dalyan in her own baraka (beach hut) on İztuzu Beach.
When it became clear that there were plans to exploit the beach for mass tourism, she started a campaign to preserve İztuzu Beach as a breeding habitat for the loggerhead turtle, which is on the IUCN Red List
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
.
In April 1987 building started on a 1800-bed hotel complex by the name of Kaunos Beach Hotel. This caused a storm of protests world-wide. There were protests from the IUCN, Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
, the World Wildlife Fund and the Zoologische Gesellschaft Frankfurt. Particularly in the former Federal Republic of Germany the building caused a major uproar, because the German DEG (Deutsche Finanzierungsgesellschaft für Beteiligungen in Entwicklungsländern) wanted to use an amount equivalent to 5 million euros from public means under the pretense of development aid
Development aid
Development aid or development cooperation is aid given by governments and other agencies to support the economic, environmental, social and political development of developing countries.It is distinguished...
.
June Haimoff approached the WWF and consequently Prince Philip --then President-- asked the Turkish Prime Minister Turgut Özal
Turgut Özal
Halil Turgut Özal was Prime Minister of Turkey and President of Turkey . As Prime Minister, he transformed the economy of Turkey by paving the way for the privatization of many state enterprises.-Early life and career:...
for a moratorium, while awaiting the outcome of an Environmental Impact Assessment
Environmental impact assessment
An environmental impact assessment is an assessment of the possible positive or negative impact that a proposed project may have on the environment, together consisting of the natural, social and economic aspects....
. In the meantime the German Federal Government had forbidden DEG to invest development aid money for the building of the Kaunos Beach Hotel.
The project was stopped in September 1987 and in 1988 the Turkish government decided to forbid future building at the beach. The Köyceğiz-Dalyan region then obtained the status of Special Environmental Protection Area (SEPA).
Since then, June Haimoff has dedicated her efforts to assure conservation of the site as well as for attracting international attention to the fate of the turtles ".
She herself related the struggle and the victory for the preservation of the turtle species in her book titled "Kaptan June and the Turtles" published for the first time in 1997. A second edition published in 2002 and titled, this time, "Kaptan June and the Dalyan Turtles", features a new prologue, two additional chapters, bringing the story up to date, and an index.
June Haimoff currently pursues her efforts in a wider frame, and is also concerned with the preservation of the nature in a more general sense with focus on the unique flora and fauna of the Köyceğiz-Dalyan Special Environmental Protection Area
Köyceğiz-Dalyan Special Environmental Protection Area
The Köyceğiz-Dalyan Special Environmental Protection Area is a protected natural reserve in the Turkish province of Muğla. In June 1988 it was determined and declared the first protected area of its kind of Turkey. In 1990 the original SPA area was extended westwards...
. She is particularly concerned for the protection of the soft-shelled Nile Turtle and the Oriental Sweetgum trees (Liquidambar orientalis
Liquidambar orientalis
Liquidambar orientalis, commonly known as oriental sweetgum or Turkish sweetgum, is a deciduous tree in the genus Liquidambar, native to the eastern Mediterranean region, that occurs as pure stands mainly in the flood plains of southwestern Turkey and on the Greek island of Rhodes.-Biotope:The...
), another endemic species proper to the region.
Turtle Conservation Foundation
In 2009 June Haimoff took an exam to obtain Turkish citizenship in order to start a foundation to protect the habitat of the loggerhead turtle. The Kaptan June Sea Turtle Conservation Foundation was officially established in February 2011.Her work has been recognised by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2011 British New Year's Honors List.
June Haimoff still lives in Dalyan in a traditional Turkish house, named "The Peaceable Kingdom". She lives a very active life, supported by many friends and surrounded by her many dogs and cats.