Dr Timo Menniken, GIZ Thailand Country Director, receives the award for ‘Outstanding Contributions to Environmental Protection and Conservation’ from Dr Chayanan Pakdeejit, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE)

On 3 December 2025, GIZ Thailand received the ‘Outstanding Contributions to Environmental Protection and Conservation’ award from Thailand’s Pollution Control Department (PCD) at the PCD’s headquarters. Dr Timo Menniken, GIZ Thailand Country Director, received the award from Dr Chayanan Pakdeejit, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE). The recognition celebrated more than 20 years of cooperation between GIZ and the PCD in various sectors, from preventing marine litter through to circular economy approaches, integrated waste management, sustainable consumption and production, to transboundary air quality management in the Mekong region, jointly driving Thailand’s environmental protection towards a sustainable future.

Dr Timo Menniken and Dr Surin Worakijthamrong, Director-General of the Pollution Control Department

Dr Surin Worakijthamrong, Director-General of the Pollution Control Department, said: “The Pollution Control Department is pleased to present the ‘Outstanding Contributions to Environmental Protection and Conservation’ award to GIZ. This long-standing partnership has been built on shared commitment and mutual trust between both organisations. This award further affirms the exemplary cooperation between the two organisations, which has contributed to tangible progress in environmental policy development and empowered communities across Thailand.”

The award ceremony brought together partners from across sectors: government agencies, civil society organisations, private companies, academia and local communities, who have worked together to reshape Thailand’s approach to plastic waste management. The event showcased achievements in policy development, local innovation and regional knowledge-sharing that have emerged from this continuous collaboration.

Building systems for lasting change
The MA-RE-DESIGN project is one of GIZ’s ongoing collaborations with the Pollution Control Department, alongside AMUSE and SEACAI. Since 2022, the project has worked across four interconnected areas. At the national level, it supported the PCD in developing Thailand’s first Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework policy, including draft legislation and guidelines for establishing Producer Responsibility Organisations (PRO). The project has mobilised SME businesses through eco-design awards while developing legal recommendations for Eco-Design policy frameworks. In Koh Tao and Trang Province, pilots demonstrated collaborative waste management among municipalities, tourism operators, and residents near marine biodiversity hotspots. Regionally, the project has facilitated knowledge exchange among nine countries. This work unites GIZ, the PCD, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Seas of East Asia Marine Cooperation Group by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP COBSEA), academic institutions and private sector partners.

• More information about the MA-RE-DESIGN project: https://www.thai-german-cooperation.info/en_US/marine-litter-prevention-through-reduction-sustainable-design-and-recycling-of-plastic-packaging-ma-re-design/
• More information about the AMUSE project: https://www.thai-german-cooperation.info/en_US/asean-municipal-solid-waste-management-enhancement-amuse/

His Excellency, Danny Annan, Ambassador of Denmark to Thailand, and Dr Timo Menniken