By Meena Kar
July 11, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Actor Edward Norton has landed a new role but not as an actor. The ‘Kingdom Of Heaven’ star has been appointed as the UN Goodwill Ambassador for biodiversity. Edward Norton joins the list of celebrities who have been named UN Ambassadors for various causes before to add star power and better visibility to the cause.

UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon said in a statement, after appointing the actor, that Edward Norton will bring global star power to global issues like community development and conservation. He also added that the issues are also close to the star’s heart. Edward Norton revealed that he has been engaged at different levels in the field for many years now but it is extremely exciting to engage at the level of the United Nations Organization with its reach and capacity.

The ‘Fight Club’ star said that apart from the conservative methods of biodiversity conservation like the setting aside of preserved areas, he will focus on the human aspect of conservation. According to him, the addressing of the human needs in the field of conservation is the key to long term preservation. Edward Norton said that fragmenting the ecosystems and creating protected pockets is not the authentic way of conservation as the ecosystem does not work this way.

The ‘Primal Fear’ star has earlier been a part of several projects involving environmental issues. The 40 year old actor participated in the New York Marathon last year and raised $300,000 for the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust. 2010 has been designated by The United Nations as the International Year of Biodiversity. The heads of State are set to discuss the issue at the General Assembly in September this year.