The End OF The World

Al Gore has been named joint winner of the Nobel peace prize for his work raising awareness of environmental issues.

The former US vice president, who wrote the controversial climate change documentary An Inconvenient Truth, shares the award with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Explaining their decision, the awarding committee said that by fighting rising temperatures, Mr Gore was helping to prevent future conflicts across the world.

"Extensive climate changes may alter and threaten the living conditions of much of mankind," they said.

"Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world’s most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states."

In statement, Mr Gore said that he was "deeply honoured" to receive the prize.

"This award is even more meaningful because I have the honour of sharing it with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - the world's pre-eminent scientific body devoted to improving our understanding of the climate crisis - a group whose members have worked tirelessly and selflessly for many years."

advertisementThe IPCC - an association of 2,500 scientists - issued a series of reports this year blaming mankind for global warming and outlining possible solutions.

Mr Gore, 59, vice president to Bill Clinton and a failed candidate for the White House in 2000, was widely-tipped winner.

It has been rumoured in the US that he may exploit the prize publicity to launch another attempt at the presidency in 2008, challenging Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination.

Ole Danbolt Mjoes, the chairman of the prize committee, said the award should not be seen as singling out George W Bush's Republican administration for criticism.

But, in what will be seen as a veiled reference to the upcoming US presidential elections, he said: "I am very much in support for all who support changes.

"Al Gore has fought the environment battle even as vice president. Many did not listen ... but he carried on."

Mr Gore said he will donate the proceeds to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a non-profit organisation "devoted to changing public opinion in the US and around the world about the urgency of solving the climate crisis".

A total of 181 individuals or organisations were nominated for the prize of 10 million Swedish kroner (£767,000).

After losing the highly controversial 2000 presidential race, Mr Gore went back to concentrate on environmental campaigning.

He reinvented himself as a global champion for climate change with his 2006 film An Inconvenient Truth.

Based on years of lectures, the documentary provides a stark warning of the dangers of global warming and won an Academy Award for best documentary.

But it has been criticised for exaggerating the scientific case for human-caused climate change, and earlier this week a High Court judge ruled that it contained nine key errors.

Gordon Brown said today: "I am very pleased that the Nobel Foundation has recognised the work that both Al Gore and the UN have done on climate change.

"Al Gore has been inspirational in focusing attention across the globe on this key issue.

"The IPCC's work on the science of climate change has been vital and they are now leading the process by which all countries will work together to tackle the effects of climate change."

The IPCC was set up in 1988 and has produced scientific studies on the risk of human-induced climate change.

"It was a surprise," panel member Carola Traverso Saibante said today.

"We would have been happy even if [Gore] had received it alone because it is a recognition of the importance of this issue."

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, said that the award showed that it is "beyond doubt" that climate change is now affecting the world.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee, which awards the prize, reached its decision on Monday, unusually close to today's announcement.

This has been taken as a sign that the five panel members from five political parties found it a particularly difficult choice.

The last time an American won was in 2002, when the former US president Jimmy Carter was awarded for his international peace-keeping work.