MUMBAI: Actor Don Cheadle has been appointed a spokesman for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Announcing the appointment, UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said that Cheadle would help raise green awareness among millions of people around the globe.

Soon after his appointment, Cheadle vowed to fight climate change and promote environment conservation. He also named a baby gorilla Zoya, a name chosen by internet users as part of a UNEP awareness program.

In 2004, Cheadle starred in the film Hotel Rwanda which told the world about the Rwandan genocide in 1994 that claimed the lives of more than 500,000 people. The Rwandan government, however, was critical of the film.