Laureates by Category

It is difficult enough to be an environmentalist in nations where peace prevails, struggling in the face of business interests and systems based upon outmoded ways of thinking. To do so in nations riven by conflict, where speaking out can lead to threats and, in extreme cases, death, requires a whole new level of courage. Fatima Jibrell is one…

Despite progress in recent years, it still remains a tough ask for politicians to stand and operate successfully on a primarily green platform. The former President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, however, has been at the forefront of a transition to a new world order—in which politicians who champion good environmental stewardship as a…

Small Island Developing States are on the frontline of the war against climate change, both in terms of suffering the greatest damage and calling most stridently for action. Palau, a low-lying archipelago in the Pacific Ocean home to just over 20,000 souls, is one such country. The small islands that make up Palau are breath-taking in their…

It is hard to believe now, but when the first science pointing to the link between chlorofluorocarbon gases (CFCs) and the degradation of the Earth’s ozone layer was revealed in 1974, it was met with widespread scepticism.

That we now have behind us decades of action under the Montreal Protocol, which has reversed the growth of the hole…

There are some individuals so accomplished, so on the nail with their science and insight, and so omnipresent at award ceremonies that one could be forgiven for suspecting they have secretly been busy cloning themselves to carry out so much ground-breaking work. Sir Robert Watson, an eminent scientist who is highly regarded as one of the world’…

The word “legend” is one that should be applied with judicious care, but few deserve the tag more than Dr. Sylvia Earle—a renowned pioneer of deep sea exploration and conservation so synonymous with the topics that she now has a Lego figurine modelled after her, complete with little yellow flippers.

Consider the titles, official and…

Despite repeated warnings and unassailable scientific evidence on the climate consequences of the brown economy, greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. Some prefer to assign blame to the failure of international treaties to curb emissions, yet there is so much that can be done by simple changes to the way we design and run our homes and…

Google Earth has become a powerful tool to show the scale of problems and illustrate solutions, which has encouraged a shift in public policy, funding for projects, and even in people’s fundamental understanding of the world. The software has proven to be an effective tool for monitoring the state of the environment, for example…

Carlo Petrini founded Slow Food in 1986 as a response to the opening of a McDonald’s outlet in Piazza di Spagna in Rome. Today the movement exists in over 150 countries and has a network of over 100,000 members and supporters. Slow Food International is responsible for publishing periodicals, books, and guides in many languages around the world…

Minister Izabella Teixeira is a career employee of the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama), which she joined in 1984 as an Environmental Analyst. Over her 28 years as a civil servant she has held several high-level management and advisory positions in the federal area. She took office as Minister of…