All Laureates

On a sprawling campus in Pretoria, scientists, engineers and researchers are hard at work in South Africa’s biggest and best-resourced laboratory complex. Hunched over microscopes, peering into petri dishes and meticulously recording test results, they have a shared vision: to improve the quality of life for all South Africans, as…

Dr. Balgis Osman-Elasha, a senior scientist from Sudan, is at the forefront of global research on climate change. A leading author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports, she has produced groundbreaking work on global warming - the defining challenge of our era - in Africa, with an emphasis on northern and eastern…

Fabian Leendertz, a veterinarian who has helped trace the origin of some of the world’s deadliest disease outbreaks, has been named the 2020 Champion of the Earth for Science and Innovation.

Leendertz has led ground-breaking investigations into pathogens like Anthrax and Ebola, exploring how the contagions jump between animals and…

It might have been the neighbor’s monkey which came downstairs to join her for piano lessons, or the wildlife club that she started in primary school in Kampala, Uganda. But from a very early age, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, this year’s Champion of the Earth for Science and Innovation, knew she wanted to work with animals.

“Basically,…

Russian scientist Dr. Olga Speranskaya has been garnering headlines worldwide for her work to reduce the harmful impact of toxic chemicals in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.  
            
Many former Soviet countries are home to vast stockpiles of…

Dr. Van der Leeuw has spent his career studying human-environment relations and invention and innovation in society, applying the lessons learned from history to help understand why humanity is not facing up to the long-term issue of environmental change.

He works at Arizona State University as Dean of the School of Sustainability and…

After earning a degree in engineering, a doctorate in Earth Science and a professorship at Queens College and Columbia University, Dr. Taro Takahashi is now a Senior Scholar at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University.

Dr. Takahashi has devoted five decades of his life to discovering how carbon cycles through oceans,…

Dr Tewolde Berhan was born on 19 February 1940 in a small village near Adwa town in Tigray Region of northern Ethiopia. His father was an Orthodox priest and his mother the daughter of one of the founders of the Lutheran Church of Mekane Yesus who had originally been trained for priesthood in the Orthodox church. Both parents put a strong…

Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat are joint winners of the Champions of the Earth Award, in the Science and Innovation category. They produce a sustainable alternative to beef burgers that are more environmentally friendly and rival the taste of meat. These winners believe that there is no pathway to achieve the Paris climate objectives without…

Janine Benyus is the Co-founder of Biomimicry 3.8. She is a biologist, innovation consultant, and author of six books, including Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. Since the book’s 1997 release, Janine’s work as a global thought leader has evolved the practice of biomimicry from a meme to a movement, inspiring clients and innovators…