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Dr. Purnima Devi Barman, this year’s Champion of the Earth for Entrepreneurial Vision, was only a child when she developed an affinity for the stork, a bird that was to become her life’s passion.

Constantino Aucca Chutas’ interest in conservation began more than three decades ago with the fieldwork he did as a biology student in Cusco, Peru.

Nairobi, 22 November 2022 – The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) today announced its 2022 Champions of the Earth, honouring a conservationist, an enterprise, an economist, a women

Arcenciel (Lebanon), honoured in the Inspiration and Action category, is a leading environmental enterprise whose work to create a cleaner, healthier environment has laid the foundation for the country’s national waste management strategy. Today, arcenciel recycles more than 80 per cent of Lebanon’s potentially infectious hospital waste every year.

Constantino (Tino) Aucca Chutas (Peru), also honoured in the Inspiration and Action category, has pioneered a community reforestation model driven by local and Indigenous communities, which has led to three million trees being planted in the country. He is also leading ambitious reforestation efforts in other Andean countries.

Sir Partha Dasgupta (United Kingdom), honoured in the Science and Innovation category, is an eminent economist whose landmark review on the economics of biodiversity calls for a fundamental rethink of humanity’s relationship with the natural world to prevent critical ecosystems from reaching dangerous tipping points. 

Dr Purnima Devi Barman (India), honoured in the Entrepreneurial Vision category, is a wildlife biologist who leads the “Hargila Army”, an all-female grassroots conservation movement dedicated to protecting the Greater Adjutant Stork from extinction.

Cécile Bibiane Ndjebet (Cameroon), honoured in the Inspiration and Action category, is a tireless advocate for the rights of women in Africa to secure land tenure, which is essential if they are to play a role in restoring ecosystems, fighting poverty and mitigating climate change.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) received close to 2,200 nominations for its annual Champions of the Earth award in 2022, a new record.

Growing up in a remote part of Cameroon, Cécile Bibiane Ndjebet was acutely aware of the hardships endured by rural women. She saw her mother and others labouring from dawn to dusk, growing crops, tending to animals and raising children. Many did back-breaking work on land that, because of traditional sociocultural practices, they could never own.

Dr. Purnima Devi Barman, this year’s Champion of the Earth for Entrepreneurial Vision, was only a child when she developed an affinity for the stork, a bird that was to become her life’s passion.

When the United Kingdom Treasury approached Sir Partha Dasgupta in 2019 to carry out a review of the economics of biodiversity, the first time a finance ministry is believed to have commissioned such a study, the eminent Cambridge University economist did not think twice about saying “yes”.

Constantino Aucca Chutas’ interest in conservation began more than three decades ago with the fieldwork he did as a biology student in Cusco, Peru.At the time, the breath-taking slopes of the Peruvian Andes that surrounded the city were under pressure from annual fires, illegal logging and expanding farms.

The massive explosion that ripped through Beirut’s port in August 2020 left behind a tangled mess of concrete, metal and broken glass. The force of the blast, in which a stockpile of ammonium nitrate exploded, was felt more than 20km away.

The Champions of the Earth laureates implement innovative ways to support nature’s extraordinary capacity for renewal. They restore our planet, affirming that humanity has the ingenuity and ambition to protect our environment. The 2022 cycle shines a spotlight on efforts to prevent, halt and reverse ecosystem degradation across the world.

In 1987, the world came together to sign the Montreal Protocol, a global agreement to protect the Earth’s ozone layer.

The theme of this year’s International Day of Clean Air for blue skies on 7 September – the Air We Share - focuses on the need for collective action to

In everywhere from snowy Boreal forests to coral-studded Pacific coastlines, national parks, protected areas and traditional approaches are critical to conserving biodiversity.