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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.

Dr. Atiq Rahman is an eloquent advocate for sustainable development from Bangladesh- a country highly vulnerable to climate change and flooding. As one of the top specialists in his field, the Executive Director of the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) transformed the NGO into a leading think-tank in South Asia on sustainable development issues.

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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.

Dr. Ramanathan is a Distinguished Professor at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UCSD. In the 1970s, he discovered the greenhouse effect of CFCs and numerous other manmade trace gases, and forecasted in 1980 that global warming would be detectable by the year 2000.

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.

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.

Born into a dynasty of scientists who have explored the heights and depths of the planet, Bertrand Piccard achieved the first ever non-stop round-the-world balloon flight.

By setting a carbon neutral goal for New Zealand, Prime Minister Helen Clark has put her country at the forefront of today's environmental challenges. Three major policy initiatives launched by Miss Clark are also blazing new trails for sustainability and the fight against climate change: the Emissions Trading Scheme; the Energy Strategy; and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy.

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.

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 the Environment in 2010.

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber is a leading business and political figure, championing the development and deployment of renewable energy and clean technology solutions.

Samson Parashina, a Maasai warrior, son of a local chief and respected safari guide, has shown amazing commitment to developing sustainable green economy models for Kenya’s Kuku Group Ranch, land communally owned by the Maasai community.

"Responsibility is more important than growth", runs one of the company mottos of China’s BROAD Group.

To sustain natural resources for future generations, HRH Prince El Hassan Bin Talal has addressed environmental issues in a holistic manner. In particular, his belief in transboundary collaboration to protect the environment merits global recognition.

Mr. Barbosa is widely recognized as one of the earliest and most successful banking executives to integrate environmentally and socially conscious practices into his leadership.

Mr. Ba-Jammal has had a truly pioneering influence on environmental protection in Yemen - a country which faces acute challenges from water scarcity to desertification.

In this age of social media and selfies, of the widespread portrayal of disengaged youths glued to smart phones in search of diversion rather than information, many have chosen to write off the next generation of activists.

Dr. Janez Potočnik became a Member of the European Commission in May 2004. As the Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Potocnik is recognized for his strong commitment to the mainstreaming of the environmental dimension in the development of a more resource-efficient economy, as reaffirmed by his recent call for a 'New Environmentalism'.

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.