24/10/2026
🌍 FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, ALL SIX WINNERS OF THE “GREEN NOBEL” PRIZE ARE WOMEN! 🏆💚
Six women. Six regions of the world. Six extraordinary stories of people standing up to protect our planet.
The 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize, often called the “Green Nobel,” has made history by recognizing six women whose grassroots campaigns have challenged powerful industries, influenced court decisions, and helped protect some of Earth’s most precious ecosystems.
And their stories deserve to be heard.
🇳🇬 IRORO TANSHI — NIGERIA
When an endangered bat species faced the threat of wildfires destroying its forest habitat, conservation scientist Iroro Tanshi helped build a community-led wildfire prevention network. By working with surrounding villages and training local forest guardians, she helped protect the Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary and the people who depend on its land.
🇰🇷 BORIM KIM — SOUTH KOREA
After witnessing the growing consequences of extreme heat, Borim Kim helped organize young people to challenge their government’s climate policies in court. Their campaign contributed to a landmark 2024 Constitutional Court ruling requiring stronger legal targets for future emissions reductions.
🇬🇧 SARAH FINCH — UNITED KINGDOM
For more than a decade, Sarah Finch challenged oil drilling in her community. Her persistence helped secure a historic Supreme Court ruling in 2024 requiring authorities to consider the climate impact of burning the oil a project would produce — not just the emissions generated by extracting it.
🇵🇬 THEONILA ROKA MATBOB — PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Growing up near the abandoned Panguna copper and gold mine, Theonila Roka Matbob witnessed the lasting consequences of mining pollution on local communities. Her advocacy helped bring Rio Tinto back to the table, leading to an agreement to assess the damage and pursue remediation after decades without meaningful accountability.
🇺🇸 ALANNAH ACAQ HURLEY — UNITED STATES
Representing 15 tribal nations in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, Alannah Acaq Hurley helped lead a coalition opposing the proposed Pebble Mine. Their campaign helped secure federal protections against the project, safeguarding a watershed renowned for its enormous wild salmon runs and its importance to Indigenous communities.
🇨🇴 YUVELIS MORALES BLANCO — COLOMBIA
After witnessing the impact of oil pollution on the Magdalena River and the communities that depend on it, Yuvelis Morales Blanco helped mobilize young people against proposed fracking projects. Her advocacy contributed to a movement that saw the projects suspended and a landmark court ruling affirming local communities’ rights to free, prior, and informed consent.
Six very different journeys, connected by one powerful thread: ordinary people can create extraordinary change when they organize, persist, and refuse to give up on the places they call home.
These women didn't all fight in the same way. Some organized their communities. Some took on corporations. Others challenged governments in court. But each demonstrated that protecting the planet is not just the work of politicians or scientists — it can begin with one person deciding that something needs to change.
Their recognition is historic, but the work they represent is happening every day in communities around the world.
🌱 Which of these six stories inspires you the most? Share your thoughts below.
Discover all six winners: https://www.goldmanprize.org/2026
