Seven grassroots leaders honored with 2025 Goldman Environmental Prize

The Goldman Environmental Foundation has announced the seven recipients of the 2025 Goldman Environmental Prize, an award for grassroots environmental activists. The winners, selected from each of the six inhabited continental regions, were recognized in a ceremony that took place in San Francisco on April 21, 2025.

Awarded annually since 1989, the Prize honors the achievements and leadership of grassroots environmental activists around the world. It was established by philanthropists and civic leaders Rhoda and Richard Goldman in San Francisco. Over the past 36 years, the Prize has celebrated 233 winners—including 106 women—from 98 countries. Many of these individuals have risen to become government officials, NGO leaders, heads of state, and Nobel laureates.

“It’s been a tough year for both people and the planet,” said Jennifer Goldman Wallis, vice president of the Goldman Environmental Foundation. “There’s so much that worries us, stresses us, outrages us, and keeps us divided. However, for me, these environmental leaders and teachers—and the global environmental community that supports them—are the antidote. If we apply the same passion and logic that we use in the protection of our own families to our broader communities and ecosystems, then we will win. In these difficult times for environmental activists, these seven individuals serve as powerful reminders of what is possible through determination, resilience, and hope.”

The 2025 winners are:

AFRICA – Semia Gharbi, Tunisia
Gharbi played a pivotal role in exposing and challenging a corrupt waste trafficking scheme between Italy and Tunisia. Her activism led to the return of 6,000 tons of illegally exported household waste back to Italy in February 2022. The scandal resulted in the arrest of over 40 corrupt government officials and others involved in both countries. Her campaign prompted policy reforms within the European Union, tightening regulations on international waste shipments.

ASIA – Batmunkh Luvsandash, Mongolia
Luvsandash’s environmental work culminated in the creation of a 66,000-acre protected area in Dornogovi province in April 2022, adjacent to tens of thousands of acres previously conserved by him and his allies. This steppe region is home to rare species including Argali sheep and 75% of the world’s population of endangered Asiatic wild ass, providing a vital barrier against Mongolia’s intensifying mining activities.

EUROPE – Besjana Guri and Olsi Nika, Albania
Guri and Nika led a successful campaign to halt hydropower development along the Vjosa River. Their work culminated in the Albanian government’s March 2023 declaration of the Vjosa Wild River National Park, protecting 167 miles of the river and 250 miles of its tributaries. This initiative established Europe’s first national park dedicated to preserving a wild river, securing vital habitats for numerous endangered species.

ISLANDS & ISLAND NATIONS – Carlos Mallo Molina, Canary Islands
Mallo Molina was instrumental in blocking the Fonsalía Port project in Tenerife, which threatened a 170,000-acre marine protected area. In October 2021, the Canary Islands government canceled the port’s construction following a global advocacy campaign. He is now advancing plans to establish a world-class marine conservation and education center— the first of its kind in the region.

NORTH AMERICA – Laurene Allen, United States
In response to a major environmental crisis in New Hampshire, Allen led a community-driven campaign that exposed contamination from the Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics plant. Her efforts resulted in the plant’s announced closure in August 2023, with operations ceasing in May 2024 after more than two decades of polluting local air, soil, and water with toxic forever chemicals.

SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICA – Mari Luz Canaquiri Murayari, Peru
As president of the Asociación de Mujeres Huaynakana Kamatahuara Kana, Canaquiri Murayari secured a landmark court decision in March 2024 recognizing the legal personhood of the Marañón River. The ruling, a first in Peru, obligates the government to prevent oil spills, develop a basin-wide protection plan, and acknowledges the Kukama people as stewards of the river.

For more on the 2025 winners, visit goldmanprize.org.