fbpx
Skip to content

ORDINARY PEOPLE. EXTRAORDINARY IMPACT.

Watch the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize ceremony.

Introducing the 2017 Goldman Prize Winners

April 24, 2017

Congratulations to the 2017 Goldman Environmental Prize winners!

mark! Lopez, United States

Prize winner for North America

Born and raised in a family of community activists, mark! Lopez persuaded the state of California to provide comprehensive lead testing and cleanup of East Los Angeles homes contaminated by a battery smelter that had polluted the community for over three decades.


Uroš Macerl, Slovenia

Prize winner for Europe

Uroš Macerl, an organic farmer from Slovenia, successfully stopped a cement kiln from co-incinerating petcoke with hazardous industrial waste by rallying legal support from fellow Eko Krog activists and leveraging his status as the only citizen allowed to challenge the plant’s permits.


Prafulla Samantara, India

Prize winner for Asia

An iconic leader of social justice movements in India, Prafulla Samantara led a historic 12-year legal battle that affirmed the indigenous Dongria Kondh’s land rights and protected the Niyamgiri Hills from a massive, open-pit aluminum ore mine.


Wendy Bowman, Australia

Prize winner for Islands & Island Nations

In the midst of an onslaught of coal development in Australia, octogenarian Wendy Bowman stopped a powerful multinational mining company from taking her family farm and protected her community in Hunter Valley from further pollution and environmental destruction.


Rodrigo Tot, Guatemala

Prize winner for South & Central America

An indigenous leader in Guatemala’s Agua Caliente, Rodrigo Tot led his community to a landmark court decision that ordered the government to issue land titles to the Q’eqchi people and kept environmentally destructive nickel mining from expanding into his community.


Rodrigue Katembo, Democratic Republic of Congo

Prize winner for Africa

Putting his life on the line, Rodrigue Katembo went undercover to document and release information about bribery and corruption in the quest to drill for oil in Virunga National Park, resulting in public outrage that forced the company to withdraw from the project.


Don’t miss watching these brave activists receive their awards and join us as we stream live on Monday April 24.

Recent Posts

Five Highlights from the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize


May 3, 2023

It’s been just over a week since we announced the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize winners, six ordinary people who took extraordinary actions to protect their environments and communities. Join us in reflecting on some highlights from a whirlwind Prize winner tour. 1. The 2023 Prize Winner Announcement We were honored to announce the 2023 Goldman…

Read more

Introducing the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize Winners


April 24, 2023

We are honored to announce the 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize winners. These six grassroots environmental leaders prove that ordinary people can have an extraordinary impact on the planet. Join us tonight, April 24, 2023, at 5:30 pm PDT (8:30 pm EDT) in celebrating this year’s winners. Tune into the livestream of the San Francisco ceremony…

Read more

Prize Winners Today: Kimberly Wasserman’s Fight for Environmental Justice in Chicago


February 28, 2023 – By Ellen Lomonico

A Voice for Environmental Justice Kimberly Wasserman is a born organizer. Strong, joyful, and constantly evolving, she radiates warmth and energy. Secure in her beliefs but open minded and friendly, Kim’s power comes from both within herself and from her community on the Southwest side of Chicago: Little Village. Last month, we sat down with…

Read more