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Laura Fernandez

May 10, 2022

Laura is a resident of the San Francisco Bay Area with roots in the Andes mountains of Colombia. She has extensive international experience working for climate and environmental nonprofits, as well as within philanthropy and civil society. She manages resource mobilization and networking for Prize winners, and coordinates Prize winner security and defense. Prior to joining the Prize, Laura was a program officer for communities and the environment at the Rose Foundation, where she now serves on the board of directors. As a firm believer in the power of community-driven solutions, she practices participatory grantmaking as part of the Latino Giving Circle Network. Laura holds two BAs—one in Geography and another in International Relations—from Florida International University and did graduate studies in International Development and Sustainability in Geneva, Switzerland. She joined the Prize in 2022.

Recent Posts

The Green Transition Cannot Be Built on Poisoned Rivers 


June 15, 2026 – By Pianporn (Pai) Deetes

The following piece is a guest post by Pianporn Deetes, Executive Director of Rivers and Rights.  For six days, I walked alongside monks, Indigenous communities, women, youth, artists, and river defenders along the Kok River, a tributary of the Mekong in northern Thailand near the borders of Myanmar and Laos. We carried out this Peace Walk because people…

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How Women Past and Present Drive the Environmental Movement


June 9, 2026

This year, for the first time ever, all six recipients of the Goldman Environmental Prize are women. The 2026 Goldman Prize winners—Iroro Tanshi (Nigeria), Borim Kim (South Korea), Sarah Finch (United Kingdom), Theonila Roka Matbob (Papua New Guinea), Alannah Acaq Hurley (United States), and Yuvelis Morales Blanco (Colombia)—represent a powerful group of environmental leaders. Their…

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A Q&A with Sarah Finch on Reshaping Climate Policy in the UK


May 19, 2026

When asked what it’s like to have a major climate ruling named after her, Sarah Finch responded, “It’s really cool!” A writer and editor from southeastern England, Sarah is now a well-known name in environmental circles thanks to the “Finch ruling,” a 2024 decision by the UK Supreme Court that requires environmental assessments to consider the downstream impacts that fossil fuels will have on the global climate, in addition to local…

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