The United Nations has awarded ten innovative initiatives from around the world for their role in nature restoration. The winners were presented at the UN Conference on Biodiversity in Montreal.
The winners of the World Ecosystem Restoration Award are conservation initiatives located in territories from Central America to East Asia. The winners were eligible for United Nations support, advice, or funding.
The winners were presented at the UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal and a special virtual gala featuring actors Jason Momoa and Edward Norton, Dr. Jane Goodall, extreme mountaineer Nirmala Purji, singer Ellie Goulding, British group Bastille, Chinese celebrity Li Bingbing, Executive Director UNEP Inger Andersen, FAO Deputy Director-General Maria Helena Semedo and British economist Sir Part Dasgupta, among others. The gala performance was hosted by Indian National Geographic explorer and wildlife filmmaker Malaika Vaz.
The names of the winners of the World Ecosystem Restoration Prize were announced and were eligible for UN support, advice or funding. They were selected under the auspices of the United Nations Decade for Ecosystem Restoration, a worldwide movement coordinated by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) aimed at preventing and reversing the degradation of natural areas around the planet.
Together, the 10 winners intend to restore more than 68 million hectares of territory — an area larger than Myanmar, France or Somalia, and create almost 15 million jobs.