As ecosystems face unprecedented pressure, recognizing individuals who drive meaningful change has become essential to sustaining life on Earth. The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity highlights those efforts and amplifies their impact worldwide.
The global community keeps working to halt and reverse biodiversity loss while also addressing interconnected pressures such as climate change, food security, and human well-being. Within this context, international recognition programs play a vital role by showcasing successful approaches, spreading knowledge, and inspiring action across different sectors and regions. A prominent illustration of this is the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity, an international award dedicated to honoring individuals whose contributions have delivered a concrete impact on conserving and sustainably managing the planet’s biological diversity.
The nomination process for the 2026 edition of the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity is now underway, inviting the public to recommend individuals whose achievements reflect notable leadership, creative approaches, and lasting influence. Submissions can be made from 2 February to 31 March 2026 via the official platform of the AEON Environmental Foundation. By opening nominations to everyone, the Prize strengthens its dedication to openness and inclusivity, ensuring that meaningful contributions from a wide range of regions and fields gain recognition on the global stage.
A distinction crafted to bring biodiversity to the forefront of the global agenda
The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity was created to underscore the vital role biodiversity plays in sustaining resilient ecosystems and supporting human life. Strong biodiversity underpins food systems, moderates climate patterns, protects water resources, and enhances both economic prosperity and cultural traditions. Nevertheless, biodiversity decline has accelerated in recent years, driven by habitat degradation, pollution, the overuse of natural resources, and the effects of climate change.
Set against this context, the Prize functions not only as an accolade but also as a vehicle for raising awareness, showcasing notable individual efforts to capture public attention with practical responses and emphasizing that dedicated leadership can deliver concrete environmental results. Through its recognition, the Prize narrows the divide between scientific insight, policy formation, and real-world action, fostering cooperation among different fields and sectors.
Since its inception, the Prize has honored individuals whose work spans a wide range of fields, from scientific research and community-based conservation to policy advocacy and environmental education. This diversity reflects an understanding that biodiversity conservation cannot be achieved through isolated efforts, but requires coordinated action that integrates science, governance, and societal engagement.
International collaboration at the heart of the initiative
The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity is jointly organized by the AEON Environmental Foundation and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), a collaboration that unites a philanthropic institution with a leading body in global environmental governance to ensure the Prize reflects international biodiversity goals while staying closely connected to practical, real‑world outcomes.
The Convention on Biological Diversity, adopted in 1992, provides the principal global framework for biodiversity conservation, sustainable use, and the fair sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources. Through its involvement, the CBD Secretariat helps position the MIDORI Prize within broader international efforts, linking individual achievements to collective global goals.
The 2026 Award Ceremony and Award Winners Forum will be held on 27 August 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. These events are expected to contribute to global momentum around the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD (COP 17), scheduled to take place in Yerevan, Armenia. COP 17 will be convened under the theme “Taking action for Nature,” emphasizing implementation and accountability during a critical phase for global biodiversity commitments.
Honoring remarkable accomplishments spanning a wide array of pursuits
One of the defining features of the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity is its recognition of excellence across different areas of contribution. Rather than focusing on a single discipline, the Prize acknowledges that progress in biodiversity conservation depends on complementary efforts that address scientific, social, and political dimensions.
Historically, award categories have included implementation, science and research, and policy and enlightenment. Implementation-focused recipients are often those who translate knowledge into action, delivering conservation outcomes through field projects, community engagement, or sustainable resource management. Science and research honorees contribute by advancing understanding of ecosystems, species, and ecological processes, providing the evidence base needed for informed decision-making. Policy and enlightenment awardees, meanwhile, play a critical role in shaping legislation, influencing governance frameworks, and raising public awareness.
This holistic approach mirrors the complexity of biodiversity challenges and reinforces the idea that no single pathway is sufficient on its own. By celebrating achievements across these domains, the Prize encourages cross-sector dialogue and highlights the value of integrated strategies.
A decade shaped by the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework
The significance of the MIDORI Prize has steadily increased alongside the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), approved during the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD in 2022. This Framework serves as a worldwide roadmap designed to stop and reverse biodiversity decline by 2030, outlining 23 practical targets aimed at confronting the main causes of ecological degradation while advancing sustainable use and fair benefit-sharing.
Achieving the ambitions of the KMGBF calls for a society-wide effort that brings together governments, the private sector, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and individual citizens. The MIDORI Prize strongly supports this vision by celebrating individuals who showcase leadership and inventive approaches in advancing these goals. In doing so, it transforms the Framework’s targets into tangible examples of progress, making once-abstract objectives clearer and more accessible.
As the 2030 deadline approaches, the importance of scaling up effective solutions becomes increasingly clear. Recognition initiatives such as the MIDORI Prize can accelerate this process by amplifying successful models and encouraging their replication in different contexts.
Building a legacy of global impact
Since it was established during the International Year of Biodiversity in 2010, the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity has recognized 21 individuals from 20 countries. This geographic diversity underscores the global nature of biodiversity challenges and the universal relevance of conservation efforts. From tropical forests and coral reefs to urban ecosystems and agricultural landscapes, the work of past recipients demonstrates that impactful action can take many forms.
The legacy of the Prize reaches well beyond honoring individuals, as its award ceremonies and related forums create spaces for exchanging knowledge, building networks, and encouraging collaboration, allowing winners to discuss their experiences and learn from each other. Such interactions nurture a worldwide community of practice committed to biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
Moreover, public recognition can enhance the visibility and credibility of awardees, supporting their ability to secure funding, influence policy, and expand their initiatives. In this way, the Prize acts as a catalyst, multiplying the impact of individual efforts and contributing to broader systemic change.
Community engagement and the selection procedure
By inviting the public to submit nominations, the MIDORI Prize reinforces the idea that safeguarding biodiversity is a shared responsibility, allowing communities, organizations, and individuals to highlight initiatives that might remain overlooked, particularly in regions or disciplines where acknowledgment is scarce.
The nomination period for the 2026 Prize runs from 2 February to 31 March 2026, a timeframe in which submissions are assessed according to criteria that emphasize demonstrable outcomes, creative methods, and alignment with global biodiversity objectives. Through this evaluation approach, the Prize seeks to honor individuals whose contributions offer valuable perspectives and inspire others working in the same arena.
Public participation in the nomination process also plays an educational role, fostering broader understanding of biodiversity challenges and the individuals working to tackle them. As people explore prospective nominees and their efforts, they gain a clearer view of the practical initiatives that reinforce environmental sustainability.
Anticipating 2026 and the years ahead
As global attention turns toward COP 17 and the ongoing implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, initiatives like the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity play an increasingly important role. They help maintain momentum, celebrate progress, and remind the international community that individual leadership remains a powerful driver of change.
The 2026 Award Ceremony and Award Winners Forum in Tokyo are expected to provide a platform for reflection and dialogue at a pivotal moment for biodiversity governance. By bringing together awardees, policymakers, researchers, and practitioners, these events will contribute to shared learning and reinforce the urgency of coordinated action.
Over the decade that will shape the planet’s biological diversity, acknowledging and empowering those who set the standard is not merely symbolic but a strategic commitment to the ideas, methods, and alliances essential for protecting nature today and in the years ahead. The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity serves as clear evidence of the influence dedicated individuals can exert when their contributions are recognized, elevated, and linked to global sustainability initiatives.
