All-Female Cohort Wins Prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for 2026
In a historic first for the Goldman Environmental Prize, all six recipients for 2026 are women, marking a significant milestone in the award's 37-year history. The winners, drawn from each of the world's six primary regions, have been recognised for their exceptional grassroots environmental activism.
Sarah Finch: A Legal Pioneer in UK Climate Law
Among the honourees is Sarah Finch, whose landmark legal case in the UK has set a crucial precedent in climate law. The Supreme Court ruling, known as the Finch ruling, mandates that any approval for new fossil fuel projects must account for the climate impact of burning the extracted coal, oil, or gas.
This decision has been instrumental in halting thousands of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, influencing cases against new oil concessions in the North Sea, the UK's first new deep coalmine in three decades, and plans for large-scale factory farms. Mel Evans, head of campaigns at Greenpeace UK, described it as a "gamechanger for environmental campaigners" that aligns UK law more closely with climate science.
Celebrating Global Grassroots Leadership
The other recipients include:
- Iroro Tanshi, a Nigerian conservation ecologist who led a community campaign to protect endangered bats from human-induced wildfires.
- Borim Kim, a South Korean activist who won Asia's first successful youth-led climate litigation, finding her government's climate policy violated the rights of future generations.
- Alannah Acaq Hurley, a Yup'ik Indigenous leader who stopped what would have been North America's largest open-pit mine in Alaska's Bristol Bay region.
- Yuvelis Morales Blanco, a youth activist from an Afro-descendant community in Puerto Wilches, Colombia, who mobilised against two drilling projects, preventing commercial fracking.
- Theonila Roka Matbob of Papua New Guinea, whose campaign forced mining giant Rio Tinto to address devastation from its Panguna mine.
A Legacy of Environmental Excellence
Founded in 1989 by philanthropists Rhoda and Richard Goldman, the prize has honoured 239 winners from 98 nations, including 112 women. Many past recipients have advanced to roles as government officials, heads of state, NGO leaders, and Nobel laureates.
John Goldman, vice-president of the Goldman Environmental Foundation, praised the winners, stating, "True leaders can be found all around us. The 2026 prize winners are proof positive that courage, hard work and hope go a long way toward creating meaningful progress." He highlighted the "absolutely central role that women play in the environmental community globally."
This year's awards underscore the growing influence of grassroots activism in driving environmental change worldwide, with these six women leading the charge against climate and ecological challenges.
