'Green Nobel' prize to recognize environmental work in Amazon rainforest

A view of the Amazon rainforest at the lagoon of the Yasuni National Park, during a tour in the area by Indigenous Waorani people, whose territory is the subject of a referendum vote that may ban oil production in their region, in the Bameno community, in the Pastaza province, in Ecuador, July 29, 2023. REUTERS/Karen Toro/File photo

BRASILIA (Reuters) - The great-grandnephew of Alfred Nobel is offering a "Green Nobel" prize, unrelated to the Nobel Foundation, to environmental champions of the Amazon rainforest.

Marcus Nobel, a Swedish-American businessman based in Portland, Oregon, has instituted the annual environmental prize to spotlight projects that are helping preserve and sustain the rainforest and protect its biodiversity.