UNEP opens nominations for Young Champions of the Earth award

NAIROBI, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) on Tuesday launched a call for nomination for Young Champions of the Earth award.

UNEP's Executive Director Inger Andersen said that the award recognizes young people's contributions and outstanding potential to lead efforts to protect the environment.

"UNEP is in search of the most innovative minds of this generation, from all disciplines and every region in the world, who are actively recalibrating our relationship with nature," Andersen said during the launch on the sidelines of the sixth session of the United Nations Environmental Assembly underway in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.

This year, UNEP seeks seven young people -- aged between 18 and 30 -- who exemplify commitment to the environment and are leading projects that protect and revive nature to fight climate change, restore ecosystem functionality, and address pollution.

The selected young champions will receive 20,000 U.S. dollars in seed funding, a chance to attend high-level UN meetings, access to a community of global experts, and intensive training and tailored mentoring to bring their environmental ideas to life.

This year's nomination of the Young Champions of the Earth is jointly run with the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and in support of the new global biodiversity framework and it is open from Feb. 27 to April 5.

To demonstrate the project's dedication and feasibility, UNEP said that the prospective candidates must have actively pursued their ideas for a minimum of six months.

Past winners of the Young Champions of the Earth award include Adjany Costa, who developed a model for communities in one of the last wildlife hubs in eastern Angola.