Recently, three entrepreneurs from India, Kenya and the United States have been awarded the UN Environment Programme’s 2025 Young Champions of the Earth prize.

2025 Winners

1.     Jinali Mody (28, India) leads a women-owned company producing leather alternatives from banana crop waste, reducing the fast fashion industry’s environmental impact by significantly lowering water use, toxic waste, and carbon emissions compared to traditional leather.

2.     Joseph Nguthiru (27, Kenya) converts the invasive water hyacinth from Lake Naivasha into biodegradable packaging bags and seedling wrappers, offering sustainable replacements for single-use plastics.

3.     Noemi Florea (24, US) developed a compact greywater reuse system that retrofits under sinks, showers, and laundry units to convert wastewater into drinking water, using significantly less energy than existing technologies.

Young Champions of the Earth prize

¨     The Young Champions of the Earth Prize is annual flagship award of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

¨     It recognizes exceptional environmental entrepreneurs under the age of 30 who offer innovative solutions to pressing global environmental challenges.

¨     It was established in 2017; the program was relaunched in 2025 with renewed support from American cleantech CEO Chris Kemper, who also co-founded Planet A, a YouTube channel to drive environmental awareness.

¨     Each winner receives $20,000 in seed funding, mentoring and access to a global platform to scale their ideas.

¨     Additionally, they compete for a business growth grant of $100,000 and a potential $1 million seed investment through the Planet A pitch competition.

¨     Since its inception, the Young Champions award has honoured 30 innovators worldwide.

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

¨     UNEP is the leading global environmental authority within the United Nations system, established in 1972 to coordinate international efforts on environmental issues.

¨     Its mission is to provide leadership and promote partnerships to protect the environment, inspiring and enabling nations to improve quality of life sustainably.

¨     UNEP facilitates environmental governance and international environmental agreements and runs scientific assessments to inform policy decisions.

¨     Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, UNEP collaborates with 193 member states, civil society, businesses, and other stakeholders.