Winners of the 2019 UN Global Climate Action Awards Announced

UN Climate Press Release / 26 Sep, 2019

Credit: Electriciens sans frontières

(Bonn | New York City, 26 September 2019) - The recipients of the 2019 United Nations Global Climate Action Awards were announced today, helping to shine a light on some of the most practical examples of what people across the globe are doing to combat climate change.

The award-winning projects range from an in-app mini program that’s helped plant 122 million trees, to a “climate positive” burger that’s taking the fast food industry by storm.

The announcement of the award winners comes shortly after the UN Climate Summit in New York, convened by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, and in parallel with Climate Week NYC.

“The recipients of the UN Global Climate Action Awards are leaders from communities, governments, businesses and organisations, and they are from all corners of the globe and all levels of society,” said Niclas Svenningsen, Manager of the UN Climate Change Global Climate Action Programme. “It is crucial we celebrate all actors who are leading the way. Their award-winning initiatives send a strong political signal to all nations – and through their leadership and creativity, we see essential change.”

Today’s announcement is part of the wider effort to mobilize action and ambition as national governments work toward implementing the Paris Climate Change Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.

“Announced against the backdrop of nations signalling their renewed determination to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, these awards shine a light on 15 incredible examples of scalable climate action around the world,” added Mr. Svenningsen. “These inspiring examples of climate action serve as beacons, guiding us towards a more resilient, more sustainable and more prosperous future for all.”

The UN Global Climate Action Awards are spearheaded by the Momentum for Change initiative at UN Climate Change. The projects are recognized as innovative solutions that not only address climate change, but also help drive forward progress on many other sustainable development goals, for example, innovation, gender equality and economic opportunity.

The 2019 awards were selected by an international Advisory Panel as part of UN Climate Change’s Momentum for Change initiative, which is implemented with the support of The Rockefeller Foundation, and operates in partnership with the World Economic Forum, donors supporting the implementation of the UN Climate Change's Gender Action Plan and Climate Neutral Now.

“This year, we had over 670 applications from all over the world ranging from local governments, global companies, grassroots development initiatives and multi-million dollar impact investment projects,” said Gabrielle Ginér, Chair of the Momentum for Change Advisory Panel. “This year’s winning activities are amazing examples of innovative, scalable, and replicable climate action. We hope they will inspire others as we look to tackle one of society’s biggest challenges.”

The 2019 winners of the UN Global Climate Action Award are:

Planetary Health:

Impossible Foods | Singapore, Hong Kong, USA, Macau: Creating plant-based alternatives to meat.
Alipay Ant Forest | China: Using digital technologies to scale up climate action.
Ghent en Garde | Belgium: Creating structural change through local food policy.
Electriciens sans frontières | Dominica: Providing “emergency pockets” of solar energy to health centres.

Climate Neutral Now:

MAX Burgers | Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Poland: Creating the world’s first “Climate Positive” menu.
Natura’s Carbon Neutral Programme | Global: Measuring and reducing emissions across their entire value chain, from the extraction of raw materials through to their distribution.
Apple’s Emissions Reduction Mission | Global: Reducing their emissions through clean energy and innovative product design.
Infosys’ Journey to Carbon Neutrality | India: One of the first companies of its type to commit to carbon neutrality, while investing in local carbon offsetting projects.

Women for Results:

Campaign for Female Education’s Climate-Smart Agriculture Guides | Sub-Saharan Africa: Training young women from marginalized farming communities to become Agriculture Guides.
Mothers Out Front | US: A movement of over 24,000 mothers mobilising for a liveable climate for their children.
Women’s Action Towards Climate Resilience in South Asia | Bangladesh, India and Nepal: Empowering women in low-income households to increase their climate resilience.
Eco Wave Power | Israel, Gibraltar: A world-leading project generating clean energy from the ocean, co-founded and led by a female CEO.

Financing for Climate Friendly Investment:

Beyond the Grid Fund | Zambia: Providing affordable, off-grid clean energy solutions that are quick to deploy.
Women’s Livelihood Bond Series | Global: Unlocking over USD 150 million in capital to empower over two million women in South and Southeast Asia.
Québec’s International Climate Cooperation Program | Canada: Issuing climate finance and support to developing countries, funded by the province’s own carbon market.

The 15 award-winning projects fall within four focus areas: Planetary Health, Climate Neutral Now, Women for Results, and Financing for Climate Friendly Investment. All activities will be showcased at a series of special events during the second week of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP25) in Santiago, Chile (2-13 December 2019).

Additional assets:

Photos, fact sheets and other digital assets are available for download from this Trello board.
Read more about the UN’s Momentum for Change Initiative here.

For more information, please contact:

Sarah Marchildon, UN Climate Change
Team Lead, Momentum for Change
smarchildon@unfccc.int

+49 (0) 228 815 1065

Neneh Darwin, UN Climate Change
Communications, Momentum for Change
ndarwin@unfccc.int

+49 1516 350 4355 | +61 401256 617 (for Whatsapp)