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World’s Indigenous Peoples Day: UNEP highlights five advocates fighting to protect the planet – EnviroNews
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Some have been accused of terrorism. Many have been threatened with death. Nearly all have experienced discrimination.
But that hasn’t stopped a group of award-winning environmental pioneers from fighting for both the planet and the rights of Indigenous Peoples.
These men and women have all been named United Nations Champions of the Earth, the UN’s highest environmental honour, led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). And while they hail from different countries, they have shown that traditional knowledge can play a pivotal role in helping humanity navigate a series of mushrooming environmental crises far beyond their locations.
In the light of the 2026 International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples observed by the UN on August 9, the life and work of these five remarkable people are in focus.
Nemonte Nenquimo, Ecuador
A member of the Waorani community, Nenquimo spearheaded a precedent-setting lawsuit that helped protect 500,000 hectares of Amazonian rainforest from unsustainable oil and gas development. The decision, reached in 2020, was cheered by Indigenous Ecuadorians, who for decades had seen their lands appropriated by loggers, miners and drug traffickers.
But Nenquimo viewed the case as more than just a victory for the Waorani.
“If we allow the Amazon to be destroyed little by little, of course, that affects us as Indigenous Peoples. But it will also affect everyone because of climate change,” she said in 2020. “The struggle we do is for all humanity.”
Joan Carling, Philippines
Carling grew up in the mineral-rich mountains of northern Philippines, where a scramble for natural resources – much of it on Indigenous land – would leave a lasting impression.
A member of the Kankanaey tribe, she has devoted her life to helping Indigenous Peoples assert their rights over their traditional territories. With her support, communities have pushed back against a suite of ecologically damaging megaprojects, from mines to dams.
For her efforts, she was branded a “terrorist”, but that did little to dissuade her.
“Indigenous leaders are jailed and killed, while communities are powerless. It’s heartbreaking, but it has also strengthened my commitment,” she told UNEP after being named a Champion of the Earth.
Yacouba Sawadogo, Burkina Faso
Sawadogo, who died in 2023, spent four decades helping communities regreen the dusty soils of Africa’s Sahel region.
Known as “The Man Who Stopped the Desert,” he was an evangelist for an Indigenous farming technique known as zai, in which farmers dig small pits into the soil and line them with compost to trap rainwater.
Sawadogo’s modified version of zai, which uses rocks to trap moisture and termites to break up hard ground, can boost yields five-fold. Today, it is used from Ghana to Kenya and has become a critical tool for communities grappling with droughts linked to climate change.
Amy Bowers Cordalis, United States of America
In 2024, crews demolished the last of four dams along California’s Klamath River, returning the salmon-rich waterway to a free-flowing state for the first time in more than a century.
For Bowers Cordalis, it was a moment of triumph. An attorney and member of the Toruk tribe, she led a years-long campaign to remove the dams, which had decimated the salmon fishery on which the Yoruk rely.
“I thought we were going to be the generation that witnessed the collapse and complete death of the river,” Bowers Cordalis said 2024. “But now we will be the generation that sees the rebirth and restoration of our ecosystem, our culture and our lifeblood.”
Sonia Guajajara, Brazil
Born in the Amazon rainforest, Guajajara made history in 2023 when she was appointed Brazil’s first-ever Minister of Indigenous Peoples.
A longtime activist, her elevation was considered a watershed moment for Brazil’s Indigenous communities, who have faced intimidation and violence – including murder – for protecting their land.
As a minister, Guajajara focused on formally recognizing Indigenous land claims in the Amazon, and rooting out illegal loggers, miners and drug traffickers.
“With these operations, we want to hand the territory back to Indigenous Peoples so they can live in dignity and according to their own customs,” said Guajajara.
Celebrated annually on August 9, the day is designed to raise awareness about the plight of Indigenous communities, who often face violence and discrimination, and showcase how traditional practices can help a planet beset by a series of environment crises.
The Champions of the Earth award recognises individuals, groups and organisations whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment. The award is the United Nations’ highest environmental honour. The 2026 awardees will be announced later in the year.
By Andrew Raven
