Young Champions of the Earth is the UN Environment Programme’s most prestigious award for environmental action by young people. Run annually since 2017 in partnership with the Planet A platform and cleantech founder Chris Kemper (UNEP’s Advocate for Partnerships), it honours individuals aged 18 to 30 whose bold ideas tackle the triple planetary crisis of climate change; biodiversity and nature loss; and pollution and waste. Winners are selected globally and receive seed funding, intensive training, tailored mentorship and a global platform to scale their initiatives. Since 2017 the programme has recognised 33 young trailblazers from around the world.
Benefits & funding
- US$10,000 in seed funding (from Chris Kemper) to implement the winning idea; recipients submit a final report and budget on how it was spent.
- Intensive training, tailored mentorship and workshops, plus access to a worldwide community of environmental experts and high-level UN events.
- A trip to New York to compete in the Planet A pitch competition, where one winner receives a further grant of up to US$100,000.
- A smartphone multimedia production kit (iPhones) with communications and storytelling training to create self-shot videos and short articles over a period of up to one year.
- Global visibility across UNEP’s platforms: interviews, speaking engagements and international media coverage.
- All travel expenses for official ceremonies, mentorship workshops and events are covered.
Eligibility
- Open to individuals aged 18 to 30 of any nationality; winners are selected globally.
- Open to all fields — there is no requirement to study or work in the environmental sector.
- Applicants must have actively pursued their idea for a minimum of six months to demonstrate feasibility and commitment.
- Individual applications only; group or joint submissions are not accepted.
- A referee is required to vouch for the idea and for the applicant.
- No application fee. Winners must hold a valid passport for the required travel.
Can you apply?
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Age requirement
18–30 yrs
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Application process
- 1Develop your big idea and identify a referee who can vouch for its viability and for you as an individual.
- 2Submit the online application form on the Young Champions website during the annual nomination window; no edits are possible once submitted.
- 3Applications are reviewed and scored by experts from UNEP and Planet A.
- 4Selected winners are notified by email and announced publicly soon afterwards.
Program timeline
2026 nominations open
Feb 24, 2026
Application deadline for the 2026 cycle (extended from 31 March 2026)
Apr 15, 2026
Autumn 2026
Winners announced (the 2025 winners were announced on 23 September 2025)
Around February 2027 (expected)
2027 cycle opens