23 February 2010: Two grassroots climate projects in Africa and South America have been awarded the Sasakawa Prize by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

The Prize, valued at US$200,000, aims to incentivize sustainable and replicable grassroots environmental efforts. The prize recipients are: Nuru Design, which provides rechargeable lights to villages in Rwanda, Kenya and India; and Trees, Water and People, an organization that distributes fuel-efficient stoves to people in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Haiti. Speaking about the prize, Achim Steiner, UNEP Executive Director, underlined that combating climate change “is not just up to governments; it starts at the grassroots level, as communities tap into the power of renewables and sustainable technologies.” [UNEP Press Release]