News: A self-help group (SHG) from a small village in Kundgol taluk of Dharwad district has bagged the ‘Equator Initiative Award’ given by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
About UNDP Equator Initiative Award
- Organized by: The Equator Prize is organized by the Equator Initiative within the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
- Purpose: It is presented annually to honour nature-based solutions led by indigenous people and local communities that promote sustainable development and ecological resilience.
- The Award is also referred to as the Nobel Prize for Biodiversity Conservation.
- The Award is announced on International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
- This Day is observed on 9 August each year to raise awareness and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population.
- Prize: The award includes a cash prize of $10,000 (approximately ₹8.5 lakh).
- 2025 Award: This year’s award selection was based on the theme – “Women and Youth Leadership for Nature-Based Climate Action”.
- Bibi Fatima Women’s SHG is the sole group from India to win the award.
- The other winners are from Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Indonesia, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Peru, and Tanzania.
- The women’s group had made remarkable achievements in areas of implementing eco-friendly farming practices in rainfed lands, managing community seed banks, ensuring food and nutrition security, promoting millet cultivation and running a millet processing unit, to value addition and marketing.
