Awarded biennially, the Equator Prize recognizes community-based initiatives that demonstrate extraordinary achievement in reducing poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in the equatorial belt. Prize winners receive worldwide recognition for their work as well as an opportunity to help shape national and global policy and practice in the field. The fact that the Equator Prize will be awarded in 2010 has special significance, as it is the International Year of Biodiversity.
Twenty-five community organizations will be honored with the Equator Prize 2010 and US$5,000 each. Five of these communities will receive special recognition and an additional US$15,000. Special recognition will be given in the following categories: one for each region of eligibility (Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean), one to the initiative that best exemplifies Indigenous Peoples' use of Traditional Knowledge, and one to the initiative that best exemplifies Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change.
The Equator Prize 2010 nomination process will be open through 28 February 2010. Details on the criteria for the Prize, information on the award process, and the online nomination system can be accessed through the Equator Initiative website at www.equatorinitiative.org.