A celebration of "realistic hope" with this year's outstanding conservation leaders
In “one of the most humbling, uplifting and inspiring evenings ever”, the 2026 Whitley Awards Ceremony gathered 450 supporters at the Royal Geographical Society in London to honour the six latest Whitley Award-winning conservationists and the Whitley Gold Award winner.
This year’s global search attracted a record 270 applications from leaders across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Our flagship prize, the Whitley Awards provide strategic support, international profile, access to a global peer network, and £50,000 in project funding to accelerate grassroots conservation solutions.
Driving real change for nature and people, this year’s winners shared their ambitious plans to scale their work with teams and communities rooted in the ecosystems they protect.
WFN Ambassadors Tom Heap and Kate Humble generously hosted the ceremony again this year, with 1,800 people and counting tuning into the livestream from around the world. The auditorium was brought to life by a surprise performance from THE HERDS’ puppets, as a lion stalked a kudu across the stage and through the audience, and beautiful illustrations of the winners’ focal species by Emily Faccini.
Ahead of WFN Ambassador Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday, we celebrated his incredible contribution to the charity over nearly 30 years. By sharing his awe and wonder for nature, he has inspired people around the world – including Whitley Award winners – to do all we can to protect our planet, for all ‘life on Earth’. Watch the tribute film below to hear more from Whitley Award winners, and listen to the bonus episode of our How to Save It podcast.
In a moving welcome speech, WFN’s Founder Edward Whitley OBE thanked our major donors, the Friends of WFN, and partners for their “unconditional support and action” for over 30 years.
When extending “not just congratulations but thank you” to this year’s winners that offer us “realistic hope”, our Patron HRH The Princess Royal noted, “imagine what could happen if we can match their determination with some of the funding and support we can create here.”
Watch the livestream for both speeches.
A decade since her Whitley Award, Farwiza Farhan and colleagues from her NGO HAkA, Badrul Irfan, Irham Yunardi and Lukmanul Hakim, all took to the stage to receive the prestigious 2026 Whitley Gold Award. As Farwiza shared their achievements and challenges over the past 10 years and their plans for the future, she reinforced that “the work is deeply collective.” Her co-founder Badrul shared a special blessing in the languages of Aceh and Gayo, the languages of the Leuser Ecosystem. Don’t miss this year’s winners’ speeches.
The event premiered seven short winner films, produced by Silverback Films and narrated by WFN Ambassador Miranda Richardson, that tell the stories of these inspiring conservationists and their teams. Watch the films here.
Enjoy glimpses into the evening below, and browse the full photo album here.
