By Jean-Claude Burgelman and Lily Linke
The Earth is facing a plethora of ecosystem threats, tipping our planet beyond its limits at an alarming rate and risking irreversible damage to the Earth’s systems.
Human activity has already led us to breach six of our nine planetary boundaries through increased agricultural run-off, accelerated biodiversity loss, surging greenhouse gas emissions and more.
Based on the World Meteorological Organisation’s State of the Global Climate report, 2024 was the hottest year in the 175-year observational history.
The time has come not just for innovation but for action. We must prioritise the acceleration of research that extends beyond the restraints of academic speculation and into a tangible and dynamic space for actionable and global environmental solutions.
Forming communities of practice to facilitate uptake and promote knowledge in use is essential. The mobilisation of the scientific community is, therefore, key to keeping life healthy on a healthy planet.
Mobilising the scientific community
The global response to the COVID-19 pandemic showed what is possible when urgency meets collective action. In record time, the world united behind its brightest minds, channelling resources at an unprecedented scale to develop life-saving vaccines.
This response is the blueprint for the transformative power of scientific innovation when decisively backed by policy, funding and multi-sector alliances.
Harnessing Olympic-style spirit, The Frontiers Planet Prize, an initiative of the Frontiers Research Foundation, calls for a race to rescue the Earth.
“Scientific consensus is pivotal for mobilising coordinated global action,” said Henry Markram, president of the Frontiers Research Foundation.
“History shows that once consensus is achieved, such as with ozone depletion or lead in gasoline, governments, industries and societies act decisively. The Frontiers Planet Prize collapses the timeline for achieving consensus, catalysing global solutions to address planetary challenges in record time.”
Each year, the prize identifies scientific breakthroughs with the greatest potential to secure humanity’s future and rewards three International Champions with $1 million each to advance their work.
It fosters a culture of urgency and collaboration by incentivising the search for solutions and reducing the timeline to scientific consensus, from grassroots selection to the global stage. When it comes to the race for planetary solutions, there is no time to waste and no place to hide.
Innovation into action
To date, the Frontiers Planet Prize has engaged with 610 institutions across 62 countries, named 62 national champions and seven international champions.
Its community of champions represents scientific consensus on 43 critical planetary breakthroughs, ranging from the treatment of coral with probiotics to knowledge co-creation with Indigenous people for planetary stewardship, to tyre rubber toxicity threatening salmon populations.
The success of the prize’s accelerative process is exemplified by its transformative impact, including:
- Amazon communities leading conservation success: Carlos Peres’ community-enforced “no-fishing” zones and sustainable harvest limits have led to a 600% increase in arapaima populations over 20 years, generating about $9,000 annually per lake for local infrastructure, healthcare and education.
- Nature-based solutions for climate resilience: Petra Holden and Mark New provided critical guidance for the development of three nature-based solutions programmes from the South African National Biodiversity Institute, worth $80 million in grants and impacting over 17 million beneficiaries.
- Tackling disease, food and climate change: Jason Rohr’s intervention removed invasive vegetation that spreads schistosomiasis, then repurposed it into compost, animal feed and clean fuel. The sustainable solution improves public health, supports farmers, restores ecosystems and reduces deforestation across Africa. It has led to a 46% lower risk of disease.
This consensus-building process must be repeated hundreds of times to secure our planet’s future within a safe operating space.
Go far, together
As we celebrated the 55th Earth Day, with the theme “Our power, our planet,” the Frontiers Planet Prize announced its third edition National Champions.
Just as the annual day calls for ambitious green power implementation and global citizen involvement, the prize seeks transformational planetary health solutions and collective responsibility for healthy lives on a healthy planet.
As this community expands and its impact is amplified through global recognition and prize funding, each new edition strengthens its influence on the planetary health landscape.
Building on the foundational work already underway, this holistic, community-led approach to planetary solutions fosters interdisciplinary and intergenerational collaboration.
The prize’s partnership with the environmental foundation, the Villars Institute, allows champions to engage with Villars fellows, young people trained in systems leadership. Facing up to the challenges of the Anthropocene is not about handing the baton to young people; it’s about running alongside them towards meaningful change.
At the third edition award ceremony in June 2025, in partnership with the Villars Institute, the Frontiers Planet Prize will announce the three International Champions from this year’s cohort.
If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.
Jean-Claude Burgelman is the Director of the Frontiers Planet Price and is responsible for the open science and data policies of DG RTD, European Commission.
Lily Linke is the Engagement Coordinator at the Frontiers Planet Price.
First published in the World Economic Forum.
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