Application Deadline: 31st January 2026
LOCATION: Switzerland
The Earth Prize is an annual, global $100,000 environmental sustainability competition for students between the ages of 13 and 19, which rewards the teams whose projects have the most potential to address environmental issues. Through The Earth Prize competition, students are inspired, educated, mentored and empowered to solve environmental sustainability problems.
ELIGIBILITY:
Registration is open from September 1st until January 31st.
Participants must have been born between 2006 and 2012 and be registered in a school or educational program.
Education Level: The Earth Prize is open to all students in the secondary education level and is not open to tertiary education students. Eligible institutions are schools or educational programs.
Location: Participants are accepted from anywhere in the world. There are no geographic restrictions. The regions are Southeast Asia and Oceania, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, North America, and Central & South America.
Language: Starting with The Earth Prize 2026, registrations and submissions can be made in any language, and an integrated AI tool will be available to support participants throughout the process.
Teams: Each Participant can be an individual student or a team of up to five (5) students collaborating on a submission. Participants from different classes and grades are welcome to form a team. Teams can also consist of students from different institutions.
Educator: Participants are strongly encouraged to have an assigned adult Educator for their team. Valid Educators include, but are not limited to, teachers or school administrators. If Participants have been signed up through an educational program, valid Educators can include program coordinators or educators. For individual participants or groups of homeschooled students, a parent may serve as the Educator. In either case, an official document certifying the Educator status or the student’s authorized homeschooling status will be requested during registration.
Participation: Past Participants are welcome to register for The Earth Prize again, as long as they meet the eligibility criteria. Projects submitted to The Earth Prize in a prior year that have been selected as The Earth Prize Winners or Runners-up will not be accepted.
Scope of Submissions: Submissions to The Earth Prize are expected to propose solutions aimed at accelerating positive change towards environmental sustainability. The Earth Prize will consider a wide range of solutions: local and national as well as global ones; new ideas with implementation potential as well as existing student projects; and products, organizations, and enterprises as well as campaigns.
BENEFIT:
The Earth Prize is an annual, global $100,000 worth of prizes, which now features seven regional winners, each receiving $12,500 to implement their ideas. In addition, three mentors of the year will be recognized, with each receiving $2,500.
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