Rome, 29 October 2026 — Three grassroots champions who are restoring degraded land, defending the rights of Indigenous women and keeping girls in school have been named the 2026 Heroes of Tomorrow at the United Nations SDG Action Awards. The winners were revealed at the ninth edition of the ceremony in Rome, organised by the UN SDG Action Campaign.
According to the organisers, the winners were chosen from nine finalists, selected from more than 7,000 entries from 190 countries. The awards honour people and initiatives that turn the Sustainable Development Goals into practical action in their own communities, in three categories: Changemaker, Resilience and Creativity.
The three winners
Changemaker: Rokiatou Traoré, Mali
The Changemaker Award went to Malian entrepreneur Rokiatou Traoré, founder of Herou Alliance. She supports women and smallholder farmers through agroforestry, using it to tackle land degradation and create economic opportunities.
Herou Alliance works to restore land, strengthen livelihoods and build value chains around moringa and other high-value trees. The organisers describe her work as connecting land restoration directly with livelihoods and opportunities for women and smallholder farmers.
“I devote this Award to everyone who works day and night to make our dream of restored land in Mali a reality,” Traoré said on receiving the award.
Resilience: Women’s Justice Initiative, Guatemala
The Resilience Award went to the Women’s Justice Initiative, which supports Indigenous women and girls in Guatemala to claim their rights, access justice and lead change in their communities.
Many Indigenous women in Guatemala face high rates of violence, poverty and discrimination, worsened by language barriers, limited access to information and isolation, according to the organisers. So far, more than 16,000 Indigenous women and girls have taken part in the initiative’s work.
“I accept the UN SDG Action Award in the honour of the Maya Kaqchikel women and girls in Guatemala who are building a more just future for their communities,” said Viviana Patal, Legal Director of the Women’s Justice Initiative. “Ending violence against women requires all of us.”
Creativity: Mothers of Courage, India
The Creativity Award went to Mothers of Courage, a movement across rural India in which mothers are mobilising entire villages to keep girls in school and expand their choices for the future.
More than 1.2 million people have joined and pledged to keep their daughters in education and prevent early marriage, according to the organisers. Girls who had dropped out of school have returned, and marriages have been postponed.
“This Award belongs to all mothers in the villages across India who are changing their daughters’ destiny,” said Khushboo Awasthi, Chief Curator of the Movement. “Together let’s create a world where no girl, no child is left behind.”
Honourable mention and ceremony
The UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women and Girls received the Honourable Mention Award. According to the organisers, it has funded locally led solutions for thirty years and remains the only UN General Assembly-mandated pooled fund dedicated exclusively to ending such violence.
The ceremony took place in Rome on 29 October 2026 and was broadcast worldwide through RAI, Italy’s national broadcaster, and UN Web TV. The UN SDG Action Campaign is a special initiative of the UN Secretary-General, hosted by the United Nations Development Programme and based in Bonn, Germany.
Marina Ponti, Director of the UN SDG Action Campaign, told the ceremony: “Change has always begun with people who refused to accept that the world could not be different. So be courageous. Be persistent. Be that change.”
Key facts
- Ceremony: ninth Heroes of Tomorrow: UN SDG Action Awards, Rome, 29 October 2026.
- Entries: more than 7,000 entries from 190 countries; nine finalists; three winners.
- Changemaker: Rokiatou Traoré, Herou Alliance, Mali — agroforestry, land restoration, moringa value chains.
- Resilience: Women’s Justice Initiative, Guatemala — more than 16,000 Indigenous women and girls reached.
- Creativity: Mothers of Courage, India — more than 1.2 million people joined the movement for girls’ education.
- Honourable Mention: UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women and Girls.
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