Alaa Murabit has done something rare — she has changed not just what is possible, but how we think about what is possible. Her work shows that gender equality and peace are not parallel tracks but the same road. She has built that argument from the inside of communities, using the languages and frameworks those communities trust, and she has taken it all the way to the highest levels of international decision-making. In times like these, her work to include women in peacebuilding processes has never been more vital.

When I started this work at twenty-one, in the middle of a war, I could not have imagined such recognition. What I knew then, and know more deeply now, is that peace and equality are never gifts handed down from above. They are built slowly and stubbornly in community, most often by the women the world overlooks. I accept this honour on behalf of every bridge-builder whose name will never be in a press release but whose courage made mine possible, and I share it with Julieta, whose generation will take this further than mine ever could.

Through Tremendas, Julieta Martínez has given young women and girls – too often rendered invisible in the spaces where power is exercised and the future is shaped – the tools and community to transform frustration and anxiety about the climate crisis into real drive for change. She makes it clear that gender equality and climate justice are inseparable – and that young women's leadership is an absolute prerequisite for a sustainable future. With this award, the jury wishes to honour Julieta Martínez's ability to make climate activism accessible and hopeful, and to move more people from placards to action.

This recognition is deeply meaningful to me because it reinforces something I strongly believe: in contexts like Latin America, advancing gender equality is not about charity or pity, but about reshaping the way we understand power and who gets to lead. Girls and young women are too often seen only as victims of the crises that affect them - from climate change to migration to political instability - when in reality, they are already active agents of change within their communities. We need to reshape the narrative, one where they tell their own stories and write their own futures.

This year’s finalists demonstrate courage and determination in their contributions to more gender-equal and sustainable societies at a challenging time. Together they show that this work takes many forms but is united by the same fundamental ambition: to strengthen people’s opportunities to live, develop and shape their own lives and futures.

Gender-equal leadership is not only a question of fairness, but also of growth. By creating better conditions for women to step into leadership roles, we strengthen innovation, build more sustainable companies and support regional development. That is why the Västra Götaland Region is pleased to support this project.

At a moment when gender equality is questioned or deprioritised in many parts of the world, this response is both powerful and hopeful. These nominations show that progress is happening everywhere — sometimes quietly, but boldly and persistently.

I receive the WIN WIN Award with deep gratitude, on behalf of the Indigenous Peoples of the Sacred Headwaters of the Amazon. This recognition honors our ancestral fight to defend the rainforest, protect life, and walk with dignity toward a regenerative future for all of humanity—for both the visible and invisible beings. This award is not only for me, but for all the guardians of the Amazon who, with wisdom, courage, and sacrifice, have protected the forests, rivers, and life itself in the face of countless threats. True leadership sustains hope amidst destruction and keeps us strong without losing tenderness.