When we started this initiative, 85% of environmental projects failed before the second year of life due to a lack of visibility. This fact triggered the birth of Premios Verdes. Although that figure has been improving little by little, there is still a long way to go, which is why every year, we work to ensure that no agent of change is left behind due to a lack of contacts or resources.
Premios Latinomérica Verde started in 2013, within the International Environment Summit (CIMA) framework. In that first Edition, 109 companies and institutions committed to socio-environmental responsibility operating in Ecuador participated. Eversice, the number of participating projects has grown exponentially.
The Awards were designed with the support of three CORNERSTONES: the planetary boundaries described by Rocktro¨m (published by the Resilience Center of the University of Stockholm, Sweden), the 2050 agenda of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals promoted by the United Nations (SDGs).
Scientists tell us, every minute, that nature is dying. We are drowning the seas, deforesting the lands, eliminating species. Specialists alert us that we must act immediately, change lifestyles, and transform people. That's what this event is all about: rewarding those individuals who are already doing it. Because those people who create opportunities, change lifestyles in their communities and improve the surroundings need to be supported, so it is easier for them, instead of more difficult.
Gustavo, Bianca and José Javier came together twenty years ago because they shared the same purpose, to make Ecuador greener, the region and of course the world. To make it come true, over the years they have led a series of programs and managed projects that have been the prelude to the dream of what today are the Green Awards. In 2013 they made the first Edition of the event a reality that has exhibited, trained, connected and awarded nearly 18,000 projects in all the world and inspired an extraordinary conscious, coherent community that feels, vibrates and works to demonstrate that together #WeAreChange.