ECO-HERO AWARD WINNERS
Lily Valentina Niederhofer
2026: 2nd PLACE
Lily Valentina Niederhofer, an 11-year-old swimmer and ocean advocate, raised over $12,000 through an open-water Atlantic swim and successfully lobbied U.S. and European lawmakers to ban industrial octopus farming.
Nicolina Pappas
2025: 2nd PLACE
Nicolina Pappas, a 13-year-old from the United States, combats single-use plastic pollution through Nicolina's Turtle Co. She has raised over $15,000 for conservation, educated thousands, and successfully advocated for her "Skip the Plastic Campaign," leading to city-wide proclamations and state resolutions like "Skip the Plastic Day."
Esad Çakır
2025: FINALIST
Esad Çakır, 13, from Istanbul, Turkey, created the "Ocean Literacy" project, a school-wide initiative to make ocean science accessible to students from kindergarten through middle school and inspire them to become problem-solvers for our oceans.