The Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity honored three pioneers in sustainable agriculture this year, including Dr. Rattan Lal, Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming, and the SEKEM collective.
Angela Merkel, Chair of the Jury for the Prize, stressed the importance of the winners work to providing improved food security and the impact of their work to mitigate the challenges of climate change: “This year’s winners have demonstrated in an exemplary fashion how climate-resilient and sustainable food systems can be developed and put into practice.”
The Prize, launched by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in 2020, awards winners €1 million to support “climate action and solutions that inspire hope and possibility.” António Feijó, President of the Board of Trustees of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, says “We believe their stories will inspire others to apply similar approaches in other regions and help us build a sustainable future for all.”
In his acceptance speech and at the panel on the following day, Dr. Lal emphasized that “Global peace ... is also a scientific issue. It is not just a political issue.” This is because “advancing the science of soil health, promoting nutrition sensitive agriculture, and making agriculture and soil management a part of the solution to the restoration of the environment, is critical to building bridges across nations and therefore promoting peace and harmony.”
The three 2024 winners will split the Prize three ways, at €333,333 each. Dr. Lal will be using the funds to establish a scientific exchange between soil scientists researching climate change at The Ohio State University and his alma maters internationally. He hopes that this exchange will deepen understanding about how improving soil health and carbon content will increase humanity’s ability to rise to the challenges of food security and climate change for future generations.
The Lal Carbon Center members enjoyed an opportunity to watch the event live online together in the afternoon of the meeting, and they later celebrated upon Dr. Lal’s return with a card of congratulations and flowers.
vTo read more about this significant accomplishment for Dr. Lal and the other winners, please visit go.osu.edu/gph and go.osu.edu/cfaes-gph. •