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Rose-Walters Prize Statement of Purpose

Rose-Walters Prize Recipients

2023: Tara Houska, a citizen of Couchiching First Nation and a tribal attorney, land defender, environmental and Indigenous-rights advocate and founder of the Giniw Collective, an Indigenous-women-, two-spirit-led frontline resistance to defend the sacred and live in balance.

2022: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations body for advancing and assessing knowledge on climate change and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. 

2021: Varshini Prakash, the executive director and co-founder of Sunrise Movement, a grassroots organization of young people founded in 2017 that is working to stop climate change and create good-paying jobs in the process.

2020: Armond Cohen, the founder and executive director of the Clean Air Task Force (CATF), a leading force in reducing air pollution and climate pollutants from the nation’s power plants, industries and cars and trucks since its founding in 1996.

2019: The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), an international environmental advocacy organization, for work defending America’s wildlands, including the Arctic National Refuge, Bristol Bay in Alaska, and the monuments of the West.

2018: Our Children's Trust, a nonprofit leading a global climate recovery campaign, elevating the voice of youth—those with most at stake in the climate crisis—to favorably impact their futures through advocacy, public education and civic engagement.

2017: Brett Jenks, president and CEO of Rare, a global conservation organization that uses its expertise in human behavior change to create enduring and sustainable climate-smart solutions for both people and nature

2016: Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist talks about climate change during a public lecture at Dickinson – "The Sixth Extinction"

2015: Mark Ruffalo, actor, director and award-winning advocate for addressing climate change and increasing renewable energy – "No Cape Required: Mark Ruffalo Urges Students to 'Act Up' For The Environment During Rose-Walters Residency"

2014: James Balog, author, scientist and award-winning photographer who founded the Extreme Ice Survey (EIS) and Earth Vision Trust – "Talking Ice: James Balog Discusses his Work 'Chasing Ice' With the Dickinson Community"

2013: Lisa P. Jackson, Apple's vice president of environmental initiatives and former Environmental Protection Agency administrator under President Barack Obama – "How to Change the World: EPA Leader Holds Energized Residency"

2012: Bill McKibben, author, journalist and founder of 350.org – "On the Front Line: Rose-Walters Prize Recipient Bill Mckibben Brings Front Line of Climate Fight to Dickinson"