Zayed Future Energy Prize has announced the winners of its 2012 awards at the World Future Energy Summit. The annual award recognizes individuals, non-governmental organizations, small businesses and large corporations for their contributions to future sustainability, climate change and energy.
The Zayed Future Energy Prize has announced the winners and runners-up of the awards across three categories. The Carbon Disclosure Project won the award in the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) and Small-to-Medium Sized Enterprises (SME) category. The project is an organization based in the UK, which measures, manages, shares and discloses information about the environment. It utilized tools based on the market for solving issues such as acid rain pollution through methods including the cap and trade approach. The Zayed Future Energy Prize awarded US$1.5 million to the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Orb Energy won a prize of US$1 million as the first runner-up in the category for SMEs and NGOs. The company, based in India, provides solar-based heating and energy efficiency solutions. The second runner-up prize of US$500,000 was awarded to the US-based Environmental Defense Fund, for globally advocating sustainability and renewable energy practices.
Global energy management company, Schneider Electric won the Large Corporations award for improving energy safety, access and efficiency.
The Zayed Future Energy Prize had received 1,103 submissions, which went through a rigorous nomination and judging process. The President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, chaired the jury, which included eminent dignitaries such as the tennis champion, Andre Agassi, environmentalist and actor, Leonardo DiCaprio, the President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Susan Hockfield, the Chairman of Masdar, Ahmed Al Sayegh, the Founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation, Cherie Blair and President of the United Nations Foundation and the Better World Fund, Timothy Wirth.
The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, felicitated the winners of the Zayed Future Energy Prize at the award ceremony.