The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) has congratulated its Executive Director, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, on receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award for Environmental and Climate Justice at the 2026 Courageous Scientists Awards.
The award, instituted by the Forum for Eco-Social Transformations (FEST), a non-profit organisation based in Vienna, Austria, recognises scientist-activists who demonstrate exceptional courage in advocating for environmental and climate justice.
Bassey received the honour on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, in recognition of his decades of advocacy for environmental protection, climate justice and the rights of communities affected by extractive activities.
He was honoured alongside the late Berta Cáceres of Honduras, whose activism for environmental protection and Indigenous rights remains an enduring inspiration.
Speaking after receiving the award, Bassey described the recognition as both an honour and a reminder of the collective responsibility to advance environmental justice.
He stressed the importance of courageous, ethical and community-centred science in addressing environmental challenges, calling for accountability from those responsible for ecological damage.
According to him, scientific evidence and the lived experiences of affected communities must guide efforts to tackle environmental crises, while the rights of impacted populations must be protected through environmental remediation and restoration.
He also called for accountability for the consequences of colonial extraction and ecocide.
The award has attracted commendations from environmental advocates, including Akinbode Oluwafemi, Executive Director of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), who described the recognition as a major victory for grassroots advocacy across Africa and the Global South.
Oluwafemi said Bassey had demonstrated decades of commitment to environmental justice, adding that his recognition alongside Cáceres reinforced the enduring strength of the movement for environmental and climate justice.
Similarly, Mariann Bassey-Olsson, Deputy Executive Director of Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) and S3F Africa Coordinator, described the award as a well-deserved recognition of Bassey’s longstanding commitment to communities and environmental protection.
She said the honour represented a significant achievement for grassroots environmental advocacy and demonstrated that the voices of those on the frontlines of environmental and climate justice could gain global recognition.
Also speaking, Joyce Brown, Director of Programmes at HOMEF, congratulated Bassey on behalf of the organisation, describing the award as a fitting recognition of his sustained commitment to environmental justice locally and internationally.
Brown said the honour reaffirmed the importance of sustained activism and the courage required to challenge systems and practices threatening ecosystems, livelihoods and the well-being of present and future generations.
She added that the recognition would further inspire the organisation’s pursuit of a socio-ecologically just and resilient world.
HOMEF said Bassey’s work had consistently promoted environmental responsibility, climate action and a just transition that prioritises people and the planet over corporate interests.
Beyond his activism, Bassey has authored several books on environmental issues, including To Cook a Continent: Destructive Extraction and the Climate Crisis in Africa (2012) and Oil Politics: Echoes of Ecological War.
His poetry collections, including We Thought It Was Oil But It Was Blood (1998), I Will Not Dance to Your Beat (2010) and I See the Invisible (2024), have also contributed to conversations on environmental resistance, justice and hope.
HOMEF congratulated Bassey and other award recipients, celebrating their contributions to advancing environmental protection and climate justice.
