The Earthshot Prize & Y2Y press kit

“For more than 30 years, Y2Y has had the privilege to work with so many people and groups passionate about nature who have shown what’s possible when people work together at the scale wildlife truly need. This nomination is an opportunity to accelerate conservation impacts that build on decades long work of this collaborative effort. Our collective accomplishments to date demonstrate our approach is working,” says Dr. Jodi Hilty, president and chief scientist of Y2Y. “The region is vast. It’s unique, and it takes all of us to protect it.”  

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“What feels especially meaningful from this nomination is the idea that we are inspiring the world to notice us. Conservation work rarely gives you time to stop and recognize progress. Being an Earthshot Prize finalist is a moment to celebrate what has been achieved, and to invite many more people to come on this journey with us.”

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“Wildlife does not see a line between Canada and the United States. That is why, for more than 30 years, Indigenous Nations, communities, governments, scientists and landowners have shown what is possible when people work together at the scale at which wildlife truly lives. Being selected as an Earthshot Prize Finalist gives this extraordinary region a chance to be recognised around the world. Yellowstone to Yukon is not only a story about wilderness; it is a story about the people who live here and the choices they are making to protect a shared home. This region offers real hope that nature loss can be reversed when we act early and at scale. The Earthshot Prize can help us bring that story to a global audience, inspire public support and show leaders everywhere that conservation at this scale is both possible and essential.”

Supporting information: 

• The Earthshot Prize, founded by His Royal Highness Prince William in 2020, is widely regarded as the world’s most prestigious environmental award.  

• It identifies, celebrates, and backs solutions to repair the planet, aiming to discover, support, and scale 50 solutions to the world’s greatest environmental challenges by 2030. 

• These solutions fall under five ambitious 2030 goals — the “Earthshots”: Protect and Restore Nature, Clean our Air, Revive our Oceans, Build a Waste-Free World, and Fix our Climate. 

• Y2Y is one of three finalists in the Protect and Restore Nature category and the first Canadian based organization to be a finalist. 

Supporting information:  

• Y2Y and our partners are being recognized as a global model for large-scale conservation at the scale nature needs to reverse the loss of biodiversity and a warming climate. 

• Y2Y is one of 15 finalists in 2026, and one of three in the “Protect and Restore Nature” category for leading one of the largest conservation collaborations in history.   

• The Earthshot Prize organization will work with Y2Y to raise global recognition of the Yellowstone to Yukon region, build international public support for essential large-landscape conservation and connect the organization with storytellers, funders and decisionmakers who can help accelerate protection across the mountain ecosystem, and share its model worldwide.  

Supporting information:  

• This is the first time the science of positive tipping points has been applied to Earthshot finalist selection criteria. A positive tipping point is reached when beneficial change becomes self-reinforcing, allowing progress to accelerate with less external support. Costs fall, adoption grows, policies spread, or ecosystems recover enough to support further recovery. 

• Y2Y and more than 800 partners have contributed to the protection of around 25 million hectares of land, helped conserve strategically important private lands, and supported development of more than 200 wildlife crossings. 

• British Columbia’s Klinse-Za caribou herd, brought back through Indigenous-led stewardship, has grown from 38 animals in 2013 to 187 in 2025. Indigenous leaders continue to ensure the population grows and that protected areas are expanded for habitat. 

• The distance between isolated U.S. grizzly bear populations has narrowed from 240 kilometers to 75 kilometers. 

Supporting information:  

• There are five Earthshot prizes – one in each category. Each prize consists of a £1 million (CA$1.8 million / US$1.3 million) and ongoing tailored support, mentorship, resources, and other connections.   

• The Earthshot organization continues to support finalists throughout the coming year, whether they win the grant prize or not.  

• As part of the nomination process, we developed a plan for how we will invest the grant money if we win. Our goal is to invest in efforts to raise awareness and support for the region, the partners who support the vision, large landscape connectivity, and as a model that can be replicated elsewhere in the world