Every year, the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF), a prominent knowledge-led platform and community dedicated to sustainable landscapes, takes the opportunity to honor women making extraordinary strides in restoring the planet and actively combating climate change. Despite the immense challenges posed by the ongoing climate crisis, these visionary women are at the forefront, leading critical efforts to discover and implement solutions to one of the world's most urgent crises. The GLF's annual list meticulously highlights innovators spanning a diverse array of fields, including science, technology, art, public policy, sustainable business practices, environmental activism, journalism, litigation, climate finance, international climate negotiations, and crucial grassroots ecosystem restoration initiatives. This year, the GLF is shining a spotlight on eight particularly inspiring women, whose contributions range from the world of sport to sustainable finance, motivating the global community to envision a brighter, more sustainable future. This seventh annual list, unveiled remarkably on International Women’s Day, represents the profound tenacity and rich diversity of women hailing from Africa, Latin America, and Asia, celebrating their invaluable global impact.

Among these resourceful women is **Alessandra Yupanqui**, co-founder and editorial director of Sapiens.lat. Alessandra is an Indigenous Andean storyteller from Peru, who earned recognition as one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 for social impact in 2025. She masterfully blends storytelling with journalism to advocate for sustainability and solutions, with a deep-rooted Indigenous focus. Alessandra challenges conventional notions of progress, emphasizing humanity's intrinsic connection to the web of life, rather than its ownership. She firmly states, “Indigenous Peoples must be recognised as strategic partners and co-authors of solutions, not as beneficiaries. Real cooperation is built horizontally and over the long term, transferring resources, information, legitimacy, governance and decision-making spaces. In this, we need each other.”

**Asisat Oshoala**, a celebrated footballer with Al Hilal, stands as one of Africa’s most decorated women footballers, in addition to being a dedicated philanthropist and passionate climate advocate. Her historic journey began in her native Nigeria, extending to England, China, Spain, the United States, and currently Saudi Arabia. Through her foundation, the Asisat Oshoala Academy, she empowers girls across Africa to break barriers, encouraging them to become visionary leaders through football and vocational courses in essential areas like digital literacy.

The renowned singer-songwriter **Billie Eilish**, from the United States, is an award-winning musician with an expansive global reach who recently received an Environmental Justice Award. Utilizing her influential platform, she passionately advocates for climate action and environmental and social justice. Billie challenges wealthy and influential individuals to take decisive action for the planet, notably using her most recent tour to significantly raise environmental awareness and fundraise for critical climate causes.

**Francia Márquez Mina**, the Vice President of Colombia, is a distinguished lawyer and a powerful social and environmental leader. Since her early years, she has tirelessly championed the rights of women, Indigenous Peoples, and Afro-Colombians. A recipient of the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in 2018, her leadership is characterized by immense courage and deep care. She has courageously stood against illegal gold mining while actively fostering collective action at both national and international levels.

**Kristel C. Quierrez**, honored as a 2025 GLF Mountain Restoration Steward and co-founder of UGBON, is a dedicated teacher and an influential Indigenous leader. She actively defends the ancestral land of the Dumagat-Remontado people and fervently advocates for Indigenous rights. Kristel inspires youth to protect the Southern Sierra Madre, the longest mountain range in her country. She shares her vision: “I want the world we live in to have unity between people and nature, with respect and balance. I want it to be treated as a living home, not to be owned, but to be cared for. As our ancestors taught us: the land, water, forests, and mountains are not just natural resources but sacred parts of our identity.”

**Payal Arora**, a professor at Utrecht University and founder of the Inclusive AI Lab, is an award-winning Indian author and digital anthropologist who was listed among the 100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics 2025. Her groundbreaking work focuses on inclusion and equity, amplifying the voices of often-overlooked communities in the Global South. She recognizes these regions as vibrant hubs of innovative youth poised to shape the future. Payal emphasizes, “My vision for Earth is one where justice for people and justice for the planet are inseparable. By centring historically excluded ways of knowing and living, we can move beyond narrow Western binaries of market growth versus environmental cost – and imagine futures grounded in care, continuity, and collective survival.”

**Retno Marsudi**, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Water, previously served as the first female Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia from 2014 to 2024. In her role, while advancing the UN’s water and sanitation agenda, she vigorously advocates for women and girls, who are disproportionately affected by water-related challenges. She also champions climate action, inclusive approaches, global solidarity, and the transformative role of technology. Retno states, “I envision a world that puts water and women’s agendas at the centre of policy, programs and actions. Because empowering women accelerates water solutions, and building water resilience and sustainability protects the planet.”

**Tariye Gbadegesin**, CEO of the Climate Investment Funds, is a distinguished member of the leadership councils of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet and the Industrial Transition Accelerator’s Mission Possible Partnership. A citizen of both Nigeria and the United States, she gained firsthand understanding of how degraded wetlands and severe floods impact communities while growing up in the Niger Delta. Her extensive work in finance has taught her the immense power of investment to transform economies and how lasting change is built from the ground up. Tariye believes, “I believe in livelihoods rooted in dignity – low‑carbon, resilient and fair. We have the tools to get there: smarter farming, restored ecosystems, clean energy, and resilient infrastructure. The challenge now is to act boldly and scale what works.”

These profiles underscore the critical contributions of women in diverse sectors, inspiring continued action and innovation for a sustainable future. For more comprehensive insights, readers are encouraged to visit the Global Landscape Forum to explore their full profiles.