Runa Khan receives “Nature conservation award 2025”

Prokriti O Jibon Foundation and Channel i awarded Runa Khan, founder and executive director of Friendship, with the Nature Conservation Award 2025.

Syeda Rizwana Hasan, advisor to the Government of Bangladesh, handed over the award tonight at a ceremony in Dhaka.

Dr Farhina Ahmed, secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), and Mukid Majumdar Babu, chairman of Prokriti O Jibon Foundation, were present at the event.

Friendship’s significant contribution for nature conservation and 23 years of work on climate change and sustainable development were highlighted during the ceremony, reports a press release.

The Nature Conservation Award is in recognition of Runa Khan’s exceptional leadership and innovative work in addressing climate change, conserving the environment, and improving the quality of life of vulnerable communities.

A formal award ceremony was held on Monday, 29 December 2025, at Channel i’s Chetana Chattar. The event was further graced by the presence Md Amir Hossain Chowdhury, chief Conservator of Forests.

The integrated adaptation solutions pioneered and popularised by Friendship has transformed the lives of people in some of Bangladesh’s most hard-to-reach regions.

In collaboration with the local government, local communities, and the Bangladesh Forest Department, Friendship carries out mangrove afforestation across the coastline, with 62km currently secured.

The initiative is also aligned with the regional Mountains to Mangrove project that aims to plant 1 billion trees from the Himalayas to the Sundarbans. Mangroves can unilaterally tackle desertification, conserve biodiversity, and trap carbon.