June 23, 2014, Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda (GESG), officially received the prestigious Energy Globe award for Mexico. Presented by the Austrian Embassy’s Commerce Minister for Mexico, Central America and Cuba, Friedrich Steinecker, on behalf of Energy Globe founder Wolfgang Nuemann, the award recognizes projects and organizations that represent exemplary, sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. This year’s award attracted more than 1000 submissions from more than 120 countries, making the Energy Globe Award the world’s premier environmental prize. Notable guests attending this morning’s award ceremony included the State Secretary of Sustainable Development, Marcelo López, and Laura Gabriela Corvera Galván, General Director of Querétaro’s Institute of Culture and Arts.

GESG won the award for their groundbreaking work in restoring precious watersheds and supporting communities to grow more food sustainably. As part of the project, more than 289 communities in the Sierra Gorda region are being supported to preserve and strengthen their water supplies, through improved agricultural techniques, including soil regeneration and carbon capture. In addition, communities are receiving training and support to reduce the environmental impact of their farming activities, without compromising the amount of food and income able to be generated from this. GESG acknowledges the invaluable support of the Gonzalo Río Foundation in this work, which has been fundamental to the success of this project.

“It’s an honor to receive such recognition for our work, for and for Mexico to be amongst the world’s winners,” said GESG’s Executive Director, Martha “Pati” Ruiz-Corzo. “We’ve seen firsthand that creative and innovative solutions to climate change and poverty are possible – we see the evidence of this every day in the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve. We’ve seen a new green economy take root as a result of effective partnerships between local communities, civil organizations, and local and federal governments. Our challenge now is to take these solutions to the national and global level. We’re hopeful that the Global Energy prize will assist us in doing this.”

The Energy Globe aims to highlight the effective environmental work organizations like GESG are undertaking, and promote this as a model for sustainable conservation to a broader, global audience. This is the second time that GESG has been awarded the Energy Globe prize, having received their first award in 2007.