Diane Skinner Awards

Diane Skinner’s legacy continues to shine a light on the unsung conservation heroes who selflessly dedicate their lives to their work.

The inaugural Award was presented in 2023 in Kigali, Rwanda. Due to an outbreak of the Marburg virus, the Business of Conservation Conference 2024 was delayed. The awards for both 2024 and 2025 were presented at the ALU Business of Conservation Conference held in Nairobi, Kenya, 5th March 2026.

Meet all of our winners and watch the short videos of their conservation stories below.

2025 winner

Elvis Kisimir has been at the forefront of one of east Africa’s most effective community-led conservation movements.

A Maasai warrior, Elvis was deeply concerned about the loss of lions from community lands. He began working with communities in 2010 to reduce livestock losses from lions and strengthen tolerance and support for large carnivore conservation.

As African People and Wildlife’s Human-Wildlife Conflict Prevention Program Officer, Elvis has helped to build Warriors for and the Living Walls projects from small local efforts into large, into large, multi-species co-existence systems.

_{^{2024 Award winner Urbain Ngobobo, flanked by Elvis}}
_{^{Kisimir (2025 winner)and Norah Njiraini (2023 winner).}}

^{_{Elvis Kisimir (2025 winner) and Urbain Ngobobo (2024 winner) accepting their awards on stage at the BBC Conference.}}

^{_{Fom left to right: Urbain Ngobobo (2024 winner), Elvis Kisimir (2025 winner), Ruth Kabwe (MBA Scholarship winner) and Nick Dyer (CEO of the Painted Wolf Foundation).}}

The 2025 winner:
Elvis Kisimir

Meet Elvis, Maasai warrior and conservationist, as he works with communities to save big cats in northern Tanzania.

Thank you to the following for allowing the use of their images/videos: African People & Wildlife, Naples Zoo, Ngoteya Wild, Felipe Rodriguez, Emily Tunuka

2024 winner

Urbain Ngobobo has worked to protect gorillas in the DRC for 25 years. Urbain is now the Director of the Fossey Fund’s Congo Programmes.

During his years in Conservation in the DRC, Urbain spearheaded efforts to set up a conservation project in collaboration with local communities. Starting from just a tent in the forest, Urbain grew the project alongside these communities.

Nkuba Conservation Area is now recognised by the Congolese government and covers nearly 2,400 square kilometres, harbouring an estimated 2,000-3,000 critically endangered Grauer’s gorillas as well as endangered eastern chimpanzees.

_{^{The award winners: 2025 award winner Elvis Kisimir, 2023 winner Norah Njiraini and 2024 winner}}
_{^{Urbain Ngobobo}}.

^{_{Nick Dyer (PWF CEO) presenting the Awards on stage at the ALU Business of Conservation Conference in Nairobi, Kenya,}}
^{_{5th March 2026.}}

^{_{From left: Nick Dyer (PWF CEO), Ruth Kabwe (MBA Scholarship winner), Elvis Kisimir (2025 winner), Urbain Ngobobo (2024 winner) and Gavin Peter (BCC Project manager).}}

Urbain Ngobobo:
the 2024 winner

Watch Urbain’s conservation story as he fights to conserve critically endangered gorillas in the DRC.

2023 Winner

The inaugural award for the Diane Skinner Award for the Unsung Hero in Conservation was presented at the ALU Business of Conservation Conference held in Kigali, Rwanda, at the end of August 2023.

Over 50 people were nominated and a shortlist of ten was selected and celebrated at the conference. The deserving winner was Norah Njiraini from Amboseli Trust for Elephants, in Kenya

She has been supporting elephant research and handling human-elephant conflict for the past 40 years and has never been recognised for her significant contribution or unwavering dedication.