- Defender has revealed the 56 international projects in with a chance of winning an inaugural Defender Award
- Diverse shortlist includes initiatives from disaster relief and species protection to raising awareness of skin cancer and tackling poverty and violence
- Pioneering awards programme includes entries from seven countries across four categories: Defenders of the Land, Sea, Wild and Humanity
- Defender Awards champions and supports small scale charities and nonprofit organisations that work on local humanitarian and conservation projects
- Meet the international judging panel led by Defender Managing Director, Mark Cameron, and conservation biologist, Dr Moreangels Mbizah
- Winning entries will receive a Defender vehicle, £100,000 bursary and expert mentorship – with the seven overall winners set to be announced later this year
Original British adventure brand, Defender, has revealed its shortlist for the inaugural Defender Awards. The international initiative was launched in April to recognise and reward local conservation and humanitarian heroes across four categories in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, Japan and South Africa.
Winning entries will each receive a tough and capable Defender 4×4 to help support their vital work, a £100,000 bursary and mentoring support from a community of experts. The shortlist of 56 projects ranges from wildlife conservation and protection projects to a skin cancer checking programme in Australia for remote and at‑risk communities.
The Defender Awards sees the brand extend its long‑established support for conservation and humanitarian causes, following 70 years of partnership with the British Red Cross and 20 years of collaboration with African conservation charity Tusk.
A panel of expert judges will now assess the 56‑strong shortlist to choose seven overall winners. Defender Managing Director Mark Cameron will co‑chair the international judging panel with Dr Moreangels Mbizah, a Zimbabwean conservation biologist and founder of Wildlife Conservation Action.
The initial round of national judging has cut hundreds of awards submissions down to a shortlist of 56 inspiring and diverse projects. The calibre of the entries is phenomenal and the variety of projects on the shortlist is testament to the pioneering work being done by local conservation and humanitarian heroes around the world. These awards celebrate those who embrace the impossible every day, just like Defender. Our international panel now has the difficult task of selecting just seven overall winners
Mark Cameron
Defender Managing Director
Fellow judges include German adventure and landscape photographer Max Muench, and Swiss explorer and environmentalist Bertrand Piccard, founder of a search engine for climate action, Solar Pulse Foundation. They will be joined by Italian actress and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Alessandra Mastronardi, Australian TV presenter and National Geographic filmmaker Tyson Mayr, and Michiaki Matsushima, Editorial Director for Wired Japan.
I’m a firm believer that community‑led conservation can save wildlife, so the Defender Awards can make a real difference. By championing and supporting small scale charities operating within our communities, we’re helping those who embody the pioneering spirit of Defender. Our shortlist includes more than 50 deserving entries, so the judging panel has a difficult job to select the most deserving projects
Dr Moreangels Mbizah
Co‑chair of the Defender Awards judging panel
The shortlisted Defender Awards entries will be evaluated based on their alignment across four elements. The judges will consider each entry’s alignment with its chosen award category, assess the impact the project is making and rate the level of innovation involved in their operations. In addition, the panel will assess how a capable Defender 4×4 will contribute to each project’s success.
Rich diversity and innovation
Defender is a brand with purpose at its heart, with humanitarian roots that can be traced back to the first Series Land Rovers of 1948. It is committed to supporting the heroes who embrace the impossible every day. The shortlisted projects cover a broad range of topics and a variety of approaches, from raising awareness of issues to taking direct action to alleviate suffering or bring about positive change.
In the Defenders of the Land category, eye‑catching entries include Fondazione Sylva, A Forest for Arnesano in Southeast Italy. The organisation regenerates abandoned or Mafia‑confiscated land and transforms it into forests for native species to enhance biodiversity, improve air quality and mitigate climate change. The proposed project aims to complete the reforestation of the Arnesano area and includes educational activities for young people.
It is accompanied by projects with similar ambitions from Japan. The Next Commons Lab initiative views forests, rivers and landscapes and seas as interconnected common areas to be regenerated and sustained. The success of its pilot site in Owase City, Mie Prefecture, saw the population of red‑bellied newts – a near‑threatened species – show a remarkable recovery. The Kinshizen Forest Creation Association Seedling Bank, meanwhile, stores seedlings to create and safeguard future forests. It relies on the natural process, Misho, where saplings up to 10cm tall remain dormant for decades while shaded, to store up to 10,000 seedlings.
The Defenders of the Wild shortlist includes a project focused on returning an apex predator to landscapes it hasn’t occupied for more than 200 years, as a catalyst for broader landscape recovery. The Restoring Upland Nature (RUN) programme aims to return the Golden Eagle to UK skies using a combination of cutting‑edge conservation science and hands‑on engagement, working with landowners, gamekeepers, schools and community groups.
The African Pangolin Working Group is dedicated to the treatment and rehabilitation of Temminck’s Pangolin. This vulnerable species is traded for its meat and distinctive scales. The organisation’s purpose‑built veterinary facility, the Pangolarium, is situated in the Lapalala Wilderness Reserve in South Africa.
In the Defenders of Humanity category, the shortlist includes Project Check Mate, which aims to bring early detection services to the people most at risk of skin cancer in Australia – where rates are 12 times the global average. Over the last decade, the organisation has conducted more than 25,000 checks, identifying more than 600 potential melanomas.
A volunteer organisation in Italy offering drone‑assisted monitoring and search and rescue services is also shortlisted in this category. ReAct helps vulnerable communities with emergency response operations during natural disasters such as floods, fires and earthquakes. It uses both ground and aerial drones equipped with powerful 360‑degree cameras and infra‑red technology, often working from inaccessible locations.
Sapocycle, in Germany, takes an innovative approach to reducing waste by recycling used hotel soaps. It aims to provide meaningful work for people with disabilities while giving those in need access to hygiene and transports 1,500 bars of soap across Germany each month – a mission perfectly suited to Defender.
Among the Defenders of the Sea entries to make the shortlist is the BlueHeart project in Germany. The brainchild of extreme swimmer André Wiersig, it aims to raise awareness of and foster empathy for environmental issues such as plastic pollution and over‑fishing. In the UK, the Women in Ocean Science initiative has made the shortlist. It is focused on empowering the next generation of female ocean leaders, delivering marine research, restoration and outreach through a trio of women‑led coastal expeditions.
From France, the Blue Carbon Gardeners project aims to restore underwater forests responsible for carbon sequestration, supporting marine biodiversity and protecting against coastal erosion. Based in the Bay of Calvi, Corsica, it employs an innovative method of transplanting natural Posidonia seagrass cuttings, using biodegradable staples, to restore damage caused by anchoring boats. This is an initiative that will resonate across the Mediterranean.
To see all 56 shortlisted projects, visit: landrover.com/defender‑awards ‑The seven winning entries will be revealed later this year.
Zimbabwean conservation biologist and founder of Wildlife Conservation Action, Dr Moreangels Mbizah, will co‑chair the Defender Awards panel
German adventurer and landscape photographer Max Muench will join the Defender Awards international judging panel to assess the 56‑strong shortlist and choose seven overall winners
Australian TV presenter and National Geographic filmmaker Tyson Mayr will join the judging panel to assess the shortlist of projects which range from wildlife conservation and protection projects to a skin cancer checking programme in Australia for remote and at‑risk communities.
Defender Awards 2025 shortlist in full
Defenders of the Land shortlisted entries:
Australia – Boomerang Alliance
Australia – Co‑Exist: Youth‑led conservation
Germany – PATRON
South Africa – Nuwejaars River Nature Reserve
South Africa – Rhino Revolution
UK – Thousand Year Trust
UK – Youngwilders CIC
France – Save the Forest of Fontainebleau
France – Solidraid 91: Guardians of the Hedges
Italy – Fondazione Sylva: Environment regeneration
Italy – APS Rocciaviva
Japan – Watershed Regeneration
Japan – Nature’s Guardian Expedition
Japan – Conference for future of Yakushima and The Earth
Japan – Moo Mow Project
Japan – Kinshizen Forest Creation Association Seedling Bank
Defenders of the Wild shortlisted entries:
Australia – Aussie Ark Conservation of endangered native species
Australia – Possumwood Wildlife Recovery and Research
Germany – Tierrettung Uckermark
Germany – Falconry Greifenstein Castle
South Africa – African Pangolin Working Group
South Africa – Wild Bird Trust Cape Parrot Project
South Africa – Rooiberg Bewaria
UK – Shepreth Wildlife Conservation Charity
UK – Restoring Upland Nature
France – Totem
France – Igema
Italy – Salviamo L’Orso
Italy – C.R.A.S. Rimini, wildlife rescue
Defenders of Humanity shortlisted entries:
Australia – Skin Check Champions
Australia – On the Ground: Community Relief & Resilience Project, Community Response Australia
Germany – K‑9 Pro Vermisstensuche
Germany – SapoCycle Germany
South Africa – iThemba Kuluntu
South Africa – Hope SA Foundation
UK – Suicide Prevention UK
UK – North East Wales Search and Rescue
France – DPS 64 Pyrénées Atlantiques
Italy – ReAct: Drone assisted monitoring, search and rescue
Italy – Scuola Fatoma
Japan – OPEN JAPAN Emergency Support Project
Defenders of the Sea shortlisted entries:
Australia – Take 3 for the Sea
Australia – White Rock: Defenders of the Great Southern Reef
Germany – Lahntaucher
Germany – The Blueheart
South Africa – The Litterboom Project
South Africa – The South African Whale Disentanglement Network
UK – Sussex Dolphin Project
UK – Women in Ocean Science Charity
France – Blue Carbon Gardeners, NAECO
France – The Blue Odyssey Initiative
France – Apex Cetacea
Italy – Operation Adriatic Defenders, 2HANDS
Italy – Underwater Dome, CESTHA
Japan – Yagishiri UNIMOBA Sustainable Fisheries Project
Japan – Everlasting Nature Ogasawara Marine Center
International Defender Awards judging panel:
Co‑chair: Mark Cameron, Defender Managing Director, JLR
Co‑chair: Dr Moreangels Mbizah, Founder and Executive Director, Wildlife Conservation Action
Germany: Max Muench, adventurer and landscape photographer
France: Bertrand Piccard, explorer, environmentalist and founder of Solar Pulse Foundation
Italy: Alessandra Mastronardi, actress and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador
Australia: Tyson Mayr, TV presenter and National Geographic filmmaker
Japan: Michiaki Matsushima, Editorial Director of WIRED Japan, Moonshot Ambassador for the Cabinet Office
