African Planet Prize 2025 (up to $5,000)

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Applications are open for African Planet Prize 2025. The Frontiers Planet Prize (FPP) aims to recognize transformative scientific contributions that offer solutions to the planet’s most pressing challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. In partnership with the Frontiers Research Foundation (FRF), the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) has initiated a continent-wide implementation strategy to enhance African participation in this prestigious global prize.

While African scientists are actively engaged in planetary health research, structural barriers, such as low visibility, institutional disconnects, and limited access to global platforms, have constrained their representation in international recognition mechanisms like the FPP. This initiative seeks to bridge that gap by building a scalable, supportive engagement framework, ensuring African institutions and researchers are equipped to contribute and compete effectively.

African Planet Prize Benefits

USD $5,000 in career development support
Invitation to the Frontiers Planet Prize Ceremony in Switzerland
Global exposure and visibility for research
Access to a mentorship network of global experts

Eligibility Criteria

Lead applicant must be an African early-career researcher (≤7 years post-PhD, with possible marginal extensions for career breaks).
Must have at least one peer-reviewed publication in a high impact factor journal (IF >4) that is directly relevant to planetary boundaries and sustainability challenges.
The African researcher must be affiliated to an African institution (institution of higher learning, research institution or university) implementing any of the planetary boundaries.
Submission (nomination) must be supported by a recognised institutional domiciled in the African continent (university, research institution or equivalent).

Selection Criteria

The selection criteria of both the candidate and the research will focus on the following:

Scientific Excellence (40%)
- Novelty and originality of the research.
- Rigor of methodology and quality of data.
- Translational (bench-to-bedside) research relevant to the planetary boundaries.
- Contribution to advancing knowledge in planetary health and sustainability.
Societal Relevance (30%)
- The awarded Research must have been domiciled in an African university or research institution.
- Potential of the research to address urgent planetary challenges.
- Applicability and relevance of findings to the African contexts
- Implementation research that contributes to SDGs.
- Demonstrated outreach or stakeholder engagement
Impact and Visibility (20%)
- Evidence of influence on policy, practice, or innovation.
- Research product Cite score of >100
- Policy mention: evidence of work cited or referenced in government policy documents showing its impact on public discourse and decision-making.
Capacity Building and Leadership (10%)
- Role of the researcher in fostering collaboration
- Role of the researcher in the mentorship of upcoming researchers’ mentorship.
- Contribution to strengthening African research ecosystems in Africa.