Zayed Sustainability Prize names 2027 finalists after record global entry

The Zayed Sustainability Prize has unveiled its 2027 finalists after receiving a record 10,233 submissions from 177 countries, up 32% year over year. The finalists span health, food, energy, water, climate action and global high schools, with winners set to be announced in Abu Dhabi on 12 January 2027.

Why it matters: - The 2027 finalist class reflects where climate and development innovation is moving: practical tools that can scale in health, food systems, water access, energy delivery and ecosystem restoration. - The Prize says its winners and finalists have positively affected more than 411 million lives worldwide, underscoring the program’s role as a funding and visibility engine for solutions already in use. - Every finalist now receives financial support, not just category winners, which can help more projects move from pilot to scale.

What happened: - The Zayed Sustainability Prize announced its 2027 finalists after a record 10,233 submissions from 177 countries. - The total was up 32% year over year and marks the most competitive cycle in the Prize’s history. - Finalists were selected across six categories: Health, Food, Energy, Water, Climate Action and Global High Schools. - Winners will be announced on 12 January 2027 at the Zayed Sustainability Prize Awards Ceremony during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

The details: - In Health, Elythea uses AI to predict pregnancy complications 6–8 months in advance from routine first-trimester data, with more than 63,000 direct beneficiaries across a five-country trial. - GOAL 3 combines bedside vital-sign monitoring with tablet-based patient records to spot deterioration earlier in children and newborns, reaching 157,000 direct beneficiaries across 48 hospitals. - Marsi Bionics deploys a pediatric exoskeleton with smart robotic joints and has provided personalized walking assistance to more than 3,000 children through 67 devices. - In Food, Adaptive Symbiotic Technologies uses microbial biotechnology to help crops tolerate drought, heat, salinity and nutrient stress, covering more than 13 million acres and raising yields by 30% to 200%. - ALSEC Alimentos Secos turns liquid whey from artisan cheese production into protein ingredients and purified water, recovering 22.7 million liters of whey and protecting 4.3 billion liters of water. - TOWING’s Soratan biochar treatment restores soil health in about one month instead of 3–5 years, boosts yields by 20% and has treated 50,000 hectares. - In Energy, Energy Assured provides pay-as-you-go solar home systems, clean cookstoves and shared mobile solar irrigation pumps, reaching more than 4.6 million people and 1.3 million smallholder farmers. - Flint is developing a rechargeable cellulose-based battery that eliminates lithium, cobalt, nickel and flammable electrolytes, with production capacity of 400,000 units per month and up to 150 tonnes of CO₂e avoided annually. - Sustain Plus has deployed more than 34,000 decentralized clean energy solutions and reached 2.5 million beneficiaries through blended finance, community ownership and local delivery networks. - In Water, Fundación Aguatuya converts wastewater into irrigation water, biofungicides and compost through decentralized modular treatment plants, recovering 1.08 million cubic meters of treated water annually. - Rupantar runs women-owned water enterprises using RO systems, restored ponds and rainwater harvesting, providing year-round safe water to around 450,000 people. - Solinas uses AI-equipped robotic crawlers to inspect and clean water and sewer pipes from the inside, saving up to 600,000 liters of water per day per kilometer inspected and benefiting 17 million people. - In Climate Action, Aquafondo restores ancestral water management systems, including amunas, qochas and high-Andean wetlands, restoring more than 6,000 hectares and generating 14 million cubic meters of additional groundwater annually. - Coral Gardeners has planted more than 221,000 heat-resilient corals and restored 25,100 square meters of reef using underwater nurseries, AI, sensor networks and 3D reef mapping. - String Bio’s CleanRise® uses methane-derived microbial biostimulant technology to cut methane emissions by up to 50% and increase yields by up to 39%. - The Global High Schools finalists span six regions, including schools in Canada, Colombia, Argentina, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Mauritius, the United Arab Emirates, Syria, Lebanon, Portugal, Kazakhstan, Türkiye, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia, Fiji and China. - Organisational finalists will receive US$100,000 each, while Global High Schools finalists will receive US$25,000 each. - Category winners will receive US$1 million for organisational categories and US$150,000 for Global High Schools. - The Prize introduced the expanded finalist funding with the 2026 cycle. - H.E. Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber said the finalists show what is possible when perseverance and purpose come together. - H.E. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson said the finalists show how innovation, local knowledge and community adaptation can strengthen resilience and wellbeing.

Between the lines: - The Prize is emphasizing solutions that are already delivering measurable impact, not early-stage concepts. - The spread across maternal health, farming, water systems and energy access points to a broadening view of sustainability that includes both climate adaptation and basic services. - Extending funding to every finalist lowers the risk that promising solutions stall before they can attract larger capital.

What's next: - Finalists will continue toward the awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi on 12 January 2027. - Category winners will be selected during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. - The enlarged finalist grants are likely to help more of these projects expand before the winner announcement.

The bottom line: - The Zayed Sustainability Prize’s 2027 shortlist is a snapshot of scalable sustainability innovation with direct, measurable impact already reaching millions.