Friendship founder honoured for outstanding contributions to climate resilience and environmental conservation
by Friendship News Desk,
4 January, 2025
Prokriti O Jibon Foundation and Channel I awarded Runa Khan, Founder of Friendship with the Nature Conservation Award 2025 on 29 December, 2025. Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Honourable Advisor to the Government of Bangladesh, handed over the award at a ceremony in Dhaka. Dr Farhina Ahmed, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), and Mukid Majumdar Babu, Chairman of Prokriti O Jibon Foundation, along with Faridur Reza Sagar, Managing Director of Impress Telefilms Ltd and Channel i, were present at the event. Friendship’s significant contribution to nature conservation and 23 years of work on climate change and sustainable development were highlighted during the ceremony.
The Nature Conservation Award is in recognition of Runa Khan’s exceptional leadership and innovative work in addressing climate change, conserving the environment, and improving the quality of life of vulnerable communities. A formal award ceremony was held on Monday, 29 December 2025, at Channel i’s Chetana Chattar. The event was further graced by the presence Dr Md Kamruzzaman, Director General of the Department of Environment, and Md Amir Hossain Chowdhury, Chief Conservator of Forests.
The integrated adaptation solutions pioneered and popularised by Friendship has transformed the lives of people in some of Bangladesh’s most hard-to-reach regions. In collaboration with the local government, local communities, and the Bangladesh Forest Department, Friendship carries out mangrove afforestation across the coastline, with 62km currently secured. The initiative is also aligned with the regional Mountains to Mangrove project that aims to plant 1 billion trees from the Himalayas to the Sundarbans. Mangroves can unilaterally tackle desertification, conserve biodiversity, and trap carbon.
Expressing her feelings upon receiving theNature and Life Foundation–Channel i Nature Conservation Award 2025, Runa Khan said, “I accept this award on behalf of the people we have been serving and the people who have served alongside me for decades.”
Syeda Rizwana, as the chief guest, said, “Bangladesh needs more organisations that bravely and responsibly work for the environment and people. The government alone cannot reach every corner of society; organisations like Friendship are the most effective partners of the government.”
She congratulated Runa Khan and said that Friendship’s work proves that an integrated approach comprising health, climate action, cultural preservation, and livelihoods is the foundation of sustainable development.
Speaking on the occasion, Mukid Majumdar Babu, Chairman of Nature and Life Foundation and Vice Chairman of Impress Group, said, “Let us commit together to protect the environment to protect the future. We all have some capacity to bring about change.”
Dr Farhina said, “We need to recognise more people working for the environment to inspire the general public towards climate action.”
