Since the dawn of time, humanity has understood the power our elements hold and the deep connection between us. We embody this unbreakable bond through deities, art, and activism, each serving to preserve them. This year, we wanted to draw a connection between feelings and praxis. Through three testimonies, we spotlight members of The Iris Project community and their tireless efforts to save the elements their communities, and any living being, can’t survive without.
Water
Written by: Sam Bencheghib, Sungai Watch
The Personal Connection
The memory that truly defines my relationship with water today is our 2017 expedition down the Citarum River in Indonesia. With my brother Gary, we paddled down the Citarum River, which was then considered the world’s most polluted river. We had built kayaks entirely from discarded plastic bottles and went down this river for two weeks. That was the first time I saw water that had completely lost its soul. It was no longer a river but a floating landfill. Trash everywhere. I had never seen so much of it.
That journey changed everything. The footage went viral overnight and reached Indonesian President Joko Widodo (who served from 2014 to 2024). He eventually launched the Citarum Harum movement, a national war on waste, and he deployed 7,000 military soldiers to clean the river. It taught me that water is resilient if you give it a fighting chance.
The Journey’s Impact
We are now deep into Java, the world’s most populous island. Java is home to 156 million people (or approximately 2% of the world’s population). Many don’t know this, but if Java were a country, it would be the 7th most populous country in the world, and with it a lot of the world’s plastic pollution. It is home to the world’s most polluted rivers.
So we’re currently running across it. From one end to the other. To fundraise $1 million to help us expand our work to clean Java’s rivers. But the physical toll is undeniable. My legs feel heavy, yet the adrenaline remains high because this journey is a frontline witness to a hidden crisis. A few days ago, while running past an industrial canal, a group of local children in school uniforms joined us. For these kids, a river filled with trash is their “normal.” They have grown up seeing waterways as convenient landfills. Seeing their faces light up because we gave that forgotten river attention was the ultimate fuel. This 57-day trek is a wake-up call to prove that their “normal” can be changed and that their water deserves to be clear again.
The Legacy
The $1 million goal is the practical engine that buys our expansion plan across Java and hires our teams, but the true legacy of Run for Rivers goes beyond the funding. I want people to feel deeply uncomfortable with the status quo. I want someone scrolling their phone in Jakarta or London to see our grit and realise that if we can run 28 marathons to clean this up, they can rethink their own consumption or corporate operations. Moreover, probably the most important legacy that I hope this run will have is inspiration. We can’t pretend we will clean every river in Java or single-handedly solve waste management. However, we can inspire students, local governments, and businesses to do their part in fixing this problem. It’s about highlighting the solutions and the importance of scaling those solutions. There is no time to waste. The plastic crisis often feels like an impossible, infinite problem, but through this run, we are showing it is actually a logistics and willpower problem that we are solving one kilometre and one barrier at a time.
Earth
Written by: Abubakarr Barrie, Tiwai Honey Initiative
The Personal Connection
For me, the Earth is a vacuum for our existence. To me, earth is more than land or soil; it’s life, identity, commitment, and my responsibility to protect it. Earth nourishes our communities by giving us a priceless opportunity to connect with nature, which provides our basic necessities. As a Sierra Leonean, I have seen and experienced the close connection between nature and people’s lives, and how a healthy earth supports these communities. As such, when the protection of these ecosystems, biodiversity, and species is jeopardised by deforestation of our forests, for example, it often negatively affects the lives of community residents who depend on them for survival. The earth, for me, carries our history and future; it shapes our culture and directs our trajectory; it reminds me that humans are not separate from nature but part of it, and that we have a duty to care for it with respect and urgency.
The Action
As an earth protector, I uphold the principles of sustainability, “meeting the need for the current generation and species, without jeopardising the ability of the future generation and species to meet their own needs”. One way my team and I are achieving this is by conserving the local forest biodiversity, while creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for communities through the Tiwai Honey Initiatives in Sierra Leone. Through this action, we have supported 8 communities around Tiwai Island, provided over 300 beehives, increased the local bee population by over 1 million, and protected over 15 hectares of forest land along the Tiwai Island buffer zone axis. The Tiwai Honey Initiative is not only demonstrating a commitment to nature or raising awareness, but also actively empowering local communities to take ownership of protecting their forest cover. As such, the initiative is reducing pressures on Tiwai Island, such as poaching and illegal logging, through sustainable beekeeping practices, by providing a sustainable alternative livelihood for community members. For me, protecting the Earth is about creating solutions that benefit people and nature together. Through initiatives like the Tiwai Honey Initiative, we demonstrate that environmental protection and community development can go hand in hand.
Tiwai Island’s World Heritage status amplifies community-led conservation efforts driven by EFA and local members who believe restoration and protection prevail. By safeguarding pollinators and building sustainable livelihoods, the initiative roots human wellbeing firmly within thriving local biodiversity.
Air
Written by: Ankica Sokolic, The Iris Project
The Personal Connection
By definition, air is a mixture of invisible, odourless, and tasteless gases that form the Earth’s atmosphere and are essential for sustaining life. But this definition did not always correspond with my reality. Growing up in Skopje, a capital city famous for its astronomical levels of air pollution, especially during winter, I’d say air is pretty visible, with grey undertones, an unpleasant smell of burned plastic and wood that tastes bitter and smoky, sticking on your hair, clothes and eyes, the moment you step outside. Every winter, while unsuccessfully trying to avoid the smog, I wonder – How did we get here? How could we do this to one of the most essential things on the planet? How could we do this to ourselves?
The Inspiration
Is it the “unfortunate” geographical location of the city (Skopje is situated in a valley, surrounded by mountains)? Is it the people’s habits and their unwillingness to give up some conveniences? Or is it the lack of serious implementation of the polluter pays principle and many other legislations that policy-makers seem to always turn a blind eye to? The real answer is somewhere in the murky air in between. Over the years, after many initiatives and movements that didn’t gain lasting traction in Skopje, I began to doubt whether change was even possible and started losing hope… until last year, when Breathe Mongolia became our 2025 Iris Prize winner. A sad, but rather comforting, realisation was that mine was not a unique experience. At a distance of around 6,500 kilometres from my city, the people of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital, face a similar challenge. But change is possible.
That is precisely what I want to highlight this Earth Month. Breathe Mongolia’s inspiring team of young people is fighting for something essential to us all through education, community, and policy advocacy. As a young woman advocating for youth participation and trying to navigate decision-making spaces in my own country, I have found that following Breathe Mongolia’s work over the past year and hearing about their experiences as young people, especially young women, in these spaces has made me feel I am not alone. Their resilience and determination, despite constant doubts and questioning from those in power, motivated me to try again. To continue organising despite the odds. To demand what we all deserve: air that is invisible, odourless, and tasteless, just like in the definition.
Water, earth, air – the elements essential for the livelihood of every being that calls our planet its home. Taken for granted people don’t always realise what’s at stake until they have lost it. Is there a major city that doesn’t struggle with air pollution? How many free fresh rivers are there left? Is there soil free from microplastics?
But young people across the globe are changing this. They care, they organise, they run for rivers, for air, for the whole planet Earth. Are we going to be bystanders, cheer or provide them with the resources they need to continue and succeed? It is up to us.
Learn more about Sam’s Run for Rivers campaign and help Sungai Watch achieve their goal here: https://runforrivers.sungaiwatch.com/
