Lily and other awardees on stage during a forum.

Stéphanie Razakaratrimo

The Company He Keeps

Africa

Perhaps no greater barometer of the magnitude of Lily’s win exists than in understanding the caliber of the other five DeHaan Finalists for the 2025 Indianapolis Prize and the winner of the Emerging Conservationist Award. 

Biruté Galdikas, one of the "Trimates" mentored by Louis Leakey alongside Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey, has become synonymous with orangutan preservation. Julie Packard has shepherded millions of visitors toward ocean stewardship through one of the world's most influential aquariums in Monterey Bay. These fellow nominees aren’t just accomplished scientists; they are living legends who have reshaped entire fields of conservation, and Lily has joined their ranks. His selection alongside such titans of environmental science wasn't merely an honor—it was a profound validation. 

Each of the following descriptions contains a link to the finalist’s Indianapolis Prize webpage, which contains a highly moving brief video about their career. To have your faith restored in the extraordinary conservation work being done across the globe, please watch!

 
An orangutan holding its offspring. Overlaid is a video play button.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


Biruté Mary Galdikas, Ph.D. is a scientist, conservationist, and educator. She is president and co-founder of Orangutan Foundation International, an organization dedicated to protecting wild orangutans in Borneo and their rainforest habitat.
 

 
A closeup of a smiling audience. Overlaid is a video play button.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


Julie Packard is an international leader in ocean conservation and the founding former Executive Director of the Monterey Bay Aquarium. She is a leading voice for science-based policy reform in support of healthy oceans.
 

 
A man sitting on a boat dock. Overlaid is a video play button.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


Alberto Alves Campos is a Brazilian conservation biologist and founder of Aquasis, a non-profit organization promoting endangered species and habitat conservation. He has helped improve the conservation status of the Antillean Manatee and the endangered Red Knot.
 

 
A closeup of two women, one of them holding a small child, posing in front of a helicopter.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


Lisa Dabek, Ph.D. is the founder of the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program in Papua New Guinea where she works with local Indigenous communities and local governments to establish long-term conservation plans for these species.
 

 
Two men in camouflage fatigues in front of a small village. Overlaid is a video play button.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


Lee James Taylor White, Ph.D. is a field biologist and conservationist whose research focuses on the Critically Endangered African Forest Elephant and their keystone ecological role in the Congo Basin.
 

 
A closeup of a young boy smiling. Overlaid is a video play button.
courtesy of Indianapolis Zoo


The winner of the 2025 Emerging Conservationist Award is Mwezi “Badru” Mugerwa, a Ugandan conservationist and researcher, and the founder and director of Embaka, a grassroots community-based conservation organization focused on the preservation of the African Golden Cat.