Indian entrepreneur wins UNEP Young Champions award

Jinali Mody, a 28-year-old biochemistry graduate from St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, and the Yale School of Environment, has been named one of the 2025 Young Champions of the Earth by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The award recognises Mody for founding Banofi Leather, a women-led company in India that produces leather alternatives using banana crop waste.

Banofi Leather’s production process reduces water use, toxic waste, and carbon emissions compared to conventional leather manufacturing. The company is part of a broader push to create sustainable alternatives in the fast fashion industry. Mody is among three winners from India, Kenya, and the United States selected this year for the UNEP prize.

The 2025 winners were announced by UNEP at an event in Nairobi. Each winner received $20,000 in seed funding, mentoring, communications support, and a global platform to showcase and scale their solutions.