ECHO - Building Environment Conservation Heroes

ECHO inspires and mentors youth to explore their local environments, innovate and transform their ideas into impactful environmental ventures

About ECHO

ECHO is an annual innovation platform that runs through the academic year and leads to a National Summit and a Panda Trophy for the youth.

In 2025, WWF-India is calling on young innovators to conserve our planet’s global treasure – biodiversity! We invite individual youth or youth-led groups to submit their innovative solutions towards conserving native species and ecosystems in India, while engaging with local communities to make a difference.

WWF-India will shortlist 25 submitted projects, where selected youth will receive mentorship and training trainilot test their ideas under WWF-India’s guidance. The impact of these youth-led projects will be assessed by a panel of experts based on innovation, scalability, feasibility, and impact.

25 Youth will receive significant learning and growth opportunities through their project journey, and will also have the chance to connect with leading conservationists, experts and industry leaders. Three impactful projects will be awarded seed grants.

Our Vision

To mentor young people to utilize innovation and entrepreneurial skills to catalyze positive change and create an environmental impact.

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Youth-led Projects

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Youth Leaders Trained

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Youth Members Engaged

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Lives Impacted

How ECHO Journey looks like

SCREENING

In the first phase, we’ll shortlist 25 Youth Projects who will get to test their project ideas with WWF-India. Get ready to show us what you’ve got!

BOOTCAMP

We’ll host an exciting bootcamp to help ECHO Fellows fine-tune their final project plans and get set for action!

INCUBATION & TESTING

ECHO Fellows will have 4-5 months’ time to test their ideas in the real world and see how they stack up!

INNOVATIVE SUMMIT

WWF-India will host a summit where all the 25 ECHO Fellows will pitch their ideas and share the results of their pilot tests.

On the recommendation of the panel of judges, three projects will be awarded a seed innovation grant as mentioned below:

First Position- INR 1.5 Lakh (One Lakh Fifty Thousand)

Second Position – INR 1 Lakh (One Lakh)

Third Position- INR 75,000 (Seventy Five Thousand)

Theme of ECHO 2025

Reviving Nature: Youth-Led Solutions for Biodiversity Conservation

Biodiversity is the foundation of life on Earth, providing clean air, water, food, and essential resources that support our well-being, livelihoods, and economies. Yet, biodiversity is on the decline. Wildlife populations have plummeted by 73% since 1970 (WWF Living Planet Report, 2024). Habitat loss, pollution, climate change, and unsustainable practices are pushing ecosystems towards critical tipping points

Biodiversity provides essential ecosystem services such as:

Why does biodiversity loss matter?

Conserving biodiversity is essential for a healthy planet and our future. It is a foundation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, with goals like Life on Land (SDG 15) and Life below Water (SDG 14) directly addressing conservation. However, all 17 SDGs hinge on thriving biodiversity. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), also known as the “Biodiversity Plan,” is a global agreement that commits 196 countries to take urgent.... more

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Challenge Design and Structure

Eligibility

You are eligible to take part in the ECHO Innovation Challenge if you:

Ages of 18 and 28

Have an innovative project idea that aligns with the theme

Are an individual youth or a member of a youth-led group

Selection Criteria

25 innovative projects will be shortlisted for incubation and testing based on the following criteria:

The project directly addresses the challenge theme.

It has clear objectives, outcomes, and measurable impact (environmental, economic, and social).

It integrates all key parameters: innovation, scalability, feasibility, and impact.

Youth applicants demonstrate passion, ambition,and a strong commitment to transforming their project idea into real impact.

Commitment to transform the idea into impact within the ECHO time frame

WWF-India encourages youth to create cost-effective projects and seek collaborations and partnerships to secure any necessary support.

ECHO x YOU(th)

ECHO empowers youth with the mindsets, approaches, and skills needed to envision, build, and lead a greener economy. By joining ECHO, young people boost their leadership, networking, project development, planning, management, communication, negotiation skills and entrepreneurial acumen.

Youth further contribute to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by creating social, economic and environmental impact through their ECHO projects.

What will YOU(th) gain?

Become an ECHO Fellow

Join the ranks of the 25 finalists and gain incredible learning opportunities.

Earn the Title of ECHO Innovation Challenge Champion

Win a seed grant for your project ( T & C apply) and stand out as a leader in youth led innovation.

Need more reasons to participate?

Take transformative action to safeguard our global treasure - biodiversity

Innovate and act to solve a real-world conservation challenge

Gain unparalleled learnings and exposure through collaborations with conservation organisations.

Discover career paths in conservation and be mentored by conservation experts.

Testimonials

Our journey with WWF-India through ECHO has been a deeply enriching experience. We have gained a strong understanding of sustainability and environmental protection, learning how crucial it is to care for our ecosystem and biodiversity. Winning the ECHO 23-24 Conservation Heroes Title has sparked a deep sense of responsibility in us to contribute to positive environmental change!

~ Suryansh Sharma, Acropolis Institute of Technology & Research, Madhya Pradesh

ECHO motivated us to think out of the box! The opportunity helped us all to hone our skills like team spirit, leadership endurance, and communication. We cherish the memories we had at the National Summit where we met the highly vibrant ECHO State Winners and the resourceful WWF - India team.

- Amarjith A, Sree Sankara College, Kerala

Being part of the ECHO journey was an experience we’ll never forget. Coming from Karnataka and winning at the state level was already a big achievement for us, but getting to represent our college at the National Summit was a feather on the cap. The whole experience was eye-opening—meeting other teams who are just as passionate about sustainability and SDG 11 was incredibly motivating. It wasn’t just about the competition; it was about the ideas, the conversations, and the drive to make real change. ECHO made us even more determined to keep pushing for a better future.

- Rakshith Balaji, Jain - Center for Management Studies, Karnataka

Winning the ECHO Panda Trophy twice has been a feather in our cap, especially for a rural college like ours. The celebration was doubly manifested when we met State Winners at the Winners Meet. Our ECHO journey so far has taught us that we all can contribute in our own small ways towards creating a sustainable environment.

- Dr. Shalmoli Chakraborty (Professor), Bejoy Narayan Mahavidyalaya, West Bengal

A great experience to see the drive in young minds brainstorming on raw ideas that were equally interesting and tacky. Thankful to WWF to bring such mind-churning programme that requires design thinking in a modern way to keep the boat of sustainability sailing!

- Ms. Girija Jha (Professor), NIFT, New Delhi