EcoAlbania’s Executive Director joins TIME’s annual list of 100 individuals shaping the next generation of global leadership
Nika: “This recognition strengthens my resolve to defend the Vjosa”
Tirana, 30 September 2026 — Olsi Nika, biologist, environmental advocate and Executive Director of EcoAlbania, has been named to the 2026 TIME100 Next list, TIME’s annual selection bringing together 100 individuals from around the world who are shaping the next generation of global leadership.
For Nika, the recognition follows more than 15 years of commitment to protecting nature in Albania, combining scientific research, fieldwork, public advocacy and community engagement.
At the heart of this journey has been the fight to protect the Vjosa River, which reached a historic milestone in 2023 with the designation of the Vjosa Wild River National Park, the first of its kind in Europe.
Nika says he is honoured by the recognition, stressing that it further strengthens his commitment to protecting the Vjosa and nature.
“Together with EcoAlbania and many others, we helped establish Europe’s first wild river national park. But a declaration cannot protect a river on its own. This recognition strengthens my resolve to defend the Vjosa, protect the nature connected to it, and stand with communities everywhere fighting for the living places they call home. The next chapter begins now,” Nika said.
Nika’s work to protect the Vjosa received international recognition in 2025, when he was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for Europe, widely known as the “Green Nobel” and one of the world’s most prestigious awards for grassroots environmental activism.
His inclusion in the 2026 TIME100 Next list places a representative of Albania’s environmental movement among the figures TIME identifies as part of the next generation of global leadership.
TIME100 Next is part of the renowned TIME100 platform and recognises influential figures whose work, ideas and actions are driving change within their fields and communities, and beyond. Selected by TIME’s editors, the individuals on the list are grouped into five categories: Artists, Phenoms, Leaders, Advocates and Innovators.
