About The Institute


 
 

 
 

The Institute was launched by Sir Edmund from Antarctica on 22 January 2007 in the company of our patron, former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, and principal philanthropic investor Jan Cameron.

Founded as a NZ registered charity to honour Sir Ed’s extraordinary legacy of Leadership, the Institute's work is globally focused, selecting one Hillary Laureate annually, an established, social/environmental justice entrepreneur who also embodies the humanitarian commitment of Sir Ed. An additional premiere award of the Hillary Step to a current Laureate (or Laureates), for a particular body of work, was first given in 2012 after our first four years and again in 2015 and 2019.

The Institute has celebrated 10 Hillary Laureates in the past 12 years. While coming from across the globe, (India, US, UK, China, South America, Sweden, Costa Rica and Kiribati), our Laureates are united by exceptional, mid-career leadership, impact at scale, and a deep sense of purpose driving their work. Climate Change has been their dominant challenge and continues to be our focus in 2021.

See our Laureate page for the extraordinary characters who we have supported and celebrated over those years.

“It’s a New Zealand equivalent to the Nobel Prize for leadership”
— Helen Clark, Former Administrator UNDP (2009-17), Prime Minister of NZ (1999-2008)