Joyeeta Gupta has become the awardee of the Spinoza Prize which is the highest distinction in Dutch science.

Gupta is a professor of Environment and Development in the Global South at the University of Amsterdam; Gupta is also the co-chair of the Earth Commission.

A statement from the University of Amsterdam said she was awarded for her outstanding, pioneering and inspiring scientific work in which she focuses on a just and sustainable world.

As part of the award, she will receive 1.5 million euros to spend on research and related activities. She plans to use the prize money to work towards implementing the ideas she presented in her inaugural lecture in 2014 – on sharing the ‘eco-space’ globally.