Peru has seen incredible industrial change since the end of its internal conflict in 2000, sometimes called its quasi-civil war. Since then, various administrations have tried to improve the nation's infrastructure and industrial prowess through mining and energy production. Until recently, however, very little attention had been paid to indigenous populations native to the regions where this development occurs.

In 2010, Peru and Brazil signed an agreement that would have allowed Brazilian energy companies to build two super-dams in Peru's rivers and use them to create hydroelectric energy. However, one woman stood in the way of the massive project. This year she was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize.

Ruth Buendia began battling both governments and corporations to prevent the building of the dams, according to The Atlantic. Her efforts as an activist eventually led her to successfully preventing the construction of the Pakitzapango and Tambo-40 dams planned to be built on the Ene River.

Buendia became the first female president of CARE, an indigenous organization that represents the almost 10,000 Ashaninka people living in the Amazonian regions of Peru. After years of legal battles with the Peruvian government, Buendia managed to prevent the constructions of the dams. She cited Peruvian and international law in her case, arguing that a 2011 Peruvian law required the state to ask the local indigenous population about projects that will affect them.

The government hoped the dams would create jobs and provide affordable energy to the local population, though the majority would be exported to Brazil.

Buendia, on the other hand, argued the dams would flood the Ene River Valley, destroying arable land, wildlife and flora and displacing the Ashaninka. For now, she has succeeded, and the Goldman Environmental Foundation rewarded her efforts.

The award is given annually to grassroots environmental activists. Each winner receives $175,000.

"The Goldman Prize views 'grassroots' leaders as those involved in local efforts, where positive change is created through community or citizen participation in the issues that affect them," the Golden Environmental Foundation explains. "Through recognizing these individual leaders, the Prize seeks to inspire other ordinary people to take extraordinary actions to protect the natural world."

Aside from Buendia, five other activists from around the world were also rewarded. They include Ramesh Agrawal of India, who helped villagers fight a large coal mine, and Helen Slottje from the United States who helped communities in New York fight fracking by finding a legal loophole giving local municipalities a voice. The other recipients hailed from South Africa, Russia and Indochina.

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