The century-old Lacey Act was originally designed to prevent wildlife trafficking, but this past May the legislation was amended to include a ban on importing illegally harvested timber. Starting this month, it will be a criminal offense to bring into the United States any wood product that was obtained illegally. The new regulation is expected to have major implications for the trillion-dollar wood industry, says the EIA's Von Bismarck: "For the first time, there will be tangible value in putting your wood through the FSC process. If implemented correctly, the amended Lacey Act should give efforts in Indonesia, like community forests, a fighting chance."

For his part, Unggul is working to make sure there are more certified community forests to choose from in Indonesia. He's now on staff with the national environmental group Telapak, helping other villages around the country form logging cooperatives and manage sustainable forests. Late one afternoon, Unggul and his colleague Atilu persuade me to climb to the roof of the new Kendari televison station to see the view. Unggul and his college friends spearheaded Kendari TV as yet another way to promote nature conservation and social responsibility in Southeast Sulawesi (imagine a low-budget Discovery Channel). Overlooking Kendari Bay, where a large mosque sits beside a large church, Unggul considers the reason behind the cooperative's success. "Maybe the farmers looked at us and thought, If the boys from Kendari can accomplish so much by working together, why not us?"

Runner Up: Julio Solís
A former poacher protects a vital marine ecosystem—and makes conservation cool

As a youth in San Carlos, on the Pacific coast of Baja California, Mexico, Julio Solís poached Magdalena Bay's turtles. Today, as founder and director of Magdalena Baykeeper, he is one of their greatest champions.

Magdalena Bay's ecosystem is made up largely of mangroves, tidal mud flats, and deep-water channels. Gray whales give birth and rear their young in the bay, and it is home to endangered green, hawksbill, and loggerhead turtles. Solís found his calling when he was hired to drive a boat to take scientists and travelers on turtle watches in the bay. The work made him a conservationist and introduced him to environmentalists who would help him start his nonprofit, Magdalena Baykeepers, in 2005. Understanding that the marine ecosystem's health begins and ends with his community, he launched regular beach cleanups, followed by forums to raise awareness about the causes of local water pollution that was harming the bay and its wildlife.

His biggest victory has been halting full development of a mega-resort on the bay. As proposed, the Magdalena Secret would have covered 551 coastal acres with hotels and golf courses. Solís enlisted lawyers at the Mexican Center for Environmental Law to review the developer's 2005 environmental impact statement, and they confirmed Solís's suspicions: Although the developers claimed that mangroves would be protected, they didn't specify where, and there was no planning for trash or sanitation facilities. The project would also drastically alter the sustainable fishing and ecotourism economy that San Carlos had begun to realize.