Actress Shailene Woodley was honored last month at the 26th Environmental Media Awards (EMAs), where she used the opportunity to call on people to attend the protests at Standing Rock.
The protests are against a planned pipeline to transfer crude oil to the refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Protesters say the building of the pipeline desecrates sacred Native American land and could contaminate water if the pipe were to rupture. Also honored was Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s son Jaden.
The 18 year-old was celebrated for creating an alternative to plastic water bottles which is 80 percent recyclable. The awards, which were hosted by Nicole Richie, were created to bring together media and celebrities to create awareness of environmental issues.
The awards came as more than 80 protesters were arrested on after clashing with police near a pipeline construction site in North Dakota, according to the local sheriff’s department, which said pepper spray was used on some demonstrators. The 83 protesters were arrested near the site of the Dakota Access pipeline on numerous charges ranging from assault on a peace officer to rioting and criminal trespass, the Morton County Sheriff’s department said in a statement.
