Kotb was honoured in the “written work for online media” category for his feature article entitled Egypt going green: Staying below 1.5 °C. 

“Good, independent journalism is of crucial importance in raising awareness about environmental issues and climate change. Journalists are considered the link between governments, the scientific sector, civil society, and public opinion circles, as they can contribute to raising the awareness of different audiences in society on the issue of climate change and the interdependence of its details,” Hartmann said at the ceremony.

Because the German Embassy in Cairo pays special attention to environmental issues, it has decided, on behalf of the government of the Federal Republic of Germany, to reward the distinguished efforts of Egyptian journalists by granting an annual award for environmental journalism at the CCT.

The honourees included Rahma Diaa, in video journalism; Mohamed El-Sanhoury, in print journalism; and Hadeer El-Hadary, in online journalism.

The CCT was founded in 2011 to provide a series of events meant to exchange experiences, raise awareness, and foster cooperation between policymakers, businesses, the scientific community, and civil society.

The platform is a collaboration project between the German Embassy in Egypt, the Egyptian Ministry of Environment, Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, German Academic Exchange Service, German Agency for International Cooperation, and the Egyptian-German Joint Committee on Renewable Energy.