Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg is the odds-on favorite to be awarded this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.
A number of bookmakers in Europe and Betfair, which operates the largest online betting exchange in the world, show the odds overwhelmingly in Thunberg’s favor to become the next recipient of the prestigious honor.
{mosads}However, despite odds from a number of bookies showing the scale tipped in Thunberg’s favor for the award, it remains unclear if Thunberg is in the running for a chance at the honor as the candidates for the award aren’t typically announced beforehand.
Still, some say Thunberg, whose activism helped spark widespread climate demonstrations across the globe, has a fighting chance of being awarded the prize, which will be announced next Friday.
Dan Smith, who serves as director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, told The Daily Mail in a statement that what Thunberg “has done over the past year is extraordinary.”
“Climate change is an issue which is strongly related to security and peace,” he continued.
However, the idea of Thunberg receiving the honor has been met with opposition by some who say the teenager hasn’t done enough to win the prize.
Henrik Urdal, the research director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo, told the international publication that Thunberg’s chances of winning the award are “extremely unlikely,” citing her age and qualifications.
If Thunberg is successful in becoming this year’s Nobel Peace Prize recipient, she would be the first to have received the award for efforts addressing climate change since former vice president and environmental activist Al Gore in 2007, according the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
Thunberg, who was honored with Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience Award last month, which is the organization’s highest honor, would also become the youngest Nobel laureate to win the prize if selected — an honor currently held by Malala Yousafzai, who received a Nobel Prize at age 17.
The buzz surrounding Thunberg’s chances at winning the prize comes a week after the teen received widespread praise for her forceful speech at the United Nations summit calling world leaders to tackle climate change.