MADRID (AP) — Ellen MacArthur, a British sailor who set world solo yachting records before creating a charity that advocates a sustainable way of life, has won this year’s Princess of Asturias Award for international cooperation.

The Princess of Asturias Award jury said in its citation published Thursday that the 45-year-old MacArthur is “a reference in the fight for better use of natural resources and in accelerating the transition to the so-called circular economy.”

The circular economy seeks to eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials, and regenerate nature. It is based on a shift to renewable energy and materials as part of a sustainable way of life.

MacArthur set up in 2010 a foundation that works with companies, governments, scientific bodies and civil society to implement those ideas.

In 2005, MacArthur broke the world record for the quickest nonstop solo circumnavigation of the globe.

The 50,000-euro award ($53,600) is one of eight prizes covering the arts, communication, science and other areas that are handed out annually by the foundation.

The prizes are among the most prestigious in the Spanish-speaking world. The awards ceremony takes place each October in the northern Spanish city of Oviedo.

The Associated Press