Latest News

Prince William Has Launched A New Environmental Prize

The royal declaring the 2020s a “decade of action”
Loading the player...

As we head into a new decade, there’s no denying that the planet is currently facing one of the biggest climate disasters in history. We only need to look to our own country, to understand the magnitude of what is at stake. Prince William, it seems, is also on board with this sentiment and has joined other world leaders across the globe by launching an ambitious new award for solutions to the world’s most serious ecological challenges.

Watch below: Prince William and Kate Middleton’s ‘year in review’

The Duke of Cambridge has announced the Earthshot Prize, which encourages and challenges “Earth’s greatest problem solvers to solve Earth’s greatest environmental problems.” Over the next 10 years, the initiative will award a multi-million pound prize to five winners each year, with the aim of generating 50 potentially planet-saving solutions by the start of next decade.

“The Earth is at a tipping point and we face a stark choice: either we continue as we are and irreparably damage our planet or we remember our unique power as human beings and our continual ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve,” William said in a statement.

Continuing, he added, “Remember the awe-inspiring civilizations that we have built, the life-saving technology we have created, the fact that we have put a man on the moon. People can achieve great things. The next ten years present us with one of our greatest tests—a decade of action to repair the Earth.”

A statement from Kensington Palace said that Prince William is passionate about dispelling the current pessimism around the environment and is striving to “replace it with fresh optimism and action.” The project, which has been in the works for more than a year, will reward progress across all sectors of industry and society and could be received by scientists, activists, economists, leaders, governments, banks, businesses, cities, or even countries.

Sir David Attenborough – who has a long-standing relationship with the royal family – announced the initiative in a film, saying, “The Earthshot Prize. A global prize designed to motivate and inspire a new generation of thinkers, leaders and dreamers to think differently. Visionaries rewarded over the next decade for responding to the great challenges of our time.”

The official launch date for the project will be later this year, where the challenges and guidelines of the prize will also be announced. An annual awards ceremony will take place in different cities each year between 2021 and 2030.

As we head into a new decade, there’s no denying that the planet is currently facing one of the biggest climate disasters in history. We only need to look to our own country, to understand the magnitude of what is at stake. Prince William, it seems, is also on board with this sentiment and has joined other world leaders across the globe by launching an ambitious new award for solutions to the world’s most serious ecological challenges.

Watch below: Prince William and Kate Middleton’s ‘year in review’

As we head into a new decade, there’s no denying that the planet is currently facing one of the biggest climate disasters in history. We only need to look to our own country, to understand the magnitude of what is at stake. Prince William, it seems, is also on board with this sentiment and has joined other world leaders across the globe by launching an ambitious new award for solutions to the world’s most serious ecological challenges.

Watch below: Prince William and Kate Middleton’s ‘year in review’

Related stories