Prince William announces 15 Finalists for inaugural year of the £50 million Earthshot Prize
17.9.2021 20:01:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
The Earthshot Prize announces today its first-ever shortlist of 15 Finalists, each with a chance of winning £1million to support their innovative environmental solutions to the greatest challenges facing the planet.
Prince William said: "Over half a century ago, President Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ programme united millions of people around the goal of reaching the moon. Inspired by this, The Earthshot Prize aims to mobilise collective action around our unique ability to innovate, problem solve and repair our planet.
“I am honoured to introduce the 15 innovators, leaders, and visionaries who are the first ever Finalists for The Earthshot Prize. They are working with the urgency required in this decisive decade for life on Earth and will inspire all of us with their optimism in our ability to rise to the greatest challenges in human history.”
Launched by Prince William and The Royal Foundation in October 2020, The Earthshot Prize is the most prestigious global environment prize in history. Like President John F. Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ did almost 60 years ago, the Prize aims to unleash an unprecedented wave of innovation and leadership to tackle our greatest environmental challenges. The Earthshot Prize will be awarded every year for the next decade, discovering a total of 50 Winners.
Five of these 15 Finalists will be awarded The Earthshot Prize and will win £1million in Prize funding for the best solutions of the five Earthshot goals: Protect and Restore Nature; Clean our Air; Revive our Oceans; Build a Waste-free World; and Fix our Climate. The Winners will be announced during an awards ceremony on 17th October from London’s Alexandra Palace, broadcast in the UK on BBC One and globally on Discovery+.
The Earthshot Prize Finalists for 2021 are:
Protect and Restore Nature:
- Pole Pole Foundation, Democratic Republic of Congo
An inspiring community-led model of conservation that protects gorillas and local livelihoods.
- The Republic of Costa Rica
A pioneering scheme paying local citizens to restore natural ecosystems that has led to a revival of the rainforest.
- Restor, Switzerland
A ground-breaking online platform connecting and empowering local conservation projects.
Clean our Air:
- The Blue Map App, China
China’s first public environmental database enabling citizens to hold polluters to account.
- Takachar, India
A pioneering technology to create profitable products from agricultural waste and put a stop to the burning of crops.
- Vinisha Umashankar, India
A 14-year-old innovator and activist who has designed a solar-powered ironing cart with the potential to improve air quality across India.
Revive our Oceans:
- Coral Vita, Bahamas
A truly cutting-edge breakthrough in coral farming that can restore our world’s dying coral reefs.
- Living Seawalls, Australia
Innovative and replicable seawall panels bringing marine life back to coastal sea defences.
- Pristine Seas, USA
An unprecedented global conservation programme protecting 6.5 million square km of the world’s ocean.
Build a Waste-Free World:
- The City of Milan Food Waste Hubs, Italy
A city-wide initiative that has dramatically cut waste while tackling hunger.
- Sanergy, Kenya
A circular sanitation solution that converts human waste into safe products for local farmers.
- WOTA BOX, Japan
A tiny water treatment plant that turns 98% of wastewater into clean water.
Fix our Climate:
- AEM Electrolyser, Thailand/Germany/Italy
An ingenious green hydrogen technology developed to transform how we power our homes and buildings.
- Reeddi Capsules, Nigeria
Solar-powered energy capsules making electricity affordable and accessible in energy-poor communities.
- SOLbazaar, Bangladesh
The world’s first peer-to-peer energy exchange network in a country on the front-line of climate change.
All 15 Finalists will receive support from The Earthshot Prize Global Alliance Members, an unprecedented network of global businesses, who will help scale their solutions for even greater impact.
Of these 15 Finalists, the five Winners will be selected by The Earthshot Prize Council, a diverse team of influential individuals which includes: HRH Prince William, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, Sir David Attenborough, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Indra Nooyi, Shakira Mebarak, Christiana Figueres, Luisa Neubauer, Cate Blanchett, Yao Ming, Daniel Alves Da Silva, Ernest Gibson, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Jack Ma, and Naoko Yamazaki.
In the run-up to the prize-giving ceremony on 17 October, BBC and Discovery will release a 5-part documentary series THE EARTHSHOT PRIZE: REPAIRING OUR PLANET, featuring Earthshot Prize Council Members including Prince William, Shakira Mebarak, Daniel Alves Da Silva and Sir David Attenborough.
For more information about the Finalists and The Earthshot Prize, visit: www.earthshotprize.org, email Claire Straw: TEPmedia@freuds.com, download media pack here.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210917005454/en/
Contact information
Claire Straw:
TEPmedia@freuds.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit Concludes with Research Partnerships and New Programmes to Advance Prevention and Health Innovation11.11.2026 16:58:00 EET | Press release
Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit 2026 concluded with agreements and initiatives spanning drug discovery, clinical research, preventive and reproductive health, alongside research and entrepreneurship programmes that will sustain collaboration beyond the Summit. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261111545964/en/ The Summit is the annual flagship gathering of Future Health – A Global Initiative by Abu Dhabi, curated and convened by the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH) together with Founding Partners PureHealth, M42, Institute for Healthier Living Abu Dhabi (IHLAD) and Mubadala Bio. Held from 20–22 October, the Summit attracted more than 17,300 visitors from 85 countries. It brought together health leaders, researchers, policymakers, investors and inn
De' Longhi Group: Record Results for the Quarter, With Revenue Growing by 7.7% and Net Profit Pertaining to the Group Progressing Significantly by 19%11.11.2026 16:58:00 EET | Press release
The Board of Directors of De' Longhi S.p.A. approved the consolidated results1 for the nine months of 2026. In the nine months the Group achieved: revenues for € 2,621.3 million, up by 6.5% with respect to 2025 (+7.7% at constant currency); an adjusted2 Ebitda of € 455.2 million, equal to 17.4% on revenues (vs. 15.8% with respect to last year); a net income pertaining to the Group equal to € 225.8 million (+20.4% with respect to last year); a positive net financial position equal to € 606.0 million. CEO Fabio de' Longhi commented: “The Group delivered its thirteenth consecutive quarter of organic revenue growth, underscoring our proven ability to capitalize on industry opportunities and respond promptly to market evolution, while ensuring consistent performance across both divisions. The professional business recorded a strong acceleration, spanning all geographies and brands, with revenues growth exceeding 35% for both the quarter and the nine-month period, this against an already par
Starr Chile Assigned A Rating from AM Best11.11.2026 15:30:00 EET | Press release
Starr, a global insurance and investment organization, today announced that the global credit rating agency AM Best has assigned Starr International Seguros Generales S.A. (Starr Chile) a Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of a+ (Excellent). The outlook for both credit ratings is positive. The rating reflects Starr’s strong balance sheet and Starr Chile’s successful implementation of Starr’s business model. AM Best also cited Starr’s operating performance, a favorable business profile and enterprise risk management as key factors supporting the positive rating. “This strong rating is another important endorsement of Starr’s business model as we continue to build our presence in Latin America,” said Jeff Greenberg, chairman and co-CEO of Starr. “It reflects the financial strength, underwriting discipline and experienced teams that underpin our business around the world, reinforcing the confidence brokers and clients can place in Starr.” Starr
Epinal, Inc. Emerges from Stealth with First-of-Its-Kind Breakthrough Semiconductor Electrochemical Biosensor (SEB) for Detection of Narcotics and Disease Biomarkers in Human Breath in Minutes11.11.2026 15:22:00 EET | Press release
Epinal, Inc., after over six years of under-the-radar development, has officially emerged from stealth mode, introducing a breakthrough Semiconductor Electrochemical Biosensor (SEB) designed to detect narcotics and disease biomarkers directly from human breath in minutes. By combining advanced semiconductors, electrochemical sensing, tailored protein engineering, and artificial intelligence, Epinal has addressed the historical sensitivity, selectivity, scaling, stability, and signal-to-noise limitations that have long bottlenecked biosensors. Epinal’s Semiconductor Electrochemical Biosensor (SEB) will be integrated into the next generation of low cost, disposable, single-use breathalyzer cartridges where the integrity of test results is of utmost importance. In the case of narcotic detection, a rapid, non-invasive, and objective result changes an outcome. End customers for Epinal’s SEB include breathalyzer manufacturers, healthcare, mobile computers & clinical smartphones, handheld bio
Compass Pathways to Participate in Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference on November 18 th and 19 th11.11.2026 13:30:00 EET | Press release
Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking urgently needed new treatment options in mental health care, announced today that management will attend the Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference on November 18 and 19, 2026 and will participate in a fireside chat on November 18 at 9:00am GMT and a panel on November 19 at 10:30am GMT. A live audio webcast of the fireside chat will be accessible at the following link: https://event.summitcast.com/view/avibSrFufLKeoLRAEgMxy6/eyqYNaU4UZTBAgMVip4JTx A live audio webcast of the panel will be accessible at the following link: https://event.summitcast.com/view/avibSrFufLKeoLRAEgMxy6/guest_book?session_id=H4EMMyKtX5Gd7TPGHGc3Si A replay of both webcasts will be accessible for 30 days following each event at the “Events” page of the Investors section of the Compass website. About Compass Pathways We believe mental health patients deserve the possibility of a better future. Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS) i
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom