Prince William announces 15 Finalists for inaugural year of the £50 million Earthshot Prize
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
Europe’s Tech Services Market Hits New High in Q4, on Strong AI, Cloud, Managed Services Demand: ISG Index™19.1.2026 11:00:00 EET | Press release
Demand for technology services in Europe reached a new high in the fourth quarter as the region turned in its best quarterly performance of the year to close out 2025, according to the latest state-of-the-industry report from Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm. The EMEA ISG Index™, which measures commercial outsourcing contracts with annual contract value (ACV) of US $5 million or more, shows fourth-quarter ACV for the combined market (both managed services and cloud-based as-a-service) advanced 27 percent, to a record US $10.9 billion. It was the region’s eighth consecutive quarter of combined market growth, averaging 16 percent in that span. “Europe saved its best for last, with accelerating, AI-fueled demand for cloud services, coupled with renewed momentum in managed services, leading the region to its strongest quarterly performance of 2025,” said Anthony Drake, president, ISG EMEA. “We also saw surging demand
Celonis Champions “Free the Process” Movement at WEF Davos 202619.1.2026 11:00:00 EET | Press release
Celonis, a global leader in Process Intelligence - a key enabler of enterprise AI, today announced its participation in the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2026. Under the event’s theme “A Spirit of Dialogue,” Celonis leaders — including Co-founder and Co-CEO Bastian Nominacher and President Carsten Thoma — will outline what’s needed to make the critical shift from AI experimentation to responsible AI implementation and meaningful RoAI (Return on AI Investment). In an AI-driven world, processes are the engine of enterprise value, and process intelligence is the essential foundation for AI, giving it the cross-system context needed to drive real growth. At WEF 2026, Celonis will outline how an open ecosystem enables organizations to "Free the Process" from rigid systems and vendor-locked silos, so that teams can collaborate, companies and governments can transform their processes, and AI can finally deliver on its true potential. Celonis contributes to the global dialogue by p
Posiflex to Showcase AI-Powered Retail Innovation at EuroShop 202619.1.2026 10:57:00 EET | Press release
Posiflex Technology, Inc., a global leader in Point of Sale (POS) systems and Online-to-Offline (O2O) solutions, will present its latest portfolio of AI-powered retail innovations at EuroShop 2026, taking place from February 22 to 26, 2026 at Messe Düsseldorf, Germany. Celebrating the 60th edition of the world’s leading retail trade fair, Posiflex will demonstrate how AI-enabled technologies and scenario-driven system design can address the evolving demands of modern retail environments, spanning self-checkout, AI recognition, contactless transactions, kitchen operations, and next-generation self-service. Visitors are invited to explore these solutions at Hall 6, Booth C42, and discover how Posiflex supports retailers in building agile, future-ready business models. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260118544299/en/ Posiflex presents end-to-end solutions that redefine the modern retail journey AI-Powered Smart S
Alta Semper Signs Definitive Agreements to Acquire a Majority Stake in Nature’s Rule, a MENA-Focused Leader in Dietary Supplements and Sports Nutrition19.1.2026 10:13:00 EET | Press release
Alta Semper, a London-based private equity firm focused on healthcare and consumer investments across growth markets, today announced that it has signed definitive agreements to acquire a majority stake in Nature’s Rule, a leading sports nutrition and dietary supplements company headquartered in the UAE, with an established manufacturing presence in Egypt. The acquisition is a majority investment in Prowell Holding, the parent company of Nature’s Rule, the operator of the largest fully dedicated sports nutrition and dietary supplements manufacturing facility in MENA. The company’s infrastructure and in-house R&D capabilities support a portfolio of private-label clients and proprietary brands, including Redrex, its flagship, market-leading sports nutrition brand developed in collaboration with global bodybuilding icon Mamdouh Elssbiay (“Big Ramy”). The founders will retain a significant stake and continue to lead the business. The partnership will execute a focused value-creation plan t
The UK Chooses Bridge Over Troubled Water as the Nation’s Favourite Song of Hope in Solidarity With Refugees19.1.2026 10:00:00 EET | Press release
Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water has been votedas the UK’s number one #HopeHit ― as part of UK for UNHCR’s ‘Hope on Repeat’ campaign, raising awareness of the hardships facing refugees across the globe this winter. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260119165712/en/ Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water voted the UK's number one #HopeHit With 10% of the public vote, Bridge Over Troubled Water emerged as the UK’s most popular #HopeHit. Since November, the UN Refugee Agency’s national charity partner has invited people to nominate their #HopeHits - the tunes that connect us and warm our hearts as the weather gets cold. The top hit is announced today, Blue Monday, to help people get through the most depressing day of the year. The 1970 chart topper held off stiff competition from Stand By Me by Ben E King with 5.7% of the vote and Imagine by John Lennon with 5.3%. Hope on Repeat in support o
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