Prince William and David Attenborough launch prestigious environment prize [video]

Prince William and the famous naturalist, David Attenborough recently joined forces to launch the Earthshot Prize – a prize that they hope will become the ‘Nobel Prize for environmentalism’.

Earthshot Prize: The biggest prize yet

The BBC reports that the pair is searching for 50 solutions to the world’s gravest environmental problems by 2030. With £50m (R1 075 838 254) to be awarded over a decade, the Earthshot Prize is the biggest environmental prize ever.

The Prince said “positivity” had been missing from the climate debate – something the award could supply.

“The Earthshot prize is really about harnessing that optimism and that urgency to find some of the world’s solutions to some of the greatest environmental problems,” he told the BBC. Anyone could win, he explained, as he called for “amazing people” to create “brilliant innovative projects”. These, he said, could help save the planet.

During the conversation, that was also shared by the royal family, Prince William said the launch of the new prize marks the moment he takes up the baton of environmental campaigning from his father.

“I feel right now it’s my responsibility”, he said. The world is “at a tipping point”, explained the Prince, who said the Earthshot Prize is his and David’s effort to ensure we hand the planet on to our children and grandchildren “in a better state than we found it.”

Who can win?

“We hope that this Earthshot Prize reaches everyone around the world,” the Prince told Radio 4. “From communities, schools, right up to banks, governments, corporations – anyone and everyone is a part of this and anyone could find the solutions that we need.”

Even suggestions that “may sound crackpot” are welcome, added David, so long as they have the potential to make a difference on what he called “the world scale”.

The prize could go to a new technology, a new way of doing things or a new policy – basically any good idea.

Individuals, community groups, scientists, activists, economists, leaders, government, banks, businesses, cities and even countries are welcome to submit their ideas to a nominating organisation.

How it will work:

Every year from 2021 until 2030, Prince William, alongside a panel of Prize Council Members covering six continents, will award The Earthshot Prize to five winners, one per Earthshot, whose evidence-based solutions make the most progress towards these goals.

“The Earthshot Prize is centred around five ‘Earthshots’ – simple but ambitious goals, underpinned by scientifically agreed targets, which if achieved by 2030 will improve life for us all, for generations to come,” the royal family wrote. “They are focused on climate, nature, air, oceans and waste. The first awards ceremony will take place in London in 2021.”

Also Watch: Prince George and siblings quiz David Attenborough on animals