The Earthshot prizes which were first started in 2020 by Prince William, have been awarded in Cape Town, South Africa for the 2024 winners.

These are the awards aimed at celebrating and supporting people and companies working to provide innovative solutions for climate and environmental issues.

There are five “Earthshots” namely: Protect and Restore Nature; Clean Our Air; Revive Our Oceans; Build a Waste-free World; and Fix Our Climate.

There was a focus on ideas from Africa this year, with hundreds of projects nominated which were continent-led, together with a similar number which were African linked.

The Prince of Wales was at the closure of the awards ceremony after which he admitted the past year had been the hardest of his life, with both his wife and father having to undergo cancer treatment.

Inspiring the young Africans

Prince William spoke of a deep connection to the African continent and said that he wanted this year’s Earthshot to provide a platform for young innovators to bring about change for their communities and inspire young people across Africa.

“Without them the future is looking pretty bleak so these are the game-changers, the innovators, the inventors who are going to make the world a better place for us in future”, he said.

Fully recycled

On arrival at the event stars made their way down the “green carpet” instead of a traditional red one, and all 2,000 attendees were asked to wear sustainable clothes – either made from recycled materials or a previously worn outfit.

The Prince of Wales was happy to go along with the theme as he arrived dressed in a second-hand double-breasted check jacket and snazzy pair of white plastic-free fully biodegradable shoes.

And the winners are:

The awards were broadcasted across Africa as well as being streamed online, giving it global exposure.

Now in its fourth year, the ceremony was hosted by Emmy-winning actor Billy Porter and TV presenter Bonang Matheba; with models Heidi Klum and Winnie Harlow, actor Nina Dobrev and artist Tobe Nwigwe announcing the £1m ($1.2m) prize winners from each of the five categories.

There were 15 finalists from a varity of countries including the UK, France, Kenya, Indonesia and Nepal, which had been carefully reduced down from 2,500 initial applicants.

The winners from each of the five categories were as follows:

Protect and Restore Nature – Altyn Dala Conservation Initiate, which is a project that has been able to save the critically endangered Saiga antelope from extinction in Kazakhstan.

Clean our Air – Green Africa Youth Organisation, who have been using behavioural change to help communities clean up waste and build circular waste management infrastructure across the continent.

Revive our Oceans – High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People, who are an alliance of at least 119 countries with the goal to protect 30% of land and oceans by 2030.

Build a Waste-free World – Keep IT Cool, who are a Kenyan-based company using solar powered refrigeration to help cut harvest waste for farmers.

Fix Our Climate – Advanced Thermovoltaic Systems, an American firm that converts excess heat, which has been produced during the making of steel or cement, into electricity.

Movement for change

In his closing remarks Prince William reiterated that the aim was to find solutions to repair the planet and called for people around the world to join the “movement for change” stressing that he firmly believed the world could be “rich in possibility, in hope, and in optimism”.

He passionately declared that the desire was for the decade to be the one in which they were able to transform the world for good, “one solution at a time, from the ground up.”

Challenging year

The Prince was glowing in his praise for the way both his father, King Charles, and his wife, Princess of Wales, have handled their cancer treatments, saying how proud of the two of them he is, calling Catherine “amazing” but admitted that from a personal family point of view “it’s been brutal”.

William said he was looking forward to using his royal role differently and make it relevant for a younger generation. “I’m doing it with maybe a smaller R in the royal, if you like, that’s maybe a better way of saying it,” he remarked; as he assessed his position and influence moving into the future.