Prize ideas

At a star-studded awards ceremony in Cape Town, South Africa, this year’s five Earthshot Prize winners were announced.

08 November 2024

At the ceremony on 6 November, hosted by Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award winner Billy Porter and award-winning television presenter Bonang Matheba, the 2024 Earthshot Prize Winners were presented with their awards and honoured for their work in identifying impactful, inspiring and inclusive environmental solutions.

The five, selected from this year’s 15 Earthshot Finalists, will be awarded £1 million each to accelerate and scale their game-changing environmental solutions.

The five winners are:

- Protect and Restore Nature: Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative, Kazakstan
- Clean Our Air: Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO), Ghana
- Revive Our Oceans: High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People, Global
- Build a Waste-Free World: Keep IT Cool, Kenya
- Fix Our Climate: Advanced Thermovoltaic Systems, USA.

Prince William Founder and President of The Earthshot Prize, congratulated this year’s honourees, stating, “We celebrate the incredible achievements of our 2024 Earthshot Prize winners and finalists.

The Earthshot+ 2024 event was hosted by Nomzamo Mbatha, Actor, Humanitarian, and Earthshot Prize Global Ambassador.

Sampson Osei Tutu Aggrey and Tokunboh Ishmael joined Prince William at Earthshot + 2024.

Alyssa Gilbert, Director of Undaunted, Imperial College London, Kiara Nirghin, Technologist, Entrepreneur, and Ann Mettler, Vice-President, Europe, Breakthrough Energy.

Robert Irwin, Earthshot Prize Global Ambassador talks with participants from The Earthshot Youth Climate Leader Programme at Earthshot+ 2024.

Jackie May, Founder & Editor, Twyg, and Omoyemi Akerele, Founder, Lagos Fashion Week imagined the road to greening fashion.

“These visionary innovators from Africa and beyond are not just solving the environmental challenges facing their communities, they are lighting the path for a sustainable future for us all.

“Their groundbreaking work demonstrates that with the right support and collaboration, we can scale solutions that will repair and regenerate our planet. Let their success inspire us to act with urgency and optimism, ensuring a thriving world for future generations.”

The five Winners of the 2024 Prize cohort were selected by Prince William and The Earthshot Prize Council, a diverse group of experts, advocates and individuals dedicated to championing urgent and innovative action to protect our planet. The Earthshot Prize Council is chaired by The Earthshot Prize Board of Trustees Chair, Dame Christiana Figueres, architect of the Paris Agreement.

Members of The Earthshot Prize Council include: His Royal Highness Prince William, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, José Andrés, Sir David Attenborough, Cate Blanchett, Ernest Gibson, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Wanjira Mathai, Stella McCartney, Nemonte Nenquimo, Luisa Neubauer, Indra Nooyi, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Naoko Yamazaki.

2024 Earthshot Prize Finalists gather for the awards with the backdrop of Table Mountain.

Founder of Earthshot Prize, Prince William discusses projects with this year's finalists.

Prince William meeting the team from Coast 4C, whose seaweed initiative in the Philippines and Indonesia is changing coastlines and communities.

seaweed is an important ingredient in many everyday products including skin care, toothpaste and even dog food.

Co-founder of Coast 4C, Nicholas Hill shows Prince Williams the conservation aims of the organisation and its achievements.

Francis Nderitu, Founder and Managing Director of Keep IT Cool in the Build a Waste Free World category.

Francis Nderitu, Founder Keep It Cool.

Rita El Zaghloul, Director, High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People - Winner in the Revive Our Oceans category.

Kelly Adams, CEO, Advanced Thermovoltaic Systems, winner in the Fix Our Climate category.

Desmond Alugnoa, Co-Founder of the Green Africa Youth Organisation (GAYO), winner of the Clean Our Air category.

Vera Voronova, Executive Director, Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative, winner of the Protect & Restore Nature category.

In addition to the five £1 million prizes supporting the growth of Winners’ solutions, each of the 15 Earthshot Prize Finalists will receive dedicated mentorship, resources and technical support through the year-long Earthshot Prize Fellowship Programme.

That support includes access to the Prize’s robust network of influential experts and partners, including The Earthshot Prize’s Global Alliance of Partners, comprised of some of the world’s largest businesses, donors, investors and environmental organisations committed to climate action.

Finalists will also have access to Launchpad, Earthshot’s bespoke online finance platform to matchmake Earthshot solutions to a growing community of members made up of mission-aligned donors and investors seeking to speed proven environmental solutions to scale.

Ahead of the Awards, Earthshot+ featured a panel of experts in sustainability, environmentalism and innovation discussing African innovation and the tipping points for the continent.

Hosted by Nomzamo Mbatha, Actor, Humanitarian, and Earthshot Prize Global Ambassador, the day was packed with bold conversation and impactful collaboration to drive sector-wide change.

Robert Irwin, Conservationist, Wildlife Photographer and Earthshot Prize Global Ambassador, brought to light the importance of ambassadors for change. Talking with participants from The Earthshot Youth Climate Leader Programme, Robert asked what methods of activism we all need to use going forward to help us start a climate revolution.

The Earthshot Prize is already gearing up for the 2025 Earthshot Prize. Nominations for the Prize’s fifth cohort of innovative solutions and entrepreneurs are now open.

earthshotprize.org

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