Inspired by President John F. Kennedy's 1962 "Moonshot" challenge to send a man to the moon in ten years, Prince William established The Earthshot Prize in 2020 to find and fund the most creative solutions to the biggest environmental problems facing humanity. Collaborating with numerous global Official Nominators, the Earthshot Prize searches the world for innovative approaches to address environmental problems. Based on the expertise of forty international environmental specialists and an analysis of more than seventy scientific publications, nominations are selected. This guarantees that attention is focused on the regions most in need and grounds their search in the most recent scientific findings. This method identified fifteen areas of interest where harmful and unsustainable practises could be quickly replaced with high-impact alternatives.[i]
The Earthshot Prize’s 15 areas of priority
As a star studded crowd gathered in Singapore, beginning on the 7th of November and culminating with a worldwide broadcast on the 12th on November, the fifteen finalists were whittled down to just five winners (one per category). The winners were:
Acción Andina, South America's Andes Mountains: The foundation of this grassroots movement is a dedication to cooperating for the benefit of all. According to Earthshot, it brings together tens of thousands of members of local and indigenous communities to preserve native forests and ecosystems.[ii]
GRST, Hong Kong, China: With the demand for electric vehicles growing, GRST has created a more affordable, safer, and environmentally friendly method of producing and reusing lithium-ion batteries. As a result, there is less need for additional extraction since the metals may be recovered and used more profitably. According to Earthshot, the process results in a battery that lasts up to 10% longer than typical and cuts greenhouse gas emissions from production by 40%.[iii]
WildAid Marine Program, Global: The initiative of this nonprofit organisation supports the stringent regulation of human activities in Marine Protected Areas, which increases their efficacy. According to Earthshot, it makes sure that people are equipped to stop illicit fishing, let animals recover, and enhance coastal livelihoods.[iv]
S4S Technologies, India: Six college friends founded the company in 2013 with the goal of assisting rural communities in overcoming gender inequity, poverty, and food waste. According to Earthshot, its solar-powered dryers and other equipment assist small-scale farmers in preserving their crops and converting produce that would otherwise be thrown away, into useful items.[v]
Boomitra, Global: Boomitra, which translates to "friend of the earth" from Sanskrit, is a marketplace for soil carbon that pays farmers for using sustainable methods. It tracks the soil's capacity to retain carbon over time by using satellites and artificial intelligence (AI), according to Earthshot.[vi]
The five winning solutions will be awarded £1 million and the accolade of entering an exclusive club which is being named a winner of The Earthshot Prize. However, it's much more than just a title. Those who win The Earthshot Prize get the opportunity to have their experiences shared globally, giving them a worldwide platform and notoriety. By supporting and mentoring them on a journey that will see their solutions adopted and scaled to maximise their influence on the world, Earthshot will make sure that their moment doesn't end with winning The Earthshot Prize.[vii]
Last year we discussed the 2022 Earthshot Prize winners. We will look back on the progress made by a selection of last year’s winners.
Kheyti won the Protect and Restore Nature award in 2022. They are currently working with 1,000 farmers across six Indian states. 15,000 farmers are enrolled in the programme and by 2027, Kheyti hopes to reach 50,000 farmers.[viii] The cash award from winning the Earthshot Prize will surely assist in this endeavour. Co-founder Kaushik Kappagantulu told the BBC:
“We’ve scaled up a lot in the past 18 months. We now work with 3,000 farmers across India and we want to reach 100,000 farmers in the next five years, and a million in the next decade.”
“It's been an amazing year since we won the Earthshot Prize. The prize brings some recognition, some funding but also a platform to multiply our impact by creating partnerships. We’re using that funding to invest in innovation and research.”[ix]
Mukuru Clean Stoves won the 2022 Clean our Air award. Since 2017, over 250,000 clean stoves have been sold, impacting over 1,250,000 lives. 100% of sales agents are women and 95% of Mukuru’s staff live in the communities served by the enterprise.[x] Mukuru’s experience since winning last year has been one of improved exposure as the founder Charlot Magayi tells the BBC:
“We're based in Western Kenya, but I'm planning to scale out. We’ve always had good feedback for our stoves, but for a long time, we struggled to reach that many people. But now we’re doing that with help from the Earthshot Prize and their partners.”[xi]
Winners of the 2022 fix our climate award, 44.01, have continued their progress towards scaling up their operations. Having aimed to have sequestered 1 ton of CO2 by the end of 2022, the company has now as we approach the end of 2023 agreed a deal with US Direct Air Capture organisation, Aircapture, to inject up to 500 tons of captured liquid CO2 per year beginning in 2024.[xii] The prominence afforded by winning the Earthshot Prize may well be a key driver that led to this collaboration.
Collaboration is a central theme of the Earthshot Prize and is perhaps no better encapsulated by the surreal occasion in which Prince William served up burgers to unsuspecting customers in August. The group behind the well-known YouTube channel Sorted Food were invited by the future King to prepare, cook, and serve Earthshot burgers made with goods produced by three 2022 award winners. The burger's ingredients were produced in an Indian 'greenhouse-in-a-box' made by Kheyti, and they were cooked on a Mukuru clean burner that was made in Kenya with less air pollution in mind. They were presented in London-made, biodegradable cartons made by Notpla.[xiii] An example to all of how environmental solutions, when applied together, can not only meet our needs but also push our society forward towards a more sustainable and equitable future.
[i] The Earthshot Prize- Roadmap 2023
[ii] BBC News- Earthshot Prize: Prince William says climate crisis too visible to be ignored
[iii] Ibid
[iv] Ibid
[v] Ibid
[vi] Ibid
[vii] The Earthshot Prize- The Awards
[ix] BBC- The Earthshot Prize: 'It’s been an amazing year since we won'
[x] Mukuru Clean Stoves- About us
[xi] BBC- The Earthshot Prize: 'It’s been an amazing year since we won'
[xii] 44.01- 44.01 and Aircapture Announce DAC + Mineralization Collaboration in Oman
[xiii] Sky News- Prince William stuns food van diners by serving up Earthshot veggie burgers
Oscar is a recent graduate with a background in earth science. He is currently studying an MSc focussing on disaster responses, emergency planning and community resilience. His postgraduate research project will assess the link between climate crisis risk perception and attitudes to green energy projects. “Adapting to the climate crisis through the pursuit of net zero requires community engagement and understanding. Zero Carbon Academy’s goals closely align with this approach and I’m excited to have the opportunity to research and communicate a variety of topics relating to our environment and sustainability”.
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