What Is the Earthshot Prize? Inside the £1 Million Award Changing Climate Action

What if solving the planet’s biggest problems wasn’t just necessary, but celebrated?

That’s the mission behind The Earthshot Prize. Co-created by Prince William and championed by icons like Sir David Attenborough, it spotlights climate innovators from around the world and gives them the platform and the funding to scale real change.

With £1 million awarded to five winners each year, it’s a high-stakes, high-hope initiative designed to turn urgent optimism into action.

Why Does It Matter

By 2030, we must reduce CO₂ emissions by over 40% and safeguard at least 30% of our forests, freshwater, and oceans. The Earthshot Prize, a £1 million (approximately AED4.6 million) grant awarded annually across five categories, is designed to accelerate hopeful, scalable solutions rather than wait for them. It aims to spark “urgent optimism” into action during this crucial decade.

The Investment

➼ £1 million (AED4.6 million) goes to each of the five winners every year.
➼ So far, £15 million (AED69 million) has been awarded to 15 winners, with an additional £50 million (AED230 million) catalysed in follow-on funding.
➼ Finalists have collectively reduced or captured 420,000 tonnes of CO₂e and removed or avoided 100,000 tonnes of waste.

A Guide to the Prize

Launched in 2020 by Prince William and inspired by President Kennedy’s Moonshot, the Earthshot Prize is a ten-year commitment to discover and scale the most promising solutions to the world’s greatest environmental challenges. Each year, the Prize awards five winners, one per category, across the following goals:

🌳 Protect and Restore Nature

☁️ Clean Our Air

🌊 Revive Our Oceans

🐚 Build a Waste-Free World

🌵 Fix Our Climate

Winners are selected from a shortlist of 15 finalists and are supported not just with prize money but with global partnerships and mentorship opportunities to help scale their impact.

So Who’s Actually Fixing the Planet?

It’s not just billionaires or big governments. Recent finalists and winners include:

➼ Restor is a digital platform that connects grassroots conservation efforts, including Indigenous-led projects, with global partners and funding.

➼ Roam is a Kenyan company designing and producing electric buses to reduce air pollution and emissions across East Africa.

➼ Coral Vita, based in the Bahamas, is growing coral up to 50 times faster to restore dying reefs and revive marine ecosystems.

➼ The City of Milan is transforming surplus food into meals for those in need through a network of local food waste hubs.

➼ 44.01 is a company turning captured carbon into stone through a natural mineralisation process, with projects in Oman and the UAE.

Some of the most exciting solutions come from women-led teams, grassroots movements, and innovators across the Global South, proof that big impact can start anywhere.

Urgent Optimism in Action

The Earthshot Prize brings high-stakes optimism into the spotlight, awarding life-changing funding, championing community-rooted innovation, and inspiring a generation of problem-solvers to believe that real change is not only possible but already underway. This isn’t just about winning. It’s about rewriting what’s possible for the planet, for each other, and for the future.

How You Can Help: