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Prince William: What is the Earthshot Prize?
Image source, @earthshotprize Instagram
The Duke of Cambridge has launched a new competition to try and inspire people to solve "some of the world's greatest environmental challenges".
The aim of Prince William's Earthshot Prize is to recognise ideas and technologies that can safeguard the planet.
Every year until 2030 The judges will give out five prizes of 拢1 million - so the total prize fund is a huge 拢50 million!
The money will support environmental and conservation projects agreed with the winners.
It's hoped the competition will help generate at least 50 solutions to problems that our planet faces, with winners picked from five categories:
- Protect and restore nature
- Clean our air
- Revive our oceans
- Build a waste-free world
- Fix our climate
Prince William said: "We believe that this decade is one of the most crucial decades for the environment and by 2030 we really hope to have made huge strides in fixing some of the biggest problems the Earth faces."
Image source, @earthshotprize Instagram
Winners could be one person, a group of scientists or activists, businesses, governments and even a city or country.
They'll be picked by a judging panel, which includes Prince William, as well as leading figures from the worlds of sport, the environment, entertainment, business and philanthropy.
Prince William said:"The plan is to really galvanise and bring together the best minds, the best possible solutions, to fixing and tackling some of the world's greatest environmental challenges.
"We've got to harness our ingenuity and our ability to invent. The next 10 years are a critical decade for change."
Image source, @kensingtonroyal Instagram
He has also spoken to Sir David Attenborough about his plans and hopes for Earthshot, as well as his father the Prince of Wales.
"The Earth is at a tipping point and we face a stark choice: either we continue as we are and irreparably damage our planet or we remember our unique power as human beings and our continual ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve," he said.
Image source, @kensingtonroyal Instagram
William had the idea for the Earthshot Prize when he was on a trip to Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya in autumn 2018.
He met conservation workers and people from local communities there and got to see how they are helping the planet by working together. Nominations for the prize open on 1 November and an annual global awards ceremony will be held in a different city each year. The first will be in London in autumn 2021.