Somewhat of a coming home for Earthshot Prize as Prince William heads to Cape Town

It was during Prince William’s visit to a conservation project in Namibia in 2019 that the royal conceived the idea of the Earthshot Prize.

The creativity and impact William observed on the ground were in stark contrast with the narrative of pessimism conveyed by the news.

This moment in Southern Africa inspired the creation of the global platform aimed at unearthing ground-breaking solutions and supporting change makers who are determined to solve critical environmental challenges.

A year later, the Earthshot Prize was launched by Prince William in 2020 to search for and scale the most innovative solutions to the world’s greatest environmental challenges.

For the first time since its inception, Prince William’s Earthshot Prize will be hosted in Cape Town this year. The annual environmental celebration has previously taken place in London, Boston and Singapore respectively.

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Coming to Cape Town

Across five days of landmark events, the Earthshot Prize will celebrate the ground-breaking work of fifteen global environmental solutions and convene leading innovators, Earthshot Alumni, partners, investors and philanthropists for inspiring conversations and action on catalysing solutions to protect and restore our planet.

The prize is centred around five ‘Earthshots’; simple but aspirational goals to ensure communities, oceans and ecosystems can thrive together in harmony for generations to come.

Throughout the year, a rigorous selection process unearthed fifteen finalists from around the world, of whom five will be awarded a £1 million (R23 800 000,00) prize to scale their solutions, during the ceremony in Cape Town.

Last year’s Earthshot Prize was held in Singapore, where South Africa’s Nomzamo Mbatha was in attendance.

“We’re delighted to be working with change-makers and partners across Africa to spotlight the incredible innovation emerging across the continent, to convene courageous conversations about scale and finance, and to partner with young creators and filmmakers to tell the story of change-makers across Africa,” CEO of The Earthshot Prize, Hannah Jones said at the time.

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Africa under the spotlight

Africa has proved to be a cradle of ingenuity and creative ideas born from first-hand experiences.

These solutions are not only pragmatic but sustainable, generating jobs, improving lives, and healing the planet.

In 2024 alone, nearly 400 Earthshot Prize nominations are headquartered in Africa, and almost 800 have operations across the continent.

There aren’t any South African finalists this year but Kenya’s Keep It Cool (KIC), which provides sustainable refrigeration and smart distribution solutions for small farmers and fishers, is holding the fort for the continent.

KIC helps extend the shelf life of farmers’ produce, reduces spoilage, and creates more stable incomes.

By improving profits and cutting down on food waste, KIC is helping build a more sustainable future for these communities.

Another finalist from Africa is the youth-led organisation Green Africa Youth Organisation (Gayo) from Ghana. Gayo has developed a zero-waste model that creates jobs.

The organisation employs and trains people from the community, including women, young people, waste collectors, and waste pickers, so they can then earn money from selling compost and charcoal briquettes made from waste.

The programme has already benefited 5000 people since 2019 and kept 170 tonnes of waste out of landfills in 2023 alone.

Another finalist that hails from Africa is D.light which manufactures and sells solar home systems and appliances that already bring clean and affordable power to rural African communities.

They aim to reach one billion people by 2030. The prize would help them reach their goal of securing $750M in consumer financing by 2025, providing energy access to millions of off-grid households.

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