Royal’s £1m prizes for the ideas that might save planet
A British firm making biodegradable plastic out of seaweed is one of five innovators to win £1 million from the prestigious Earthshot fund.
The awards, founded by the Prince of Wales, are designed to reward ground-breaking solutions to the climate crisis. This year’s winners were revealed at an A-list ceremony in the US where William and wife Kate were joined by celebrities including Annie Lennox, Ellie Goulding, Billie Eilish and David Beckham.
Prince William told them: “I believe the Earthshot solutions prove we can overcome our planet’s greatest challenges. And by supporting and scaling them we can change our future. Alongside tonight’s winners and finalists, and those to be discovered over the years to come, it’s my hope the Earthshot legacy will continue to grow, helping our planet to thrive.”
UK company Notpla, which is creating an alternative to plastic packaging from seaweed, was among the winners at the awards, held in Boston, Massachusetts. A Kenyan business making stoves run on plant-based biomass and a project from Oman which turns carbon dioxide into rock were also honoured.
The royal couple’s US trip was overshadowed, however, by controversy at home after William’s godmother Lady Susan Hussey resigned from her role at Buckingham Palace after being accused of racism.
Lady Hussey, who was the late Queen’s lady-in-waiting, repeatedly asked where a black British charity founder “really came from”.
Meanwhile, a trailer for a Netflix documentary involving Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle, who has accused the royal family of racism, was released while William and Kate were in the US. In the clip, the Duke of Sussex teases the real reason behind the pair stepping down as working royals, saying: “I had to do everything I could to protect my family.”