William and Irwin Honor Green Innovators Today

Prince William and environmental advocate Robert Irwin arrived aboard a green London bus on June 23 as they attended a special Earthshot Prize event at the historic Guildhall in London. The gathering, held during London Climate Action Week, honored Earthshot Prize winners and finalists whose projects are tackling some of the world’s most urgent environmental challenges.

The Prince of Wales, founder of the The Earthshot Prize, was joined by Robert Irwin, one of the initiative’s global ambassadors. Together, they highlighted the importance of innovative solutions and expressed optimism about the progress being made in addressing climate and nature-related issues.

In his keynote speech, Prince William said he was “more optimistic than ever” about the future, pointing to evidence that the Earthshot Prize is delivering meaningful results. He cited achievements including clean-air policies in India, large-scale tree-planting efforts in Brazil, and support for the international High Seas Treaty aimed at protecting marine ecosystems.

The prince emphasized that the world can no longer afford slow progress on environmental action.

“One day, people will look back at this decade and ask: when the evidence was clear, what did we do with it?” he said. He urged governments, businesses, and communities to expand successful environmental initiatives and support those leading climate resilience efforts.

According to figures released by the Earthshot Prize, the program has reviewed more than 6,700 nominations since its launch in 2020 and awarded $33 million in grants across five environmental categories. The initiative has also built a network of 75 finalists from every continent, many of whom have gone on to secure significant investment funding.

The organization reports that its finalists have collectively:

• Avoided or captured 18 million tons of carbon emissions.
• Protected, restored, or improved 580,000 square kilometers of land, forests, and freshwater ecosystems.
• Conserved and restored 850,000 square kilometers of oceans and coastlines.
• Prevented, recycled, or removed 465,000 tons of waste.
• Improved air quality for regions home to approximately 600 million people.

The London event marked William’s second major environmental engagement of the week. A day earlier, he participated in a discussion organized by United for Wildlife, a program of The Royal Foundation. The forum featured notable figures including Emma Watson, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Al Gore.

During that discussion, William spoke candidly about environmental concerns, saying the Earthshot Prize helps ease his climate anxiety because it allows him to see tangible progress being made. While acknowledging that challenges remain, he expressed confidence that practical solutions can deliver meaningful change.

Looking ahead, the next Earthshot Prize awards week will take place in Mumbai in November, continuing the initiative’s mission to identify and support breakthrough environmental solutions around the world.