Prince William’s environmental award has a new place on a new continent!
The fourth annual Earthshot Awards will be held in Cape Town, South Africa this November, the organization announced on Friday.
A year after Prince William, 41, introduced the finalists and revealed the winners in Singapore, this will be the fourth iteration of the awards. It started in London in 2021 and then took place in Boston in December 2022. Earthshot plans to run for 10 years, handing out more than $50 million in prizes over that period.
Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton attended the first two ceremonies together. But last year Kate stayed at home to support their son Prince George, 10, as he sat through his school exams.
Prince William attends the 2023 Earthshot Awards in Singapore.
Chris Jackson/Getty
Kate Middleton will not be joining Prince William in Singapore so she can support Prince George during working hours
As Princess Kate, 42, is recovering from abdominal surgery three weeks ago, it is too early to say whether she or Prince William will come to Cape Town this time. All international travel plans will arrive in due course, the source said.
The last high-profile visit by royals to Cape Town was when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were there (with their baby son Prince Archie) in September 2019.
Prince William returned to public duties earlier this week after taking time off to help Princess Kate with her recovery. Over the next week, he will help babysit the couple’s three children during the half term school holidays, which start this weekend.
Kate Middleton and Prince William in Boston at the 2022 Earthshot Awards Samir Hussein/WireImage
As in previous years, five winners in five categories — Protect and Restore Nature, Clean Our Air, Revitalize Our Oceans, Build a Waste-Free World and Fix Our Climate — will be selected from among 15 finalists. That shortlist will be announced in September.
As in Singapore, a week of awards events will be held in Cape Town, helping those nominated to connect with supporters and exchange ideas for their own development.
This cycle saw 400 nominations from across Africa – three times as many as in any previous series of nominations – says the Earthshot Prize.
Hannah Jones, chief executive of The Earthshot Prize, said in a statement: “The nominations for The Earthshot Prize remind us that human ingenuity, courage and determination can turn the seemingly impossible into the new normal.”
“We are delighted to be working with changemakers and partners across Africa to highlight the incredible innovations emerging across the continent, to spark bold conversations about scale and finance, and to collaborate with young creators and filmmakers to tell the story of changemakers across Africa, ” she added.
Prince William — Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Lawrence Wong talks with Earthshot 2022 finalist Dr. Isabelle Lackman, co-founder and director of Hutan — during one of his tours in Singapore in November 2023.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Prince William Pens Foreword to New Book Inspiring Next Generation of Climate Change Drivers (Exclusive)
The prize doesn’t just help the winners with the initial prize money. Cohorts and finalists become part of a network where they receive advice and funding to expand their projects. And it’s having great success, says Earthshot Prize. The first three groups of 45 finalists have already “made an incredible impact on the repair and regeneration of our planet with more than 1.5 million people directly benefiting from their solutions”, it was announced on Friday.
“More than 7,000 hectares of land and nearly 2.1 million hectares of ocean have been protected or restored, while more than 35,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions have been reduced, avoided or sequestered. The 2023 Award finalists, announced this fall, are well on their way to making a similar impact.”
The Earthshot award goes to Cape Town.
Earthshot Award
Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to receive the latest news on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!
Before heading to Singapore last December, Prince William visited New York as a prelude to the latest awards ceremony.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education