On 17th September 2021, The Earthshot Prize announced their first-ever shortlist of 15 Finalists, each with a chance of winning £1million to support their innovative environmental solutions to the greatest challenges facing the planet.     

Prince William said: “Over half a century ago, President Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ programme united millions of people around the goal of reaching the moon.  Inspired by this, The Earthshot Prize aims to mobilise collective action around our unique ability to innovate, problem solve and repair our planet.   

“I am honoured to introduce the 15 innovators, leaders, and visionaries who are the first ever Finalists for The Earthshot Prize.  They are working with the urgency required in this decisive decade for life on Earth and will inspire all of us with their optimism in our ability to rise to the greatest challenges in human history.” 

Each of the Finalist’s solutions excelled in the rigorous screening process and were assessed on their potential to create game-changing impact around the world, their ability to help us reach our Earthshot goals while also positively impacting people, communities and the natural world. 

All 15 Finalists will receive tailored support and resources from The Earthshot Prize Global Alliance Members, an unprecedented network of private sector businesses around the world who will help scale their solutions to realise an even greater impact with their ground-breaking work. 

The search for the inaugural Finalists began in November 2020, when nominations opened and were submitted by over 200 official Earthshot Prize Nominators from every region of the world. These Nominators were selected for their experience in environmental research, policy, advocacy and grassroots action, as well as their global networks with individuals, teams and organisations who are leading on solutions to these environmental challenges.  

Over 750 nominations – far more than anticipated for The Earthshot Prize’s first year – were screened as part of an independent assessment process run by Deloitte, the Prize’s implementation partner, who ensured that all nominations were assessed fairly and thoroughly, by an experienced sustainability team. Longlisted nominations were then assessed by a global Expert Advisory Panel – a crucial stage in the selection process that adds a further layer of independence and rigour, bringing together expertise from science, conservation, innovation, investment, economics, politics, communications and activism.  

Seeking out these Finalists was part of a global search undertaken by over 200 Nominators, without whom we would not be able to champion such diverse and inspiring solutions. The 2021 Finalists were nominated by the following Official Nominators.

• African Conservation Foundation
• African Leadership Group
• Ashden
• Australian Marine Conservation Society
• C40 Cities
• Clean Air Fund
• Conservation Optimism
• Darwin College, University of Cambridge
• Echoing Green
• Goldman Environmental Prize
• New Energy Nexus
• Oceano Azul Foundation
• PDIE Group
• REV Ocean
• Royal African Society
• Salesforce
• Solar Impulse Foundation
• United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Five of the 15 Finalists announced On 17th September 2021, are to be awarded The Earthshot Prize and will win £1million in Prize funding for the best solutions of the five Earthshot goals: Protect and Restore Nature; Clean our Air; Revive our Oceans; Build a Waste-free World; and Fix our Climate.  

The Winners were announced during an awards ceremony on 17th October from London’s Alexandra Palace, broadcast in the UK on BBC One and globally on discovery+.

This news was originally published on the Earthshot prize website and republished with permission.