The Prince of Wales has expressed his pride as the 15 finalists for the 2025 Earthshot Prize are announced, with the awards ceremony set to take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 5 November. William founded the prize in 2020 to identify and scale up innovative solutions to environmental challenges, with five winners each receiving £1 million.
In a video message, William highlighted the urgency of the prize's mission, noting that 2030 is a critical threshold. He said: 'Back then, a decade felt a long time. George was seven, Charlotte five and Louis two; the thought of them in 2030 felt a lifetime away. But today, as we stand halfway through this critical decade, 2030 feels very real.'
Among the finalists is British company Matter, based in Bristol, which has developed washing machine filters to remove microplastics from oceans. Founder Adam Root compared being a finalist to 'winning an Olympic gold medal in innovation'. Actress Cate Blanchett, an Earthshot Prize council member, praised the finalists for challenging conventional behaviours, saying: 'Optimism isn't abstract – it's made real by people bold enough to act now.'
William will travel to Brazil for the ceremony, which marks the halfway point of the Earthshot decade. He described the 'urgent optimism' at the heart of the prize as 'unstoppable', adding: 'The people behind these projects are heroes of our time. Let us back them.'
