Prince William Makes Important Announcement as US Visit Nears

Prince William will be visiting the U.S. next month to hand out the Earthshot Prize, and he just announced the finalists in that competition. The Prince of Wales offers one million pounds – about $1.18 million – to inventors working to combat climate change. According to a report by the BBC, he said that there are “many reasons to be optimistic” about Earth’s future in this year’s list of finalists.

The Earthshot Prize was first unveiled in 2021 and handed out to five different inventors in five categories. In its second year, Prince William said that the finalists were “innovators, leaders and visionaries.” He will attend a ceremony in Boston, Massachusetts next month to announce the winners and recognize their achievements. He hoped the display of new technology would make more people feel positive about the direction of the world in the face of climate disasters.

“They are directing their time, energy, and talent towards bold solutions with the power to not only solve our planet’s greatest environmental challenges, but to create healthier, more prosperous, and more sustainable communities for generations to come,” Prince William said of the finalists for the Earthshot Prize.

The announcement named 15 finalists who will vie for the five prizes available. The categories are “restoration and protection of nature,” “air cleanliness,” “ocean revival,” “waste-free living” and “climate action.” Finalists come from all over the world, and in fact the U.K. did not even have a finalist last year. The company is called Notpla, which creates biodegradable take-out containers for food and delivery services.

There is also “The Great Bubble Barrier,” developed in the Netherlands. This invention is on the list for protecting the ocean from plastic pollution. It reportedly pumps air through a perforated tube to create a mass of bubbles, which push plastic particles to the surface of running water to remove them before the water is dumped. That plastic can then be collected and recycled or disposed of.

Most of the finalists will reportedly attend the gala remotely, but will receive their awards and funding from the royal family at the same time. The Earthshot Prize is slated to continue yearly through 2030, with funding already assured for each year.The intiative comes not a moment too soon, as scientists say that climate change is already wreaking havoc on the world in the form of natural disasters. Projections for the costs of these cataclysms vary across different reports.