In brief
The Earthshot Prize 2025 celebrated its winners in an inspiring ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, hosted by Prince William. Among the winning projects are initiatives aimed at restoring tropical forests and advancing global ocean treaty efforts. Each laureate receives £1 million to further their environmental innovations. The event featured performances by pop stars like Kylie Minogue and was attended by various sports legends and political figures, emphasizing collective action against climate change.
A project to restore tropical forests and a global ocean treaty initiative are among the winners of this year's Earthshot Prize. The winners, named at an awards ceremony in Brazil on Wednesday, will each be given £1m to scale up their projects to repair the climate.The Prince of Wales, who founded the global environmental award in 2020, said the winners were an inspiration and proof that progress is possible. Brazilian football legend Cafu, Olympian Rebeca Andrade, and former Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel were among the presenters, while pop stars Kylie Minogue and Shawn Mendes performed at the ceremony in Rio de Janeiro's Museum of Tomorrow.UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan were also in attendance. Prince William, who is the president of the prize, told those gathered at the ceremony that he had founded the award with the aim of making this the decade in which we transformed our world for the better. He mentioned that the prize's inspiration comes from former US President John F. Kennedy's Moonshot project.There are five Earthshots, or goals, for which an award is given: Protect and Restore Nature; Clean Our Air; Revive Our Oceans; Build a Waste-Free World; and Fix Our Climate. This year, nearly 2,500 nominees were submitted from 72 countries. Of these, 15 finalists were selected, from which the five winners were chosen.The winners include:1. Protect and Restore Nature: re.green, Brazil - financial viability for protecting the Atlantic Forest.2. Clean Our Air: Bogotá's public policy for clean air zones and re-greening.3. Revive Our Oceans: High Seas Treaty, effective January 2026.4. Build a Waste-Free World: Lagos Fashion Week, promoting sustainability in fashion.5. Fix Our Climate: Friendship, supporting Bangladesh with health and education.The prize celebrates collective action and innovation in tackling climate change, embodying optimism and determination for a sustainable future.
