Boston, USA

Five winners were announced by Prince William as recipients of the prestigious Prince of Wales's annual Earthshot Prize on Friday. Among the five winners, two recipients were William's childhood friends from Oman who had reportedly discovered how carbon dioxide can be turned into rock. The prize is given by The Royal Foundation, co-founded by Prince William himself. 

The second edition of the Earthshot Prize award ceremony saw celebrities from across the globe like David Beckham, Billie Eilish, Ellie Goulding, Annie Lennox and Chloe Halle walking the “green carpet” in Boston, as royal guests of Prince William and Princess Catherine.

The name of the winners was announced at the awards ceremony by Prince William. The environmental entrepreneurs were awarded $1.2 million each by Prince William for their “groundbreaking solutions to repair and regenerate the planet”.

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Addressing the ceremony, Prince William said: "I believe that the Earthshot solutions you have seen this evening prove we can overcome our planet's greatest challenges.”

"By supporting and scaling them we can change our future," he added.

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The winning projects are based in Australia, Oman, Kenya, the UK and India. The Earthshot Prize award committee, which includes various influential personalities like singer Shakira, actress Cate Blanchett, naturalist and “Planet Earth” narrator Sir David Attenborough, soccer star Dani Alves and NBA Hall of Famer Yao Ming, soccer star Dani Alves finalised the winners.

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The winners were selected by the esteemed panel from the list of 15 finalists. One of the winners of the Earthshot Prize and founder of 44.01 Talal Hasan said that it was “a proud moment” for his team to win the prestigious award.

"We started 44.01 two years ago because we saw the very real impact of climate change here in Oman. Winning the Earthshot Prize will help us scale our solution around the world, and ultimately eliminate billions of tonnes of CO2. Climate change is the greatest challenge we have ever faced but being part of this amazing group of finalists give us hope,” he said.

Who are the five winners of the Earthshot Prize 2022?

Kenya's Mukuru Clean Stoves: Mukuru Clean Stoves, based in Kenya, is a business founded by a female and mostly run by female staff. They make stoves which are fired using processed biomass which constitutes wood, charcoal and sugarcane instead of solid fuels, which can lead to accidents and air pollution.

India's Kheyti: Greenhouse-in-a-Box, founded and run by Kaushik Kappagantulu in India, is helping small-hold farmers in protecting their crops from pests and harsh weather conditions of the country, which has suffered the severe impact of climate change.

United Kingdom's Notpla: Amongst the winners, one was a project based in the UK that provides a waste-free solution by creating bio-degradable and natural plastic, which is made of seaweed. The company, which is run by Pierre Paslier and Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez, has supplied more than a million takeaway food boxes to Just Eat, a food delivery platform.

Australia's Indigenous Women of the Great Barrier Reef: The Indigenous Women of the Great Barrier Reef from Australia were selected for running a programme under which 60 women were trained in both digital and traditional ocean conservation methods.

Oman's 44.01: Talal Hasan's project 44.01 in Oman has a unique proposition for its clients where it ensures to turn carbon dioxide into peridotite, a rock found in abundance globally as well in Oman. The project offers safe and low-cost alternative methods for storing carbon, like burying it in disused oil wells.

What is the annual Earthshot Prize?

Prince William founded the Earthshot Prize in 2021 to provide funds for projects that work towards saving the planet.

This is the second edition of the Earthshot Prize after the first edition was held last year. The name of the prize takes reference from the "Moonshot" ambition of US President John F Kennedy in the 1960s to make a man land over the Moon in a decade.

Every year five Earthshot Prizes worth $1.2 million will be awarded till 2030 to extend support to environmental innovation projects that can help build a better future. On December 5, nominations will be open for the 2023 edition of the Earthshot Prize.

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