Prince William has hailed the "heroes of our time" as he announced the finalists for his 2025 Earthshot Prize, with the awards ceremony set to be held next month in Brazil.
His hopeful message was tempered with the warning that the world was entering a critical period "by which future generations will judge us".
Saturday’s announcement comes one month before the November 5 awards ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, where five winners will each receive a £1million grant to support their innovative environmental projects.
William shared the message in a video clip where he addressed the public from beneath an oak tree with a meaningful history with his treasured project.
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"I sat under this oak tree five years ago soon after we launched The Earthshot Prize," he began, speaking directly to the camera.
The Prince of Wales reflected on how quickly time has passed since launching the £50million programme five years ago.
"Back then, a decade felt a long time," he said.
"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," William stressed.
Prince William announced the finalists of his Earthshot Prize 2025 in a video message
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In a sobering warning, William described 2030 as the "threshold by which future generations will judge us".
He said that humanity was approaching the "point at which our actions, or lack of them, will have shaped forever the trajectory of our planet".
However, the broad theme of the future King’s address was one of hope as he celebrated the 2025 Earthshot candidates.
He praised this year's contenders as "heroes of our time" whose energy feels "unstoppable," urging the public to support them.
The Prince of Wales's announcement was tempered with a sobering warning about the urgent need to act on climate change
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"The people behind these projects are heroes of our time, so let us back them," William stated in his message.
The Prince of Wales shared that he was "deeply proud" of the prize's achievements over its first five years and said he was "enormously excited" for what lies ahead.
To that end, he emphasised the goal to build a future that was: "Cleaner, safer and full of opportunity - not only for future generations, but for the lives we want to lead now."
Over the past five years, the Earthshot Prize has already generated significant environmental impact through its 60 previous finalists.
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William will travel to Brazil next month for the awards ceremony
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Collectively, they have safeguarded over one million square kilometres of land and ocean, diverted more than 250,000 tonnes of waste from landfills, and eliminated or captured over 4.8 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions.
The upcoming Rio ceremony at the Museum of Tomorrow will coincide with the UN climate change conference COP30 in Belém, marking the first time both events occur in the same country during the same week.
The fifteen finalists contending for the £1million grant were selected from nearly 2,500 nominees across 72 countries, competing for prizes in five environmental categories: Revive our Oceans, Fix our Climate, Build a Waste-free World, Protect and Restore Nature, and Clean our Air.
Among the projects going forward are a British firm, Matter, which is developing washing machine filters to combat microplastic pollution, and the island nation of Barbados, which is on track to become fossil-free by 2030.
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