Prince William Unveils 2025 Earthshot Prize Winners in Rio

Thu Nov 06 2025 16:11:53 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

During a star-studded ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Prince William announced the winners of the 2025 Earthshot Prize, highlighting innovative projects dedicated to tackling climate change and environmental issues.

The 2025 Earthshot Prize winners, announced by Prince William in Rio de Janeiro, include projects focused on restoring tropical forests and a global initiative for ocean conservation. Each winner receives £1 million to scale their impactful work, which was recognized at an awards ceremony that featured performances by renowned artists such as Kylie Minogue and Shawn Mendes.

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.

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.

Each project's focus is designed to inspire collective action for climate solutions.

Protect and Restore Nature: re.green, Brazil - offering sustainable financial models for the protection of the Atlantic Forest.
Clean Our Air: Bogotá, Colombia - exemplifying public policy to improve air quality.
Revive Our Oceans: High Seas Treaty - a global agreement to protect marine biodiversity.
Build a Waste-Free World: Lagos Fashion Week, Nigeria - promoting sustainable practices in the fashion industry.
Fix Our Climate: Friendship, Bangladesh - helping vulnerable communities adapt and prepare for climate-related challenges.

Prince William referred to the winners as innovators and emphasized the importance of their roles in the global fight against climate change.

Earlier in the day, Prince William also participated in activities aimed at promoting environmental awareness and conservation in Brazil, alongside scheduled appearances at climate change conferences.