Published3 hours ago
The Prince of Wales has warned that the world needs to move faster to solve the biggest climate challenges.
Speaking exclusively to the BBC, Prince William called for a greater sense of urgency around ways to repair the planet.
"We're not moving fast enough," William said. "We need more businesses, investors and leaders to step up, back what works and help bring these solutions to scale."
His warning came as this year's nominees for the Earthshot Prize, the global environmental award he launched six years ago, were unveiled.
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Earthshot remains one of the key priorities of Prince William's public work.
"Around the world, people are proving every day that we can restore nature and tackle climate challenges. Our 2026 finalists are an incredible example of that."
Among the 15 finalists is the entire city of Barcelona, recognised for its efforts to safeguard its Mediterranean coastline.
The city's architects were praised for "turning one of Europe's most intensively used urban coastlines into a global blueprint for climate adaptation".
The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan was also selected, with the prize recognising how the country has embedded environmental protection into its national identity and constitution. The prize said that Bhutan had demonstrated "how a small nation's forests can safeguard water security across an entire region".
This year's Earthshot Prize ceremony will be hosted in Mumbai, India, in November
The finalists also include a range of community-led initiatives tackling environmental challenges such as waste reduction, nature restoration, and clean energy.
They include Indigenous ranger teams in Australia and an Argentinian artificial intelligence-powered wildfire detection and alert platform.
Two finalists are from India, which will host this year's Earthshot Prize awards ceremony in Mumbai.
They are Mahindra Last Mile Mobility, a leading manufacturer of electric three-wheelers, and the Mahila Housing Trust, a grassroots organisation pioneering climate resilience initiatives for low-income women.
The finalists were selected from nearly 7,000 nominations submitted across 169 countries.
Five winners, one from each of the five Earthshot categories – protect and restore nature, revive our oceans, clean our air, build a waste-free world and fix our climate – will be announced at the ceremony in November.
Each will receive a £1m prize to help expand their project.
The Earthshot Prize Council, which selects the winners, includes Prince William, alongside Queen Rania al-Abdullah of Jordan, actress Cate Blanchett, and chef José Andrés.
"The solutions are here. The challenge now is scale," Prince William told the BBC.
"The progress is real. Now we need to accelerate it. That's exactly why The Earthshot Prize exists."
The Prince and Princess of Wales visited the Isle of Bute on Thursday to learn about their efforts to protect the coastline
It has been a torrid week for the royals with allegations from Prince William's uncle, Earl Spencer about his parents.
Neither Prince William nor his brother, the Duke of Sussex, have made any public comment on the book nor the direct criticism aimed at their father, the King.
Prince William and the Princess of Wales were on the Isle of Bute on Thursday focusing on royal duty rather than family fallout.
This afternoon, Prince Harry will be in the Midlands visiting a school to look at how the stories of wounded military personnel can inspire young people as part of his Invictus Foundation.
Amidst the noise of Earl Spencer's allegations, the royal family approach will be to continue with public duty and charity engagements
منبع: بی بی سی
