Prince William and Kate Middleton have teased a ‘new announcement’ for his Earthshot Prize with an enigmatic video.
On June 25, Prince William appeared in a drone-shot video introducing the inaugural prize, which will be held for the first time in London at Alexandra Palace.
If you’re not familiar, the Duke’s Earthshot Prize provides $65 million over the next decade to create “solutions to the world’s greatest environmental problems.” The program is the culmination of two years of work by The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Royal Foundation. The mission is to reward people who are making a difference in the fight against climate change.
The future king appears to be using Instagram to tease a significant impending project he’s working on. According to its Instagram account, the Earthshot Prize is “A global environmental Prize to discover and scale the solutions to the biggest challenges facing our planet.” The reward is “designed to incentivise change and help repair our planet over the next ten years” according to its website, and “aims to turn the current pessimism surrounding environmental issues into optimism.”
The video is only a few seconds long and was shot over the Duke’s shoulder as he operates the aerial device.
Nominees for the ‘green Nobel Prize’ might be individuals, communities, enterprises, or organizations whose ideas make the most progress toward accomplishing the five Earthshots — basic but ambitious goals that, if met by 2030, will improve living for all of us and future generations.
According to a release, the opening ceremony for the awards will be televised on BBC One as well as globally and will feature “show-stopping performances as well as never-before-seen musical collaborations.”
“The earth is at a tipping point,” Prince William said in a statement last year, “and we face a stark choice: either we continue as we are and irreparably damage our planet or we remember our unique power as human beings and our continual ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve.”
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Instagram followers will be checking their page all week. While the father of three made it obvious that the news was about his work with The Earthshot Prize, there’s no indication on whether or not he’ll be announcing the prize’s finalists or the recipients. William is also seen flying a drone over some trees in his hazy post, so it’s unclear how or if a drone will be involved.
The preview footage has sent royal watchers into a frenzy, with many unable to contain their delight on social media.
“Can’t wait to hear more news from the Duke and Duchess! Lots these last weeks!” one IG user remarked.
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, hailed the prize in an official statement, saying he was “thrilled that [London] will be the inaugural host to award the first Earthshot Prizes for these ground-breaking solutions that can help improve all of our lives.”
The award, which has been branded the “most prestigious global environment prize in history” by Prince William and Sir David Attenborough, formally launched in October 2020.
The Duke of Cambridge has followed in the footsteps of his father, Prince Charles, as an ardent fighter for a greener world, previously stating that he “gets upset and is kept awake at night by politicians’ failure to act on climate change.”
The Duchess of Cambridge also recently revealed Big Change Starts Small, a project she has been working on that wants to “to change the way people think about early childhood.” Despite their ongoing spat with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the royals appear to be keeping busy by attempting to make a difference.
The Duchess’ project emphasizes the necessity of “creating communities of support” as well as “building a mentally healthier and more nurturing society.”
From 2021 to 2030, Prince William, in collaboration with The Earthshot Prize Council, will award The Earthshot Prize to five winners, one for each Earthshot.
