Prince William Says Young People ‘Can Change Our Future’ When It Comes to Saving the Planet: ‘We Have to Invest in Them’

• Prince William continued his visit to Cape Town, South Africa by taking part in a panel discussion for Earthshot+ on day two of his visit
• On Nov. 5, the Prince of Wales stressed the importance of young people when it comes to environmental solutions and saving the planet
• “We have to invest in them as we do Mother Nature, as well,” the royal said of young minds with innovative solutions

Prince William made it clear that, when it comes to saving the planet, investing in young minds is critical.

On Tuesday, Nov. 5, the Prince of Wales, 42, took part in Earthshot+ during his second day in Cape Town, South Africa, where the fourth iteration of his Earthshot Prize Awards will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 6. At the Earthshot+ event, the prince met with world-leading experts to take part in impactful conversations about multiplying the impact of his Earthshot Prize.

Earthshot+ was attended by global leaders in the environmental space and zoomed in on world-changing African innovations, celebrated the role of youth leaders in the space and discussed how to best support emerging solutions to scale. Prince William took part in a fireside chat during the session and took part in a panel discussion alongside Earthshot Prize Trustee Tokunbuh Ishmael and young climate leader A’aron John, who took part in the inaugural Earthshot Prize Climate Leaders Youth Program this week, which kicked off on Nov. 4, William’s first day in Cape Town.

The panel discussion was moderated by Earthshot Prize Council Member Wanjira Mathai.

John, who is from Nigeria, told the panel “we’re so buzzed” during Earthshot Week. 

“It is [our] audacity that will actually help us to make a difference,” John said.

Prince William praised the excitement he felt the day prior when he visited with young leaders like John. “The energy and the enthusiasm and the brilliance in that room was spectacular, and I fed off it too,” he said. 

“It’s wonderful to see that many brilliant minds and enthusiasm and energy and changemakers all in one room. When I founded the Earthshot Prize, it was around trying to find solutions and to scale these solutions as fast as possible to make an impact,” the Prince of Wales continued. 

He added The Earthshot Prize was also set up “as an antidote to the despair, the desperation” that surrounded conversations about the environment.

“It’s allowing young people hope and a platform to channel their urgent optimism to deliver solutions. They are the ones I want to give the platform to … and take it where they feel it’s going to be most useful and to see it as something that provides a better future for them and their families,” Prince William said during the panel discussion.

John added, “This is the birthplace of innovation, and we can see a lot of innovation coming now. There’s resilience, there’s culture and there’s success.”

The Earthshot Prize — founded by Prince William in 2020 — announced it has brought in $112 million in support for prize winners and finalists in the last four years, helping them grow and find markets for their innovations. 

Earthshot uses what it calls its “matchmaking platform” Launchpad to mobilize investors, donors and corporations to accelerate breakthrough solutions chosen from the pool of Earthshot Prize nominees. This year, for example, it helped 2022 winner Notpla, known for its seaweed-based alternatives to single-use plastics, with its investment round. 

Launchpad, Prince William said at the Nov. 5 panel, puts people together with the corporations and finance that can help. 

The award ceremony gives visibility to the finalists, but the prince said when they looked at the scale and the impact, Launchpad really made a difference. It is like “a dating service that matches the finder with the solution and vice versa,” Prince William said of the service, adding, “Collaboration is key. If you put all this in one big melting pot then sparks will fly in a good way.”

The areas gaining the most attention in Cape Town are making fashion greener by promoting next-generation materials, building sustainable food systems to achieve zero food waste, supporting Africa’s transition to electric mobility, championing youth innovators and advocating for biodiversity in nature. 

“Scaling impactful solutions is at the heart of what The Earthshot Prize does,” Earthshot Prize CEO Hannah Jones said in a Nov. 5 statement. “The continued successes of the Launchpad, Earthshot+, as well as the new Ninety-One Accelerator and the GIBS School Executive Leadership Program, are all testaments to our commitment to fostering innovation and driving meaningful change.”

“We are proud to support these incredible innovators and look forward to seeing their solutions make a lasting impact around the world,” she added.

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Prince William concluded the Earthshot+ panel, telling those in attendance, “I’ve been fortunate enough over the years to get to know Africa and what an amazing continent it is. The breadth of diversity — not only in people and culture, but landscape — really helps. There’s everything here the world needs right now to understand the solutions but also the difficulties it’s facing. And meeting some of the best young brains and the best solutions yesterday gives optimism that these guys and girls can change our future. And we have to invest in them as we do Mother Nature, as well.”