Yemi Alade, left, and Emma Thompson pose for photographers upon arrival at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
The Associated Press
LONDON (AP) - Celebrities joined Prince William in London on Sunday for the inaugural awards ceremony of his Earthshot Prize, an ambitious environmental program aimed at finding new ideas and technologies around the world to tackle climate change and Earth's most pressing challenges.
Actors Emma Thompson, Emma Watson and David Oyelowo were joining Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, in handing out the awards at Alexandra Palace in north London.
Guests were asked to 'œconsider the environment when choosing their outfit," so Watson arrived wearing a gown made of 10 dresses from the charity Oxfam. Kate wore an Alexander McQueen dress made for her in 2011, while her husband wore a dark green velvet blazer and a polo neck.
William and his charity, The Royal Foundation, launched the Earthshot Prize last year, inspired by President John F. Kennedy's 1962 'œMoonshot'ť speech that challenged and inspired Americans to go to the moon.
The prize, to be awarded to five winners every year until 2030, is billed as the most prestigious of its kind. Each winner will receive a grant worth 1 million pounds ($1.4 million) to develop and scale up their ideas.
'œThere's been lots of amazing ideas over the past decades but it's the implementation that really counts, so that's what this is all about. So it's really a reason to be cheerful,'ť Thompson said.
In a pre-recorded short video, William said: 'œWe are alive in the most consequential time in human history.'ť
'œThe actions we choose or choose not to take in the next 10 years will determine the fate of the planet for the next 1,000," he said.
'œMany of the answers are already out there," he added. 'œBut we need everyone, from all parts of society. to raise their ambition and unite in repairing our planet.'ť
The finalists include a 14-year-old student who proposes using solar energy to replace charcoal to power millions of roadside ironing carts in India; a land-based coral farm in the Bahamas to restore dying coral reefs; a community project in Congo devoted to protecting gorillas; and a Kenyan enterprise that turns organic waste into fertilizer and insect protein for farmers.
The ceremony comes days ahead of the COP26 U.N. climate change summit in Glasgow, which begins on Oct. 31.
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Follow all AP stories on climate change issues at https://apnews.com/hub/climate-change.
Emma Watson poses for photographers at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
The Associated Press
Emma Watson poses for photographers at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
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Britain's Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge attend the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
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Britain's Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge attend the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
The Associated Press
Britain's Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge attend the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
The Associated Press
Britain's Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge attend the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
The Associated Press
Yemi Alade poses for photographers upon arrival at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
The Associated Press
British actress Emma Watson poses for a picture as she attends the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
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Mohamed Salah poses for photographers upon arrival at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
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Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and his wife Saadiya Khan pose for photographers at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
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Brazilian soccer player Dani Alves attends the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday 17th October. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
The Associated Press
Britain's Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge attend the first ever Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony at Alexandra Palace in London on Sunday Oct. 17, 2021. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, The Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, pool)
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Britain's Kate, Duchess of Cambridge poses for photographers at The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, in London, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt)
The Associated Press
FILE - In this Oct. 13, 2021 file photo, Britain's Prince William sits alongside children from The Heathlands School during a visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens to take part in a Generation Earthshot event, in south London. Celebrities will join Prince William in London on Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021 for the inaugural awards ceremony of his Earthshot Prize, an ambitious environmental program aiming to find new ideas and technologies around the world to tackle climate change and Earth's most pressing challenges. (Ian Vogler/Pool Photo via AP, file)
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