After a tumultuous period for the royal family, dealing with the consuming alleged sex abuse scandal involving the former prince Andrew, William hopes to shift the focus on his tour of Brazil
The iconic Christ the Redeemer monument in Rio de Janeiro will this week be lit up green to celebrate Prince William’s global Earthshot Awards.
The Prince of Wales arrived in Brazil ready for three days of celebrating the nominees and eventual winners of his prestigious environmental project, which lands in Latin America for the first time.
The Earthshot Prize culminates with a glittering awards ceremony on Wednesday at Rio’s futuristic Museum of Tomorrow, where five winners will each receive £1million to scale up their planet saving ideas.
After a tumultuous period for the royal family, dealing with the consuming alleged sex abuse scandal involving the former prince Andrew, William hopes to shift the focus on his tour of Brazil, where he will finish on Friday with a visit to the COP climate summit in Belem, described as ‘the gateway to the Amazon’.
Earthshot, which offers £1 million prizes in each of five categories, is one of William’s signature ideas which this week celebrated the half way point of a decade long project in different countries around the world.
READ MORE: Prince William and Kate Middleton move into £16m eight-bed ‘forever home’ Forest LodgeREAD MORE: Prince William’s ‘hidden agenda’ in Andrew move with Kate Middleton ‘delighted’
William launched the prize in 2020, inspired by U.S. President John F. Kennedy’s 1962 “Moonshot” speech that challenged Americans to go to the moon by the end of that decade. William’s goal is to accelerate the pace of environmental innovation to combat problems such as climate change, ocean plastic pollution and loss of wildlife habitat by 2030.
Selected from nearly 2,500 nominees, from 72 countries, the 2025 Finalists represent exceptional climate leadership. The ceremony is expected to reach a combined audience of 34 million in Brazil and the UK – the biggest in the prize’s history, with broadcasts on BBC and Globo.
The Prince of Wales departing London bound for Rio de Janeiro this evening said: “As I depart for Rio de Janeiro, I am excited for my first visit and to experience Brazil’s vibrant culture, its extraordinary biodiversity, and above all, the warmth of its people.
“With the world’s eyes turning to Brazil this week, there is no better place to celebrate bold climate leadership. Hosting The Earthshot Prize allows us to not only recognise those driving change, but to be inspired by them. When we work together with optimism and courage, a more sustainable future is within our reach.”
William will visit the world famous Christ the Redeemer statue on Wednesday as part of the local events.
Jason Knauf, CEO of The Earthshot Prize, said: “In just five years, we have built an ambitious global network of climate leaders. It is a truly unparalleled community of innovators, policymakers, businesses and changemakers.
“Together, we are proving that the solutions to our greatest challenges already exist. We just need to back them. At this critical halfway point in the Earthshot Decade, our momentum is unstoppable.”
Meanwhile, the Prince and Princess of Wales have moved into their “forever home”, Forest Lodge, with their children, it has been confirmed
William and Kate have vacated Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park and set up residence in the Grade II-listed eight-bedroom mansion in Windsor Great Park.
The move took place over Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis’ half term, after the family set themselves the goal of moving in by Bonfire Night.
The move is seen as a fresh start for the family after Kate’s recovery from cancer, and comes as William prepares to make a solo trip to Rio for his annual Earthshot Prize Awards.
But it means the Wales family are temporarily closer to William’s disgraced uncle, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, who is still in his Windsor Great Park property Royal Lodge – albeit about 1.4 miles away as the crow flies from William and Kate.
