The Prince and Princess of Wales visit Boston for the 2022 Earthshot Prize Awards

About The Earthshot Prize

Inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’, The Earthshot Prize is an ambitious global environmental prize which aims to discover, celebrate and scale the best solutions to help repair our planet.

At this year’s Awards Ceremony, The Prince and Princess will join activists, innovators, policy makers and performers to celebrate the 2022 cohort of fifteen global Finalists before the five Winners are awarded.

Day One

On arrival in Boston, The Prince and Princess of Wales joined the Mayor of Boston, Michelle Wu, and Ambassador Caroline Kennedy for a very special event to start the countdown to The Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony on Friday as Boston’s City Hall was lit up green.

Their Royal Highnesses’ then attended the Wednesday night National Basketball Association game between the seventeen-time World Champion Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat at TD Garden in downtown Boston.

During the game, there was special moment to acknowledge the arrival of Earthshot in the city – including the Celtics tradition of recognising a ‘Hero Among Us’ during each game, which honoured a local climate hero for the work they are doing to positively impact the community.

Day Two

On their second day in Boston, The Prince and Princess learnt about the climate innovations which are being incubated in Boston during a visit Greentown Labs in Somerville.

Since 2011, Greentown Labs has nurtured a community of climate pioneers who are working to design and implement a more sustainable world. Founded by entrepreneurs, Greentown Labs brings together start-ups, corporates and investors to foster ingenuity and collaboration.

Their Royal Highnesses spent time meeting representatives from some of the start-ups within the Greentown Labs community where they heard about the latest innovative developments in climate technology.

The Prince and Princess then travelled to the neighbouring city of Chelsea to visit Roca, a non-profit organisation focusing on high-risk young people between the ages of 16-24 years old at the centre of urban violence.

Roca aims to reduce levels of trauma, violence and incarceration, create sustained employment, and improve parenting. They also work closely with critical public systems such as police officers, judges, correction officers and child protection services to help build policies and practices that produce better outcomes for young people.

Back in Boston, The Prince and Princess heard about innovative climate resilience solutions to protect East Boston from rising sea levels.

They spoke to members of the community about their experiences of the neighbourhood’s vulnerability to climate change-caused flooding and storm surge. 

Their Royal Highnesses’ visit coincided with an announcement by Boston Harbor Now’s Stone Living Lab, which researches and tests nature-based ecological restoration solutions around Boston’s waterfront, about their ambitious collaboration with Earthshot 2021 Finalist, Living Seawalls.

Day Three

The Princess of Wales visited The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, as part of her ongoing work to elevate the importance of the early years to lifelong outcomes.

Her Royal Highness had a discussion with researchers about the advances in science that can be harnessed to achieve a promising future for every child. The Harvard Center has long been a friend of The Royal Foundation and more recently The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, supporting with past research on the importance of the early years.

Meanwhile, The Prince of Wales visited the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum where he met Ambassador Caroline Kennedy and was given a short tour of the Museum.

President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot – which challenged America to put man on the moon – is the key inspiration behind The Earthshot Prize and so His Royal Highness took the opportunity to hear more about President Kennedy’s inspirational legacy and his connections to Boston.

The Prince then met President Joe Biden.

Together, Their Royal Highnesses then attend the Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony, where they joined activists, innovators, policy makers and performers to celebrate the 15 global finalists and announce the 5 winners.

The Awards Ceremony will be available to watch on BBC One and iPlayer on Sunday 4 December at 17:35.