Prince William has interrupted his half-term holidays to issue an important announcement.
The Prince of Wales, 41, is currently recovering from his agenda-setting trip to Saudi Arabia last week - and will likely be resting up at home with his wife, Kate, and children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, during their week-long break from school.
However, the Prince interrupted his week at home on Tuesday to issue an important update about one of his most prized projects – the next location of his environmental awards, The Earthshot Prize.
It can now be revealed that the 2026 awards will be held in Mumbai in November, following previous ceremonies in Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town, Singapore and London. The celebration will welcome environmental and business leaders spearheading change in India, which is home to more Earthshot Prize winners and finalists than any other country.
William, who is the founder and president of the Earthshot Prize, said: "We must continue to look to the future with urgency and optimism, which is why I am delighted that Mumbai will host The Earthshot Prize 2026. India is one of the world’s most important forces for climate and nature. What succeeds in India at scale has the power to inspire progress everywhere.
"With the largest population of young people in the world, there is a real sense of momentum – to not only imagine a better future, but to inspire change and make it a reality. Together we can rise to meet our greatest challenge, to repair and restore our planet by 2030."
© Getty ImagesWhat is Prince William's Earthshot Prize?
William launched the Earthshot Prize in 2020, inspired by President John F Kennedy's 1962 "moonshot", to land a man on the moon within a decade. He founded the prize to recognise and scale-up ideas to help "repair" the planet, with the five winning finalists each awarded £1 million to further develop their ideas.
Awards are presented in five categories, or Earthshots – Protect and restore nature; Clean our air, Revive our oceans; Build a waste-free world; and Fix our climate.
© Getty ImagesIn the past five years, Earthshot has identified more than 5,600 emerging environmental innovations from 156 countries and awarded £25 million to Prize Winners to scale finalists' solutions. Past finalists have protected and restored over one million square kilometres of land and oceans, prevented 250,000 tons of waste from reaching landfills, and captured 4.8 million tonnes of CO2.
© GettyThey are usually star-studded affairs, in the past featuring Cate Blanchett, David Beckham, Hannah Waddingham, Heidi Klum and Robert Irwin. A-list performers have included Kylie Minogue and Shawn Mendes. The 2026 prize will shine a global spotlight on 15 groundbreaking environmental solutions.
Before last year's ceremony in Brazil, William spoke exclusively to HELLO! about the drive behind the awards, saying: "As a father, I think constantly about the world my children will inherit. I want them to grow up surrounded by nature, opportunity and a sense of hope about the future. But I also know that unless we act boldly now, that future is at risk. The Earthshot Prize is about turning the tide, about proving to our children that we are willing to fight for their tomorrow."
