Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, is set to embark on a journey to the United States in September to attend the second Earthshot Prize Innovation Summit. The royal visit, scheduled for September 18 and 19, will see the Prince engage in a series of royal duties in New York City.
The Earthshot Prize Innovation Summit, co-hosted by The Earthshot Prize and Bloomberg Philanthropies, is an event that brings together previous Earthshot Prize winners and finalists, policymakers, global business leaders, philanthropists, and climate activists. The aim is to scale innovative solutions that address pressing environmental challenges.
During the summit, which coincides with New York Climate Week, Prince William will unveil the fifteen finalists for this year's Earthshot Prize. The winners of the 2023 Earthshot Prize Awards will be honored at a ceremony in Singapore on November 7. Five winners across the Earthshot categories - Protect and Restore Nature, Clean Our Air, Revive Our Oceans, Build a Waste-Free World, and Fix Our Climate - will each receive £1 million to help them implement their environmental solutions.
The Earthshot Prize was launched by Prince William in 2020, with plans to award the prizes annually until 2030. The inaugural awards ceremony took place in London in October 2021. The Prince's commitment to the environment was underscored in a video message he recorded for last year's summit, which he was unable to attend due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II. In his message, he noted that "protecting the environment was a cause close to my grandmother's heart."
Prince William's upcoming visit to the U.S. follows his trip to Boston in December last year with Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, to attend the second Earthshot Prize Awards. During that visit, they also attended a Boston Celtics game, and the Duchess visited Harvard's Centre on the Developing Child, while the Duke met with U.S. President Joe Biden.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have previously visited the U.S. twice in an official capacity. Their first visit was to California in 2011, just months after their wedding. In 2014, they spent time in New York City, where they met with Jay-Z and Beyoncé at a Brooklyn Nets game, visited the National September 11 Memorial, and attended a gala dinner at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
It remains unclear whether the Duchess of Cambridge will accompany Prince William on his upcoming trip to New York City. The visit comes four months after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attended the Women of Vision Awards in Manhattan. The ongoing rift between the royal brothers adds an element of uncertainty to the possibility of a reunion in New York.
