Prince William's Earthshot Prize unveils new initiative as he hops on a plane to Cape Town

has his sights set on inspiring the next generation of climate innovators as his Earthshot Prize launches a series of programmes aimed at young people for the first time.

The Prince of Wales, 42, will arrive in Cape Town today (MON) for the start of Earthshot Week where he will conduct eleven engagements spotlighting groundbreaking environmental solutions.

The Earthshot Prize has today announced three programmes that will ensure the award reaches children and young people from the age of five and inspire the next generation to join the environmental movement.

Hannah Jones, CEO of The Earthshot Prize said: "This is an invitation to young people everywhere to reclaim their future and unleash their time and talent to fix the planet, one solution at a time.

"At The Earthshot Prize, we believe in the power of climate creatives - the builders, creators, makers, doers - and we want to encourage every young person to dream of one day becoming an Earthshot winner. Because when they win, we all win."

On Monday the prince will meet some of the 120 young people from across African and Asia attending the inaugural Earthshot Week Climate Youth Leadership Programme.

This cohort, all passionate about driving transformative change in climate action and sustainability, will develop vital skills in authentic leadership, storytelling, and networking over four impactful days.

It was also revealed today that 2,000 young people entered the Blue Peter Earthshot Prize, with the five winners to be announced in early 2025.

William is understood to be flying to Cape Town on a commercial flight and will land in South Africa on Monday morning. Fresh from the plane, he'll kickstart his four-day trip by celebrating young climate innovators.

William launched Earthshot in 2020 and the global environmental award aims to discover, spotlight and help grow innovative solutions that are working to repair and regenerate the planet

Each year £1million is awarded to the winner of each of the five categories: protect and restore nature; clean our air; revive our oceans; build a waste-free world; and fix our climate.

On Wednesday night, the 2024 winners will be unveiled at the Earthshot Prize Awards ceremony held in an eco-dome.