2024 Earthshot Prize

Earthshot Award 2024

In a world facing increasing environmental challenges, the Earthshot Award Ceremony (Earthshot), which was held on November 6, 2024, is a beacon of hope for a sustainable future. This award will be in five areas related to the environment: protecting nature and restoring its balance - clean air - reviving the oceans - building a world without waste - climate reform. The 2024 winners, selected from 15 Earthshot Prize finalists, will each be awarded £1 million; Encouraging them and believing in the importance of the solutions they provided to preserve the environment and ensure its sustainability.

This year's winners showed us that there are many individuals and organizations working hard to save our planet. Imagine yourself in the audience listening to inspiring stories about scientists, young people, and female entrepreneurs who have dedicated their lives to protecting this planet. In the interest of Earth Guards to shed light on everything that is innovative and new in the world of environment and sustainable development, and to complement its coverage of this inspiring event that is held every year, we embark on a journey across continents, to discover how these innovative ideas can change the world.

Nature Protection: InitiativeAltyn Dala

Have you ever heard of the steppe? Steppes are natural areas that are wide and open plains, covered with short grasses and sparse plants. It is usually devoid of large trees due to the dry climate. The steppe is a diverse and distinctive ecosystem, found in various parts of the world, especially in areas with a semi-arid climate.

Kazakhstan's steppe known as the Golden Steppe - one of the least protected ecosystems in the world - faces serious threats from climate change, intensive agriculture and industrial development. During the Soviet era, about 50% of its area was destroyed, which led to a significant decline in the number of wild animals. In 2015, a virus linked to climate change killed 60% of saiga antelope.

In the field of protecting nature and restoring its balance, the Altyn Dala Environmental Conservation Initiative succeeded in achieving an unprecedented achievement in saving the endangered Saiga antelope, and it turned into one of the largest environmental conservation projects in the world, with the aim of protecting and restoring the golden steppe. Among the efforts provided by the initiative, in partnership with the Kazakh government and international environmental organizations, is monitoring 250 Saiga antelopes with tracking devices to study their movements and protect their breeding areas. Accordingly, these studies supported the government in making decisions to manage protected areas.

The Earthshot Award focused on the achievements of this initiative; Thanks to these efforts, the number of saiga antelopes increased from 20,000 in 2003 to 2.86 million, and their classification was modified from “endangered” to “near threatened,” according to a statement by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

TheAltyn Dala initiative aims to fully restore the steppe ecosystem by 2030, including increasing the number of saiga antelopes to 4 million, introducing new endangered species into the initiative, such as Przewalski's Wild Horse, and promoting conservation education and employment. 725 have been employed. A full-time employee. The initiative also seeks to expand its experience globally, through partnerships with countries such as the United States, Mongolia, Argentina and India, to improve rangeland conservation projects on a global scale.

Air Cleanliness: Regulated (GAYO)

African cities face serious environmental challenges due to rapid urban growth and the lack of sustainable waste management systems; Open burning of waste and disposing of it in landfills causes air and water pollution, and soil damage as a result of the decomposition of plastic and harmful chemicals.

The Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO - Ghana) has adopted an innovative model known as the “zero waste” model, which brings together experts in the field of waste management and local communities, including women, youth and waste collectors. This model works to collect waste, treat it and turn it into useful products such as organic fertilizer and charcoal.

TheGAYO organization succeeded in providing 70 jobs for young people, widows, mothers, and people with disabilities, and more than 5,000 people benefited directly or indirectly from this model. It also succeeded in preventing 70 tons of waste from being dumped in landfills in 2023, resulting in a reduction in emissions by 3.6 tons of carbon dioxide.

The organization aims to expand its work throughout the African continent, creating 500 jobs by 2030, and seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 70%, and prevent 4,000 tons of waste from being dumped annually in landfills by 2030.

The “Zero Waste” model is a pioneering model; Therefore, the Earthshot Prize Committee saw the organization’s success in demonstrating the possibility of achieving sustainable waste management on a large scale, putting it on the path to leadership in the field of waste management in Africa.

Ocean Revival:Alliance (HAC)

Global efforts to protect biodiversity have suffered from a clear absence of formal targets and concrete government commitments, leading to a significant decline in achieving these targets. The High Ambition for Nature and Humanity (HAC) coalition seeks to address this gap by pushing governments to commit to protecting 30% of the world’s lands and oceans by 2030.

TheHAC Alliance has expanded significantly since its founding to include 120 countries to achieve this ambitious goal, doubling the number of its members since 2021, and the challenge now is to ensure that these commitments are implemented by combating poaching, preventing illegal land grabbing, and enhancing financial investment and technical expertise. This alliance is supervised by Costa Rica and France, in cooperation with the United Kingdom, as a leader in the field of ocean protection. The alliance contributed significantly to the adoption of the30×30 Convention during the United Nations COP15 Biodiversity Conference, which was held in 2022.

TheHAC coalition has made significant progress, with Chile expanding the area of marine reserves by 1.5 million square kilometers in 2022. In Canada, Australia and Rapa Nui (Easter Island), efforts have contributed to protecting lands there, and have contributed to the creation of the largest multi-use marine reserve in South America. On the other hand, the coalition-, in conjunction with the objectives of the Earthshot Prize, aims to expand the scope of protection to include more countries. The Alliance makes efforts to accelerate the process of protecting the oceans and achieving its goal by 2030 a priority. TheHAC Alliance has become a model for global cooperation that links political commitment with practical experience to achieve a more sustainable future and protect biodiversity.

Building a world without waste:Initiative (KIC)

In many African markets, the lack of adequate refrigeration and transportation systems is causing significant losses of agricultural and fishery products. For example, fishermen on the shores of Lake Victoria in Kenya lose up to half of their catch every day due to a lack of cooling systems. The absence of centralized energy networks and limited cold storage options make it difficult to keep produce fresh, leading to food waste and financial losses for farmers and fishermen. In the interest of the Earthshot Award to support the idea of reducing food waste, the committee decided to award the award in the field of “A World Without Waste” to the initiative (Keep IT Cool: KIC for Sustainable Cooling Solutions - Kenya).

TheKIC initiative comes with unique solutions for small farmers and fishermen, such as: sustainable refrigeration units powered by solar energy, installed at fishing ports to keep fish fresh. In addition to linking farmers and fishermen directly to the markets through agreements with 1,600 retail stores, which ensures that products are purchased at the right time and at guaranteed prices without relying on intermediaries.

The initiative achieved remarkable success after the new systems were able to reduce catch losses by 25% and increase the income of 3,600 fishermen by more than 15%. In addition, it has achieved a 98% reduction in post-harvest losses for approximately 1.5 million kilograms of food since 2022. It has also supplied more than 2,000 small businesses and 40 grocery stores with fresh produce.

TheKIC initiative aspires to expand its activity to include East Africa and beyond, in addition to developing plans to expand its services to include poultry products, fruits and vegetables. It intends to launch the largest distribution chain of cooling facilities in Kenya, with a capacity of 70 tons, equivalent to seven times the current capacity. By 2030, the initiative aims to improve the livelihoods of 1.6 million people and increase its capabilities to support new communities. TheKIC initiative is a distinguished example of reducing food waste and supporting farmers and fishermen, which contributes to building a more sustainable future.

Climate Repair: Company (ATS)

About 60% of the energy used in heavy industries - such as cement and steel production industries - is lost in the form of waste heat. This is equivalent to the energy needed by 4 billion homes, which represents a significant economic and environmental burden. In the United States, industrial activities consume about 32% of the total energy used, producing significant carbon dioxide emissions. The iron and steel industry alone globally consumes 8% of the total energy demand, and produces 2.6 billion tons ofcarbon dioxide emissions annually.

ATS has developed a safe and scalable technology to capture waste heat and convert it into electricity. This technology can take advantage of various heat sources, including geothermal energy; The technology uses small panels, similar to smartphones, to convert heat into electricity without the need for turbines, complex systems, or moving parts, making it safe and easy to use.

On the industrial level, this technology could revolutionize the use of energy in heavy industries around the world. On the environmental level, it could contribute to benefiting from millions of tons of carbon dioxide and thus contribute to preserving our atmosphere.

In the near future,ATS aims to make its systems available to more than 100 industrial facilities, and this will contribute to reducing 3.5 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions. In the distant future, the company plans to expand its impact in reducing emissions by up to a full gigaton/ton. For all these sustainable steps, the Earthshot Award sawATS systems as a revolutionary step to exploit wasted heat and enhance efficiency in heavy industries, which contributes significantly to reducing carbon dioxide emissions and improving the efficiency of energy use, which achieves the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a comprehensive manner.

Concluding this topic, Earthshot Prize's Earth Guardians vision is an inspiring vision for a better future for our planet; The stories of the award winners inspire us and motivate us to act. It is also evidence that solutions exist, and that the environmental challenges facing us can be addressed, and this helps us build a sustainable future for us and for future generations.