By Chen Lin/IOL Entertainment reporter
Local actress Nomzamo Mbatha was one of the celebrities to walk the green carpet at the annual Earthshot Prize ceremony held in Singapore.
Not only was the ‘Shaka Ilembe’ star in attendance, she was also one of the presenters tasked with handing over the prize to this year’s African recipient.
Dressed in a Stella McCartney design, Mbatha was offered the opportunity to meet Britain’s Prince William, the founder of the Earthshot Prize Foundation.
The Earthshot Prize ceremony awards $1.23-million (about R22-million) to each of five green innovators working on projects, including a cleaner lithium-ion battery and ocean conservation.
"The light of optimism is burning bright in our Earthshot finalists," Prince William said at the ceremony in Singapore.
The five winners includes one from Hong Kong who is working on building cleaner, recyclable lithium-ion batteries that are used in electric cars, and another that tightens marine enforcement to end illegal fishing and support ocean conservation.
Representing six continents and chosen from over 1,300 nominees, the 15 finalists' projects ranged from a scheme to plant, grow and digitally track trees in Liberia to a less carbon-intensive method of treating industrial wastewater.
This year marks the first time that the finalists are attending the awards ceremony in person, Kensington Palace said.
William, who became heir to the British throne after Queen Elizabeth died in September last year, set up the prize in 2020.
Its name is a nod to former US President John F. Kennedy's ambitious "moonshot" project and goal for the 1969 moon landings.
During the four-day trip to Singapore, one of Asia's greenest cities, William will meet Singaporeans and "learn about how local organisations are working to protect and restore our planet – from tackling the illegal wildlife trade and protecting the rainforest to incubating and scaling cutting edge innovations," Kensington Palace said.
This is William's first trip to Singapore since 2012, when he visited with his wife Kate, the Princess of Wales.