2023 SELECTION PRIORITIESEARTHSHOTS, CRITERIA AND FOCUS AREAS

THE FIVE EARTHSHOTS

215 FINALISTS, 5 WINNERS

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PROTECTAND RESTORE
NATURE

CLEAN OURAIRREVIVE OUROCEANS

BUILD A
WASTE-FREEWORLD

FIX OUR
CLIMATEOUR SELECTION PRIORITIES FOR 2023

3HOW WE SELECT WINNERS FOR EACH EARTHSHOTOur selection priorities provide transparency on our areas of particular focus. To craft these priorities, we haveconsulted widely with experts and conducted extensive research and analysis.
THREE FOCUS AREAS PEREARTHSHOT, PLUS
WILDCARDS
123123123123123

Potential for global impact: environmental impact, social impact
SIX CROSS-CUTTINGFILTERS TO ASSESSAGAINST

Diversity of nominations: geographic, sector, demographic, nominee typeStage of solution: beyond idea stage and at a tipping point for scaling within five years
Organisation foundations: quality and inclusivity of leadership, financial maturity, scale model
Key enablers: tech & data, financial & legal mechanisms, Indigenous leadership, shared economic opportunity

Type of intervention: preventative, adaptive, restorative
2023 NOMINEE COHORTTop nominees go through to selection

OUR EARTHSHOT FOCUS AREAS

4THREE PRIORITY AREAS WITHIN EACH EARTHSHOTPROTECTAND RESTORE
NATURE
1.

2.

3.

Efforts to protect andmanage natural carbon
stores such as peatlands
and intact forests
Efforts to restore forests,
wetlands, and otherdamaged ecosystems
Efforts to develop andscale regenerative
agriculture

CLEAN OUR
AIR
1.

2.

3.

Engaging citizens indata collection andadvocacy
Efforts to stop burningin agriculture andforests
Transitioning to clean
personal transportation

REVIVE OUROCEANS
1.

Reducing overfishing2.

Developing ocean
ecosystem services
that mitigate climatechange: “Blue Carbon”

3.

Climate changesolutions with oceans
benefits

BUILD A
WASTE-FREEWORLD1.

FIX OUR
CLIMATE

Waste-free food,including efforts toshift to a plant-based
diet

1.

Renewable energy forall

2.

Reducing methaneemissions

2.

Waste-free fashion

3.

3.

Circular solutions:extending the life ofgoods and/or
eliminating single-use
goods

Constructing buildings
fit for the futureThis is a guide and not an exhaustive set of criteria. We would love to see nominations from these priority areas, but we will consider
nominations on any topic within any Earthshot. We encourage ‘wildcard’ nominations and insights we haven’t considered,particularly when those nominations have the potential to inspire people globally.

OUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS

5

1. POTENTIAL FOR GLOBAL IMPACT

All nominations should have the potential to be relevant on a global level by 2030:

GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTGLOBAL SOCIAL IMPACT

Solutions that could have global impact by 2030 on a relevantenvironmental metric. For example:

Solutions that could have global impact on a relevant social
impact metric by 2030. For example:

Tonnes ofGreenhouse Gas
Emissions saved,
captured or avoided

Tonnes of waste
saved, reduced,
recycled or avoided

Litres of water
saved, reduced,
recycled or avoided

Number of ’green’
jobs created
Reduction in levelsof fine particulatematter (PM2.5/10)

Hectares of land,
ocean or water
systems restored,
protected or rewilded

Number of lives
improved

Biodiversity
increases in land,sea or rivers

image: Flaticon.comOUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS
2. DIVERSITY OF NOMINATIONS

You may nominate a solution from any country or sector in theworld. This could be:•An individual (such as a leader or an activist)•

A team or small group of individuals•

An organisation (not-for-profit or for-profit)•

A public sector body/government (including a country or city)•

A partnership/consortium of more than one organisation

Our past Finalists have included grassroots non-profits, techdriven start-ups, global data monitoring systems, cities and acountry.
Diversity is our strength and will be a key consideration in ourselection process to ensure our finalists represent a diverse
range of nominee types, sectors, geographies and demographics.

6

OUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS

7

3. STAGE OF SOLUTION

The Earthshot Prize focuses on solutions that with monetary, communications, network and organisational support can rapidly scaleor be replicated. We’re seeking solutions that:

ARE DEVELOPEDWELL BEYOND
THE IDEA STAGE
but may still havedevelopment
requirements to address
before they are ready toscale their impact• They have working prototypes, programs &initiatives, or executed pilots that demonstrate
the effectiveness of their solution• They have tested their solution with the target
users or recipients and have seen early positive
impact or successes• They may already be in market with customers,
partners or audiences but to a limited scale

HAVE NOTALREADY
ENTERED ASIGNIFICANTGROWTH STAGE
where they are limited
only by capital

Solutions that have already achieved this level ofmaturity will benefit less from The Earthshot
Prize and are therefore less of a focus.

HAVE MADESIGNIFICANTPROGRESS IN
THE LAST YEAR
What “breakthroughs”,
whether it be the solution
or the organisation,
demonstrate recentprogress?

Examples of breakthroughs include:• Creation/iteration of a functional prototype• Launch of an in-market pilot program• Close of a first customer/contract• Successful fundraising• Completion of major research trial• Launch in new geography or sector• Key hires made

OUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS

8

4. ORGANISATION FOUNDATIONSQUALITY OF LEADERSHIP INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIPFINANCIAL MATURITY

SCALE MODEL

Is there a dedicated team or
founder in place who is committed
to scaling the impact of theorganization?

Is the team diverse and inclusive?

Does the potential nominee havefinancial processes in place totrack sources and uses of funds
and conduct basic financial
reporting?

Does the potential nominee haveline of sight to a model by which
they could replicate or be scaled?

This does not require acomplete team, but there is aperson or small team ready to
execute the tasks required tobring their solution to theworld. These people will bring
deep knowledge of thechallenge their solution
addresses and how theirsolution results in positiveenvironmental impact.

We will prioritize teams that
demonstrate inclusivity andrepresentation because of thewell-documented and outsize
impact this has on teams’
efficacy and performance. We
will be looking for teams that
represent their wider
community, including femaleled and female-ownedsolutions.

Ideally these processes would
also include financial planningand budgeting to enable a
disciplined use of resources. A
Board of Directors or Trustees,or an Advisory Board of someform is often a good indicatorof an institution or organizationthat is sufficiently mature tobenefit from The Earthshot
Prize.

Again, this does not need to be
fully fledged or developed. TheEarthshot Prize helps
nominees develop their scalemodel and grow, but it is
helpful if the nominee has
already started to think about
how they could scale theirimpact, including what
partnerships or other external
relationships would acceleratethem, and what resources orskills they may need.

OUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS

95. ENABLERS

All nominations will be assessed for relevance to these four cross-cutting enablers. These are not a requirement but are a strong
signal that a solution may be particularly relevant for The Earthshot Prize. We will seek out nominations that play one, many or all
the four enabling factors:

SOLUTIONS THAT USE WEB3AND OTHER TECHNOLOGIESTO ENABLE
TRANSFORMATIVE CHANGE

SOLUTIONS THAT LEVERAGENEW FINANCIAL AND LEGALMECHANISMS TO CREATESCALABLE INCENTIVES FORGLOBAL CHANGE

SOLUTIONS LED AND
INFORMED BY INDIGENOUS
PEOPLE AND LOCALCOMMUNITIESSOLUTIONS THAT PROMOTESHARED ECONOMICOPPORTUNITYOUR SIX FILTERS FOR ASSESSING NOMINATIONS

106. TYPE OF INTERVENTION

10-20%

20-30%

50-60%

ADAPTATIONRESTORATIONPREVENTION

We know that much damage is alreadydone. We seek innovations that help
minimise the impact on people and on theenvironment

We want to make systems we use today
better. In this, we seek innovations thatare regenerative or restorative

We primarily seek innovations that can
provide an alternative to approaches thatcause harm

Example: adapting man-made coastal defences
into marine ecosystems like Living Seawalls.

Example: restoring corals like Coral Vita, orregenerating barren landscapes like Desert
Agricultural Transformation

Example: renewable energy and cleaner
alternatives to fossil fuels, like AEM Electrolyserand Mukuru Clean Stoves