Kenyan firm among 15 finalists for Sh151m prize
National
By
Peter Muiruri
| Sep 20, 2021
Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, speaks during a visit to the Garden House, part of the Light Project. [Reuters]
Sanergy, a social enterprise, has been named among 15 finalists with a chance of winning the £1million (Sh151.5 million) Earthshot Prize.
The prize awards firms with the best innovative environmental solutions to the greatest challenges facing the planet.
The Earthshot Prize is the most prestigious global environment prize in history and, like President John F. Kennedy’s ‘Moonshot’ did almost 60 years ago, the prize aims to unleash an unprecedented wave of innovation and leadership to tackle the challenges posed by climate change and the threats to our oceans, air, and land.
Sanergy was selected in the “Build a Waste-Free World category” for pioneering a circular sanitation solution that converts human waste into safe products for local farmers.
The announcement was made on Friday by Prince William, who, together with The Royal Foundation, launched The Earthshot Prize in October 2010 to honour the most inspiring and innovative solutions to global problems.
Five winners will be selected by The Earthshot Prize Council and will receive the prize money at the inaugural ceremony on October 17, 2021, in London in an event that will be broadcast by the BBC and Discovery Channel globally.
“I am honoured to introduce the 15 innovators, leaders, and visionaries who are the first-ever Finalists for The Earthshot Prize. They are working with the urgency required in this decisive decade for life on Earth and will inspire all of us with their optimism in our ability to rise to the greatest challenges in human history,” said Prince William.
The firm works in urban informal settlements to deliver affordable high-quality lavatories and sanitation facilities.
The waste and other forms of organic waste from kitchens, and markets is safely removed, transported to Sanergy’s factory where it is consumed by black soldier fly larvae, and converted to safe agricultural inputs.