Prince William arrived Sunday in Singapore for the annual Earthshot Prize awards, the first to be held in Asia, to support environmental innovators with solutions to battle climate change and save the planet.
Upon his arrival, dozens of people waving British flags welcomed him with loud cheers. William, 41, shook hands, signed autographs and sportingly took selfies with many of them during a walkabout.
“It’s fantastic to be back in Singapore for this year’s Earthshot Prize ceremony, after eleven years," he said in a statement upon landing.
“Singapore’s bold vision to be a leader for environmental innovation sets the standard for others to follow."
At Singapore’s Changi Airport and before greeting the crowd, William stood on an upper floor for a stunning view of the 40-meter high Rain Vortex, the world’s largest indoor waterfall that was illuminated green to mark his arrival. He was also shown a tree planted in his honor in the indoor garden at the foot of the waterfall.
The heir to the British throne last visited Singapore with his wife Princess Catherine in 2012.
Traveling solo this time, William’s focus is on the Earthshot Prize that he and his Royal Foundation charity launched in 2020 to promote innovative solutions and technologies to combat global warming and mitigate its impact on the environment.
William will name five winners at the award ceremony on Tuesday, who will each get a million pounds ($1.2 million) to help them scale up their projects for wider global reach. Fifteen finalists representing six continents were selected from 1,300 nominees this year.