Very Sad: Prince William Says ‘I Can Be Myself’ and ‘Get Away’ from ‘Stuff That Happens in My Normal Life’ When in Africa… See More

The Prince of Wales said the continent felt like home as he walked the longest green carpet in Earthshot Prize Awards history on Nov. 6

Prince William and his celebrity guests are walking the longest green carpet ever as they arrive at his prestigious annual Earthshot Prize Awards.

The Prince of Wales, 42, was the guest of honor at the awards night in Cape Town, South Africa on Nov. 6. It was the focal point of his four days in South Africa, which began on Monday, Nov. 4 and conclude on Thursday, Nov. 7.
“I’m feeling good. I can’t quite believe we’re here, fourth year, in Africa,” Prince William said on the green carpet. “But I’m really pleased because I’ve been looking forward to an Africa Earthshot for a long time. I love the continent, and I’m so pleased we’ve managed to get here to Africa.”

“Africa’s been a big part of my life since I’ve been a young boy, since I first came to Africa,” he continued. “I felt really connected to the place spiritually and kind of from an environmental and people point. And every time I come here I get a warm welcome. Every time I come here I can be myself and get away from all the stuff that happens in my normal life. And so it’s a really special place, a home from home for me.”

On the green carpet, Prince William wore a vintage blazer sourced from a local vintage store in London and sustainable sneakers that are zero-plastic and biodegradable. He teased the sneakers earlier in the day during a visit to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. While speaking to Earthshot Prize finalist Mary Allen from Natural Fiber Welding, which makes plastic-free materials for use in shoes, bags and textiles, Prince William told her that he owned a pair of the company’s Purified sneakers, made from plant-based materials.

The Earthshot Prize Awards are in its fourth year, following ceremonies in London in 2021, Boston in 2022 and Singapore in 2023. The Earthshot Prize Awards have been described by his aides as Prince William’s “Superbowl moment,” a night to reward and project five new ideas that will help tackle the problems the planet is facing.

He was joined on what organizers say is the longest ever green carpet, which measures 121 feet long, by Robert Irwin, who the prince also met up with yesterday for a hike on Signal Hill, part of South Africa’s Table Mountain National Park. William will also meet up on the green carpet with the two co-hosts of the evening’s awards, multi-award winning singer and actor Billy Porter and Bonang Matheba. He’ll also be joined by Nomzamo Mbatha, Earthshot Prize ambassador and host of the special week of events that have taken place in Cape Town.

On the green carpet, Irwin tells PEOPLE, “I’m just loving it,” and adds that “Cape Town has my heart. I love this place so much.”

Of his Nov. 5 walk on Signal Hill with Prince William. “It’s awesome to be up on Signal Hill. What a spot. I felt really, really honored to have a great chat with Prince William about the future of Earthshot Prize. You can instantly tell when you talk to him he’s got such a focus about making the next generation enthusiastic about making change, which is so important.”

Irwin is an Earthshot Prize ambassador and was involved in last year’s Earthshot Prize Awards in Singapore. “The Earthshot Prize was always about being a marathon,” he tells PEOPLE. “It is a 10-year initiative and it’s going to take a huge global movement to combat the big issues that we see today. And that’s exactly what Earthshot is. It has become truly global and it seems to snowball. Every year it’s bigger, and there are so many people coming on board from all different walks of life.”

“The awesome thing I’ve noticed this year in particular is focusing on the next generation.

I feel very inspired, and I know all of the youth I’ve been talking to, they all go, ‘Wow, okay, we’re being valued and appreciated. Our voices are being heard.’ So it’s really special.”

Irwin, 20, is half William’s age — exactly the age of those young people being targeted. “He is the coolest guy. He is such a down to earth, passionate about conservation. We definitely get on very well, so on the same track for sure,” Irwin tells PEOPLE.

The show will also feature appearances by Heidi Klum, Nina Dobrev and Winnie Harlow, and the five winners chosen from the group of 15 finalists will receive $1.3 million each to help them build and market their groundbreaking ideas. The finalists were announced by William in September.

On the green carpet, Klum, wearing vintage Halston, marveled about the microphone made out of seaweed and spoke about the importance of rewearing clothes. “I’m passing clothes down to my kids,” the supermodel said.