In Australia, a startup sustainably cultivating seaweed has been chosen as a finalist for Prince William’s 2024 Earthshot Prize.
Coast 4C works with farmers in the Philippines to plant seaweed that can be used to produce gelling agents, thickeners, stabilizers and potentially bioplastics. To date, it has helped farmers plant 280 hectares of seaweed in a specially zoned area. It also helps suppliers move away from destructive farming methods like planting on coral reefs and harvesting mangroves for wood to use as planting poles.
“We partner with smallholder seaweed farmers in the Philippines and improve their farming practices, so we get better quality seaweed and more seaweed,” Coast 4C’s co-founder Nick Hill told Yahoo News.
The Prince of Wales launched the Earthshot Prize in 2020. The prize will hand out £50 million over 10 years to organizations working to address the world’s most persistent environmental problems. Each year, the prize awards five winners £1 million ($1.96 million) each.