More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Celebrities joined Britain's Prince William to walk the "green carpet" in Singapore on Tuesday for the third Earthshot Prize awards ceremony, where five winners ranging from solar-powered dryers to combat food waste to making electric car batteries cleaner were unveiled.
The Prince of Wales said at the first ceremony held in Asia that the solutions presented by all 15 finalists proved that "hope does remain" as the devastating effects of climate change are felt across the world.
Oscar winner Cate Blanchett, actors Donnie Yen, Lana Condor and Nomzamo Mbatha, as well as Australian wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin presented the award to winners in five categories: nature protection, clean air, ocean revival, waste elimination and climate change.
The winners, who each won 1 million pounds ($1.2 million) to scale up their innovations, are:
-- Accion Andina, for a community-based initiative in South American bringing tens of thousands of local and indigenous people together to restore high forests in the Andes mountain;
-- India's S4S Technologies, for solar-powered dryers and processing equipment that helped millions of farmers to preserve their crops and combat food waste;
-- Boomitra, for removing emissions and helping boost farmer profits in Asia, South America and Africa by incentivising land restoration through a verified carbon-credit marketplace;
-- Hong Kong company GRST, for developing a way to make batteries for electric vehicles pollute less and are easier to recycle;
-- Global non-profit organization WildAid Marine Program, for working with governments to bolster enforcement to deter illegal fishing and strengthen ocean conservation.
"Our winners and all our finalists remind us that, no matter where you are on our planet, the spirit of ingenuity, and the ability to inspire change, surrounds us all," William said. He urged people to become "architect of change" to ensure a safer planet for future generations. Global heating has led to severe weather conditions such as floods in Libya and Greece, and wildlfires in many parts of the planet.
The winners were chosen by a 13-member council that includes Jordan's Queen Rania, Chinese business magnate Jack Ma, British fashion designer Stella McCartney, broadcaster David Attenborough, World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweale and former NBA star Yao Ming.
Apart from the prize money, all 15 finalists -- chosen from more than 1,100 nominations -- will receive a year of technical support and resources to help them accelerate and expand their work.
The other finalists included a U.S. company that found a way to recycle polycotton fabrics, which makes up half of all textile waste; a program to plant, grow and digitally track trees in Sierra Leone's capital Freetown, where 70% of trees have been cut down; an anti-smog movement in Poland, which has the dirtiest air in Europe; and a U.K. company making low-emission tires for electric vehicles.
The Earthshot Prize was launched in 2020 by William's Royal Foundation charity as a 10-year program to shore up innovative solutions and technologies against the planet's greatest environmental perils.
In line with the sustainability theme, William wore a 10-year-old dark green blazer by Alexander McQueen. Other celebrities including Donnie Yen donned an old suit, while South African actress Mbatha wore a bright navy blue gown by Stella McCartney, known for her eco-friendly clothing,
The glitzy ceremony at the theater in state-owned Media Corp. was co-hosted by actors Hannah Waddingham and Sterling K. Brown. The bands One Republic and Bastille, and U.S. singer Bebe Rexha performed for the night.
Singapore ministers and former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also attended. Ardern, a trustee of the Earthshot board, said before the ceremony that Earthshot had helped amplified the solutions needed to fight climate change.
"We need speed and pace and Earthshot focuses on providing both," she said.
The ceremony came ahead of the COP28 U.N. climate change summit in Dubai, which starts Nov. 30 and will include a speech by his father, King Charles III.
COP28 is expected to do a stock take of the 2015 landmark Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) or at least 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times. It's already warmed about 1.1 degrees (2 degrees Fahrenheit) since the mid-1800s.
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
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A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”