Nigeria’s Lagos Fashion Week has been named one of the winners of the 2025 Earthshot Prize during a spectacular ceremony held at the Museum of Tomorrow in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event, hosted by Prince William, recognized five global initiatives that are making remarkable strides in tackling the planet’s most urgent environmental challenges.
Founded by Prince William in 2020, the Earthshot Prize seeks to identify and scale up solutions to repair and protect the planet by 2030. Lagos Fashion Week triumphed in the “Build a Waste-Free World” category for its innovative approach to sustainable fashion. The platform has redefined Africa’s fashion industry by promoting eco-conscious design, responsible production, and waste reduction through creative reuse of materials. Its win symbolizes a major step forward for the global fashion industry, acknowledging Africa’s leadership in the sustainability movement.
The other winners announced in Rio include Brazil’s re.green, using AI and satellite data to restore the Atlantic Forest; the city of Bogotá, Colombia, for its air-quality initiatives; the High Seas Treaty, representing a global commitment to protect oceans beyond national borders; and Friendship, a Bangladeshi NGO helping vulnerable communities adapt to climate impacts. Each winner will receive £1 million to expand their projects and global partnerships.
Prince William praised the winners as “the world’s true action heroes,” highlighting their courage, creativity, and commitment to a sustainable future. The vibrant ceremony featured performances by artists including Anitta, Kylie Minogue, and Shawn Mendes, and coincided with Brazil’s growing prominence as a hub for climate leadership, ahead of COP30 in the Amazon region next year.
Lagos Fashion Week’s founder, Omoyemi Akerele, expressed deep gratitude, emphasizing that the recognition “proves that fashion can be a force for change — not just in style, but in sustainability and culture.” She added that the prize will enable the expansion of LFW’s sustainable programs across more African cities before 2030.
The selection of Lagos Fashion Week as an Earthshot Prize laureate reinforces the importance of African innovation in solving global environmental challenges. As the applause echoed through Rio’s Museum of Tomorrow, one message resonated clearly: a greener future will be shaped not only by policy and science, but also by creativity, culture, and collaboration across continents.
