London: Two projects from India are one step closer to winning Prince William's Earthshot Prize and receiving £1 million to further work on the ideas.
Phool, a floral waste project that converts flowers dumped in river Ganga into sustainable leather called Fleather is among the 15 potential winners. Founder and CEO Ankit Agarwal realised that pesticide coating on flowers is poisoning the water. He said the project began with a simple idea. "That is to clean up India's holiest river. In the process, we've discovered a material growing on our factory floor that could one day replace animal leather for good. Sometimes ground-breaking ideas come from unlikely situations."
At first, Phool was using floral waste to make incense sticks. But they observed that a thick mat-like substance is growing over unused fibres of the plant matter. They soon realised this material is a good replacement for animal and plastic leather. Over 163 Dalit women are now working on collecting waste. The company is hoping to employ 5,000 in time.
Ankit Agarwal's project is shortlisted in the "Build a Waste-Free World" category.
Another Indian project among the finalists is Kheyti, a greenhouse-in-a-box solution for small farmers. The Telangana startup helps nearly 100 million small farmers because they are among the poorest in the world. They are also most affected by climate change. CEO Kaushik Kappagantulu says the Greenhouse-in-a-Box offers shelter from unpredictable elements and destructive pests. The startup also trains and supports farmers to ensure their greenhouse works as effectively as possible.
"The world depends on its small-hold farmers and yet their lives are amongst the hardest on earth. Our Greenhouse-in-a-Box is empowering farmers in India today. The steps we have already taken at Kheyti are now building to change farmers' lives at scale," he added.
Kheyti is shortlisted in the "Protect and Restore Nature" category.
Other finalists for the 2022 Earthshot Prize are London start-up Notpla Hard Material (makes packaging from seaweed and plants), the City of Amsterdam Circular Economy group (aiming complete recycling by 2050), and Mikuru Clean Stoves from Kenya (makes cleaner stoves to reduce indoor pollution).
Prince William set up the award to encourage ideas that will save the planet. "The innovators, leaders, and visionaries that make up our 2022 Earthshot finalists prove there are many reasons to be optimistic about the future of our planet," he said. "They are directing their time, energy, and talent towards bold solutions with the power to not only solve our planet's greatest environmental challenges, but to create healthier, more prosperous, and more sustainable communities for generations to come," he added.
Last year, a project from Delhi by Vidyut Mohan won the prize in the "Clean our Air" category. Takachar made its mark on the cheap technology innovation to convert crop residues into sellable bio-products.