EXCLUSIVE: Robert Irwin reveals the 'untapped GENIUS' behind Prince William's Earthshot Prize

Every camera in the studio is all pointed on this one laptop sitting there in the rehearsal room, and I'm like, what's going on? They're like, you have a very special call that you have to answer. So Robert Irwin, thank you very much for speaking to us. I mean, first of all, arriving in style on a London bus with Prince William. How did that come about? Well, not just any London bus, the 3000th no emission bus. So it's really a big deal. It's amazing. I think the innovation coming out of London is spectacular. So yeah, I was invited to join His Royal Highness and two incredible young climate leaders to basically have a discussion on the way to Guildhall to host the wonderful event here, just to talk about what Earthshot has done over the last five years and what it needs to do to mobilize the next generation. It's about the food we eat, it's about the air we breathe, it's about the oceans, it's about all those things around us, nature. So it isn't just one thing, and I think that helps allow people the space to have their own areas of interest and expertise, but also allows a broader conversation around what world do you want to live in? I think the Earthshot Prize has closed that gap between where humans live and where the environment lives, and we need to be amongst it, not separate. I think it was really inspiring to see the optimism that both Prince William and Robert had, and it definitely left an effect on me. Something that a lot of people don't know is that we already have all the solutions we need to not just slow emissions, but actively reverse them, bring back nature and build up communities. And so we need more projects like the Earthshot Prize to really boost the incredible people who are leading the way. To lose hope is dangerous. We need to hold on to the fact that there is time, and with urgent optimism, with action, we have hope. So we talked about that a lot. We also had some really very real conversations about the right approaches to make the Earthshot Prize, and to make what it stands for universal. To make sure that it's cutting through to every demographic, and to make sure that our next generation feels involved, feels like they have a community, and to make sure Earthshot feels like an outlet, not only for the finalists and for the winners, but a movement for everybody to be more energized to make a difference for the planet. And of course on that theme in Mumbai this year, there's the Children's Earthshot, which is brand new I believe, because it is that next generation who are going to be the biggest impacts by all of this. Well that was something that I talked today with Prince William, was he said, you know, when he's in rooms with the big policy makers and business and all of that sort of thing, you know, it's so important to talk about what legacy are you leaving behind? What world are you creating for the next generation? That's so important to think about. And I love that the Earthshot Prize now has a youth Earthshot Prize dedicated to the youngest among us who are going to be the future. And you know, it's every single day I am around young people my age, our age, you know, who have the passion, but sometimes it feels like environmentalism is this giant looming hill that you can't climb. You can't do it alone, but you have to realize that if you find your community, we've got this, we've got this, you know. And Michael Bloomberg had a video on the stage where he talks about Prince William being kind of instrumental in all of this and getting people on board. How do you feel about Prince William's involvement? Well, I got to meet Bloomberg last year at the Climate Action Week. What an amazing individual. Bloomberg Philanthropies, of course, doing huge, huge things. They just announced some more incredible funding for ocean conservation. But yeah, I think what Mike said about Prince William's involvement in the Earthshot Prize and the way he spearheads this spirit of conservation, it's so true. You cannot have a movement like this unless you have someone at the helm who truly believes in it. And that is 100% Prince William. He lives it, breathes it. You know, when you talk to him about the Earthshot finalists, when you talk to him about what's coming up in Mumbai, he has this absolute palpable passion. And, you know, I look to him and to some of my other peers within the conservation space is really like the future, I think, for conservation. And to have a leader like that, who has a great new perspective and a really, really unifying angle, very important. I remember we last spoke in Cape Town where a seal interrupted us. With the seals, yeah, eavesdropping on our conversation. Absolutely. But that's the, you know, nature and the environment, right? 100%, yeah, yeah, yeah. But of course, now we're five years in rather than three years in. And it's instead of just kind of pilots and small scale stuff, it's all about kind of scaling it up, isn't it? It just makes me about that. Yeah. The next five years, it's going to be about making this universal and making these solutions really happen on a much larger scale. Because this is all, Earthshot Prize is untapped genius. That's what it is. It's like these incredible individuals and groups that are getting together to fix the climate, to restore nature, to do it all in their own bubble. And then the idea of Earthshot is to pop the bubble and make it global, you know, and that is so valuable. And I think urgent optimism was something I hadn't really heard the term thrown around until Earthshot Prize. But now that we have five years under our belt, we can say, okay, it's worked. Obviously, this framework works. And now it's about taking it to the next level, because five years is going to go by like that. And we're all very much aware of that. But I think, you know, going to Mumbai next, what a great call, what an incredible place. I think it's really every single area in the globe, you know, now it's going to create this network, this real global movement. And do you think there's going to be Australia as part of that global network? My fingers are solidly crossed for Australia. I would love to have Earthshot down there. So hopefully one day that would be that would be great. Has Prince William been to Australia Zoo before? No, he has not. I don't think visited Australia Zoo yet. But we would, mate, I'll welcome him there. He can cuddle a koala and feed a crocodile. Whatever he wants to do, 100%. And of course, you weren't in Rio last year because you were dancing around. I was dancing. You were dancing. Well, I say dancing around. Congratulations for dancing with the Stars winner. Have you taught Prince William any dance moves? I have not taught him any. We discussed the dancing with the Stars win today on the bus. Well, he was actually really encouraging. He called me during rehearsals right at the end of my season because I'd really tried hard to represent wildlife conservation on the ballroom in a place where it wasn't really talked about. And that was very important to me. And it was wonderful. He recognized that. He gave me a call and I didn't know what was going on. I showed up to rehearsals one day and the rehearsals for Dancing with the Stars are all filmed and every camera in the studio is all pointed on this one laptop sitting there in the rehearsal room. And I'm like, what's going on? They're like, you have a very special call that you have to answer. And me and my dance partner are like, OK, we have no idea who it was. And sit down and I see on the screen, it's like KP. And I'm thinking, oh, my goodness, no way is this. And sure enough, there he was. And I think it gave us that extra push to win. And it was an absolute shock. Apparently, we have a special call. I don't know who it is. Let's see. Oh, my goodness. How are you? Oh, my God. How are you doing? How was Rio? Going really well. The finalists this year, we're really going to go on and save the world. We're missing you, Robert. Whilst your twinkle toes are going off elsewhere, I need you down here. Oh, my goodness. It's a great example of how conservation can be universal. This message can be heard by people who tune in to watch a dancing show or by people who are hardcore environmental activists. It should be accessible to everyone. Well, Robert, we look forward to seeing you in Mumbai. Thank you for speaking to me. Much appreciated. Awesome, man. See you then. Thank you. See you there. Thank you.