Cate Blanchett: Ordinary people must not be burdened with solving climate change

Individuals must not be made to feel burdened with solving climate change alone, Cate Blanchett has said, as she praises the Prince of Wales’s Earthshot Prize.

Blanchett, the Oscar-winning actress, said that the “overwhelming nature of the climate challenge can lead to despair, but we don’t have time for apathy and inaction”.

Noting that it is “really important to recognise that many people are struggling” themselves, she told the Telegraph: “Climate can feel like yet another burden to take on – that no one individual can make the changes needed to turn things around.”

”But,” she added, “(and it’s a big but!) collectively, we do have power.

”Small actions do add up. The way we consume does add up.”

The Earthshot Prize, founded by Prince William and now in its fifth year, awards £1 million annually to five inventors who have come up with new solutions to help save the planet.

Blanchett, who attended the 2023 awards in Singapore, praised the awards for recognising “innovations that are not only game changing but rapidly scalable”.

“The Prize, I feel, is a real injection of energised hope,” she said.