Six New Zealand climate solutions have been nominated by Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington, for the 2026 Earthshot Prize, recognising local work to cut emissions, reduce waste, restore oceans and support more sustainable farming.
The university is New Zealand’s only official nominator for the global environmental prize.
Its nominees are AgriZeroNZ, Critical., KiwiEconet, Mountains to Sea Wellington Trust, Mushroom Material and Sea Cleaners.
Andrew Wilks, Manutaki, director of sustainability at Victoria University of Wellington, said the university was proud to help take New Zealand climate solutions to an international stage.
“There were remarkable applications again this year, but Vic Uni is excited to elevate these six New Zealand solutions to the world stage through The Earthshot Prize because every single one has the power to change the world,” Wilks said.
“They’re affordable, immediately scalable, and could create true global transformation.”
The Wellington connection includes Mountains to Sea Wellington Trust’s Love Rimurimu project, which is working to restore declining kelp forests in Wellington Harbour through science, community action and Indigenous partnership.
The project also supports hands-on education and open-source knowledge sharing, helping communities better understand and care for the harbour environment.
Other nominees include AgriZeroNZ, a public-private partnership that invests in tools to help farmers reduce agricultural emissions while staying profitable and productive.
Critical., a Māori-led clean-tech company, is transforming hard-to-recycle plastic waste into Cleanstone, a circular building material made in Aotearoa from 100 percent reclaimed plastic waste.
The company is also developing compact microfactories to help communities turn local waste into materials, jobs and circular economic opportunities.
KiwiEconet, developed in Southland, is a 100 percent natural and organic jute fibre netting designed to replace plastic wrap used for baling hay and silage.
The netting is biodegradable and edible by livestock.
Mushroom Material has developed mycelium-based pellets as a biodegradable alternative to expanded polystyrene packaging.
The company says the pellets are designed to work with existing moulding equipment, making it easier for the packaging industry to shift to a sustainable option.
Sea Cleaners operates purpose-built vessels that intercept plastic pollution before it disperses beyond recovery.
The group removes millions of litres of waste from waterways each year and is expanding into the Pacific through an island-led clean-up network.
The Sustainable Business Network encouraged applications for nominations from its Next List, which features innovators, entrepreneurs, projects and organisations that were finalists in its Sustainable Business Awards.
Mushroom Material and Critical. were successful nominees from those recommendations.
James Griffin, general manager at Sustainable Business Network, said the nominations showed sustainable innovation was already emerging across Aotearoa.
“What’s exciting about these nominations is that they show world-class sustainable innovation is already emerging in Aotearoa New Zealand, not as distant ideas, but as practical, scalable solutions solving real problems right now,” Griffin said.
“We’re thrilled to see Critical and Mushroom Material nominated for the world’s most prestigious environmental award. Both were selected because they’re on our Next list, which exists to help elevate the innovators building tomorrow’s economy today.”
The Earthshot Prize Trust, led by Prince William, awards £1 million to each of five environmental solutions every year.
The prize recognises work across five goals, known as Earthshots: Protect and Restore Nature, Clean our Air, Revive our Oceans, Build a Waste-Free World and Fix our Climate.
In 2023, Sea Forest Ltd, one of Victoria University of Wellington’s nominees, was named among the 15 global finalists for the prize.
The 2026 finalists are expected to be announced in September, with winners to be named at the awards ceremony in Mumbai in November.
