Sir David Attenborough has launched the biggest ever environmental prize in history with Prince William.

The Earthshot Prize will be given to help applicants develop solutions to environmental concerns by 2030. Total prize money will exceed £50m over the next ten years to five winners, who will split the money every year over the next decade.

Centred around repairing the planet, the ‘Earthshots’ are based on protecting and restoring nature, cleaning our air, reviving our oceans, building a waste-free world, and fixing our climate.

Starting in London next autumn, a ceremony will be held every year in a different city to celebrate the prize and highlight progress.

Sir David Attenborough explained on Radio 4 the need for such a scheme, saying: “Suddenly we actually see the writing is on the wall. People can see it’s happening and it is a matter of great urgency now. The disaster we are facing is on a scale that has not been seen since mankind existed.”

Nominations will open on 1 November for ideas that have the potential to make a difference on the world scale. Solutions can vary from new technologies to a new policy. And you don’t need to submit your application as an individual, the Earthshot Prize will consider ideas from everyone from community groups, scientists, cities, to whole countries.

Prince William said: “The Earth is at a tipping point and we face a stark choice: either we continue as we are and irreparably damage our planet, or we remember our unique power as human beings and our continual ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve. People can achieve great things. The next ten years present us with one of our greatest tests – a decade of action to repair the Earth.”

The prize’s name was inspired by the term “Moonshot” and the race to get the first person onto the moon back in the 1960s.