Live from The Earthshot Prize Innovation Summit

Business Week and Itunes, soundcloud or Bloomberg Dot Com. You can also listen to our radio show at two PM eastern time on Bloomberg radio or watch us on Youtube. Search Bloomberg Global News. This is a special edition Bloomberg Radio and we are live on Bloomberg radio as well as on Youtube. But we are here at the Plaza

New York City. A lot going on because of the UN General Assembly and a big part of it is an event here today hosted by Bloomberg Philanthropies, along with the Earth Shot Prize, and this is all about solutions, really focusing on our environment, our climate and just many people involved in it, from government officials to business professionals, entrepreneurs, investors, you name. Yeah, we got philanthropist, business executives, grassroots climate

activists from all over the world. What they're doing is spotlighting emerging systems, changing solutions and showcasing the critical need to turbocharge groundbreaking climate innovations to address the world's most pressing environmental challenges. And I'm hearing a lot about timelines and deadlines and many people saying we don't have a lot of years left before that. This is really you can't reverse the impact that climate change has had on

our environment. Well, earlier I got to catch up with the CEO of the Earth Shot Prize, she is Hannah Jones, to talk about the work that they are doing. They nominate finalists, they nominate winners and they really help them scale up their solutions. Behind the earth shop dries is none other than Prince William of the UK. This is because in the week, the energy, by the way, in this place is off the charts, which is exactly what we need this week. We need udge, an optimism and

we need people feeling totally energized by the possibility. And that really takes me back to our founder, Prince William. Um He UN did the earth shot prize after having two insights. He was in a conservation project that was really successful in Namibia, but he felt terribly frustrated that this successful solution wasn't going to scale and it wasn't going to be replicated around the world. And yet it was helping poacher has become conservationists. It was changing the

entire landscape. So why wasn't anyone scaling it? The second insight was that the dialogue at the time, back in twenty nine, was so full of fear and anger that he was worried that we wouldn't get to action and change if we didn't inject optimism into the conversation. So we married those two insights and he created the Earth

Shot Prize. And the Earth Shot Prize is meant to be a beacon for urgent optimism and putting the spotlight on solutions that, if scaled, could repair and regenerate the planet. And you've got five different categories. Checked me a little bit about we do so. We did a lot of research into how we should do this and we've set up five earth shot challenges. One is oceans, which, by the way, I'm so in love with the innovation happening

in oceans. One is in biodiversity, one is around waist clean air and climate change, and if you think about it, all of those things are the things that we need to see repaired and restored and regenerated for the Earth to be livable, equitable sustainable. So we award one million pounds each to a winner in each of the categories each year. But Prince William is very clear with us

the team. We're going to have fifteen finalists as a whole and they are our family and we are here to support them all, irrespective of who ultimately wins the big money, and we see the money as catalytic. So we have this incredible partnership and collective of partners, of

which Bloomberg Philanthropy's is obviously a key one. And so when we bring the finalists out into the spotlight, we're also looking at how we can give them access to talent, access to advice, access to networks of power and ultimately to blended capital, because we want them to go from being a great working prototype but if they were scaled, could make a huge impact. Let's do that fast, everybody.

And you know what was interesting too, as you guys reach out around the globe right people were nominated a lot that you had to go through. What was it that made somebody stand out that you said I want these people to be a finalist and an ultimately a winner. It's a great question and it's the hardest part of our job. We have a price council that are made

up of some incredible people. Christianity forget is we have Hindu Ibrahim, we have Sir David Attenborough, the prince, the list goes on, Queen Bran and they have to actually get to a place where they have to make the final five. Let me tell you, this is a terrible conversation. But before there we have a very rigorous process. So we have official nominators that bring in nominations every year and from that we're looking for, first of all, are

these diverse? They represent really all of the countries in the world? Do they bring women to the four? Do they bring indigenous communities to the four? How do we make sure that we have representation? Secondly, I think do they have the potential to make an impact? So right now they're working prototype, but how are they going to impact if they went to scale, carbon or biodiversity or

sustainable livelihood creation? How will they make an impact and do we see a pathway to help in them and if so, they get to the next stage, which is how can they inspire the world? And really that's a very complicated process. We have technical experts we really bring in. We have an ex external group that helps us, Deloitte, so that we make sure it's fair, objective and consistent. When we wanted to ask you is I do feel like there's a lot of momentum, certainly the investment world

when it comes to the E S G space. Right a lot of money going into Sustainability Environment Um. What is it that set to you guys, apart with what you're doing at our earth shot? Well, you know, there's not a day and I don't meet with a philanthropist or a VC, with an e s g fund or an impact investor and after an initial conversation, they look at me and say, can I tell you a secret? Could you beat my deal pipeline? I don't have enough

things that I know what to invest in. Interesting now we are sitting on this incredible we've got already over two thousand nominations just in eighteen months and we're vetting, you know, to get through a different stage. We're looking at them and we're saying, but how can we match make? How can we match make our ECO innovators with blended capital? Talking to some of your finalists, they say there's a lot of things having a seat at the table, but capital.

It's crucial for scale, with scalability. Imagine that you are any one of these finalists or innovators. You're not walking down Sands Hill road and bumping into a VC every day, right. You're living in Nigeria thinking of how you do a low cost solar leasing program to help people in the local slums to have access to green electricity. But you need funding, but you have no access to those networks

of privilege. Prince William was very clear. I want to use my privilege and my platform to convene and make that funding conversation happening faster. But having worked so much with entrepreneurs, what I'll also tell you this. When you go on that journey from being a prototype to being scale, you don't just need money, right. You need advice, you need support, you need compassion and kindness, you need leadership training,

storytelling training. So that's something that we're also really supporting and our Global Alliance of partners. They're not just putting capital in they're putting staff in, they're putting expertise in their opening up their supply chains, you know. And what's interesting is, you know, when we think about the world capitals and entrepreneurs there are doing some really cool things, but we're talking literally about saving the world, saving the planet,

Earth Shot. We talk about moon shots right like doing the unthinkable. This is about existence for everyone, and that's where you talk about oceans and earth and energy. I mean, this is what we're talking about. It is you know, one of the things to think about is this is the sixtieth anniversary of the Moon Shot and Prince William was really influenced by President Kennedy's Moon shot challenged to

the American people because it did two things. He didn't just challenge them to land a man on the moon and bring them home safely when we knew none of the answers to how to do that. What actually happened was it unleashed a wave of innovation that shaped economic and social progress and maybe more importantly, he unleashed a new mindset in the American people, which was we can turn the seemingly impossible possible. We have to make this fear shot decade and we have to unleash that mindset again.

We have innovation all over the world happening. We've got to believe we can do this and change the trajectory of the planet and it will take all of us. That's handed Jones. Of course they see, you know, the Earth Shot Prize. I caught up with her earlier here at the Earth Shot Prize innovations summits. So really interesting in terms of what their work is doing. This is Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser and Bloomberg Quick Takes

Tim Stinovic on Bloomberg radio. We actually have somebody here WHO's part of the establishment and they all up and disrupted quite a bit. Very pleased right now to have with us Dr Andrew Forest. He's Executive Chairman of Fortescue metals group. He's on site with us at the Earth Shot Prize Innovation Summit here at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. Great to have you with us. How are you? I'm a great chet thing on farm, so happy to have made this announcement time about the millions

of manous to get it done. Well, let's talk about this announcements because it's a big one. Over the next decade. You're looking to spend six point two billion dollars to curb iron or emissions at your mind. So you're moving away from diesel. And we're not talking carbon offsets here. We're talking about completely eliminating fossil fuels and going with renewable sources instead, so there's no impact on the environment exactly. So we're not moving away or curbing stopping all fossil

fuel use. I've been up to my site. So I've said to my major operators of these huge industrial sites. Says, okay, I'm coming up in and I'm going to switch off the diesel, I'm gonna switch off the oil and gas lever and if you guys do not have plans where I can keep them off, I'm probably going to shake you down. And they've come up with these most brilliant, practical plans, because they're now part of the problem and

they'refore part of the solution. And for six point two billion we can step beyond fossil fuel and return almost to billion dollars a year to shareholders. It's got to be a good investment, all right. So help me out in and wine now, because we have the technology now. I mean, I'm an investor in break through energy. I'm invested in this and that. But why wait? I mean, everyone's sticking around waiting. The planet, I promise you, is cooking. I'm a ecologist. What's happening in the oceans is way

worse than what's happening on land. But it's blowing up on a soil on land. You know, the youth across the world can see it. Carbon credits, fuel, everything's getting way more expensive. Yet renewable energy is free, okay, and it's infinite. Why wait? It's it's not always free and infinite, though. It's not infinite in the sense of okay, well, if you're using solar there's snay time, if using wind there are days that are not windy, and if you're using

hydro power there are sometimes that water levels. So how are your accounting from? You've heard of fossil fuel, right. They spend so much time pumping their gas down into these salt domes so they can draw it out later. We're not a lot different. I mean we don't have to throw it down for months. We'll have batteries. We have pumped hydro, you know, water up to the top of the hill in the day and write it down at night. We have gravitational energy which runs these trades ours.

We got the biggest heaviest trains on earth, right five kilometer trains. They take forty tons of vinyl on their backs down to sea level. It's more than enough parabolical gravity energy than you'll ever need to send that train back up the hill. So there's a huge train system currently pumping through millions and millions of leaders of diesel, breaking itself going down the hill. So stop that, use

that energy, send the train back up. There you've traded an infinity train, no external source of power, no emissions. We're doing that for trucks. We're doing that for a fixed plant, different technologies, but technologies which exist today. And you how much of it is also, though, in terms of the timing. What's going on in terms of the macro environment. Obviously we're all talking a lot more about energy and the energy crisis that we're seeing over in Europe,

specifically because of the Russian invasion the Ukraine. Everybody all of a sudden is putting their foot on the gas pedal when it comes to alternative energy. It's been there and yet the ramp up has taken longer. You talk about the technology being there, but how much of the macro forces are also up? I'm seeing a ramp up the talk. I'm saying hang a ramp up a panic, and there should be, because we've never had a drying event this year around the world, not in the last

hundred years, in history, record temperatures in history. So there's a sense of panic now. But we are reacting to what is great for our shareholders. Six point two billion in one off, nearly a billion out, twenty million out every single year forever. And it does not take into account the three billion we earned on the way through. So we're gonna build this thing up in the next several years, not in ten years, next several years. On the way through we start saving money. We saved eighty

million last year on the way through. We will save a further three billion dollars. You take that three billion off the six point two. You don't have quit ray to return anymore. You have six rate of return. That out of beats Warren Buffett's miracle of nine percent. Right, and we're green. So it's a business decision. Or it's business and you're also just looking at the environment I am an ecologist, I am a scientist. Yes, I'm a business person, but my shareholders will not tolerate flansby for

a business. You do Flans from your dividends, Andrews, but our business must make money. This is a fabulous business decision. So do the other miners, the real tenders of the world, and more do they follow your lead? Look, they're good guys. I've been in touch with the chief executives all the big miners. What have they told you? And I've said, how you do? Please tell us. Would you share said? Of course, we'll have full present full how to presentations.

You get your senior leadership, I'll get my senior leadership. Will break down dollar by dollar, peace based piece time, in the full by time and of all, how we are doing, not will do it. Are doing well, and I do wonder too. You know, as you do this Um, are there any obstacles that will come into play at this point where you've already worked it all out? Because they do think about as people transition, it's not always so fluid and smooth because there is such an establishment

out there and pushed back. Look, I think because it has not been done before, there's no other company in the heavy manufacturing, heavy industry world that has done it. So I need the disbelief to go away. I mean we started as a timely little company and we challenged the biggest industry in the resources world, which is iron know, it's like a closed shot, totally protected. Now we've busted it open where one of the biggest players in the world turned a million tons a year. That's not chopped

liver right now spread around the world. Now we're taking that huge manufacturing center and stopping it using any fossil fuel and people are saying, yeah, if you can do it, wise in everyone. Well, that's the question. Don't question that. We can do it. Question why isn't everyone else? Well, not everyone else. The background, as in the college. That's

part of it perhaps. But I also wonder if you can take us more into your thinking behind this, because you and I spoke years ago and you were on the forefront of thinking about the environmental concerns when it comes to mining. But but something that I've been thinking about is, and I mean this with all due respect, if there's any sort of like a tournament that you're thinking about here, because, with all due respect, mining is

is something that is not inherently different. Okay. Well, unfortunately, if we were to stopped mining, we wouldn't be sitting here, this building wouldn't exist. You know, everything would stop. So we have to do mining. Mining is not the problem. How we mind that's the problem. We have to mind brain. We have to mind zero missions. The mining industry can step beyond fossil fuel. Now I have a sense of a tonement to my kids and to everybody because I'm part of the fossil fuel era, but I don't put

coal in my mind. All My product has zero carbon in it. There's nothing in it. So fucking persuade my customers to put hydrogen, not col in it, then I'm super happy. But I haven't exported carbon, Maka, that's not my business. I've exported iron and then carbon goes into the iron. I want to stop that. I want to saying to all my customers we're gonna give you green iron first time in your light. You've got green iron ore,

replace the coal with hydrogen and you've got green steel. Um, just real quickly, because we have you here in re Bloomberg, what does the macro environment on this dead day? What does the macro environment look like to you right now. We have to step carefully. You've got interest rate fluctuations, you've got a lunatic invading another country totally unfairly. So

we have to step carefully. How we step carefully is by bringing out operating costs down to go from the last cost iron or production in the world and even lower cost iron or production in the world. So our margins are maximist and we're learning. No fosterculs, so we're not exposed to torrents, we're not exposed to foster fuel ups and downs, and he's spling some roundabouts. We are taking our energy from the sun and the wind. Dr

Andrew Forest, Executive Chairman Fortescue metals group. He's with us on site of the Earth Shot Prize Innovation Summit at the Plaza Hotel here in New York City. Dr Forest, great to see you again. Thanks. Thank you. You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Messer and Bloomberg Quick Takes Tim Stinovic on Bloomberg radio. All right, we want

to take you back to the plaza. This is where we are the Earth Shot Prize of innovation summit and luckily for us, Kath mchanna stop by chair the UN High Level Expert Group. She's former minister of environment climate change of Canada, so on site with her, on site with us here, it's hard to kind of hear yourself think.

What's really wonderful, and I think even in our last conversation, just the conversation that we are having, and it does feel like we just talked with uh, you know, all right, court execute and just the investment that they're making and really thinking about Greena emity, not even just thinking you'd be taking actions. How do you feel about like where the conversation is going and how people are looking at climate change and really the impact and what we need

to do now? Well, I mean I think first of all we're seeing climate change having an impact like that. You go to Puerto Rico and basically no one had any power under water, but that's happening everywhere in Canada. We go to down a lit literally inciderated Um. So that's the bad side. The good side is this is really the largest economic opportunity not just in a decade

but in in our lifetime. And then and now we need to translate the ambition that I think we've seen a lot of companies, financial institutions, cities and regions saying they want to be nat zero Um. Obviously we have the nation's part of the Paris Agreement, but we need to actually see the action, and so that's what I'm working at as part of the secretary general who made this high level grip. It's got to very long acrotim like the US has been, but basically it hasn't had

a long time right. No, super short. So actually that's quite good because I'm into like, let's get things done. We do not have time and often we have a lot of a lot of chatting, and I'm a person of action. In Canada we did a lot Um. We put a price on pollution, which would be had carbon pricing. I would be able to do a lot more, but the group is actually looking like what do you need to do? What do you need to show to show progress? Like, don't just talk about fifty we don't have time. I

was just with Mike Bloomberg. He's like, look, I don't know whether we have you know, we're even talking far too wrong, like we've got to talk about what we're doing now, what we're doing next year. And so it's really about getting corporate's financial institution, cities and regions to say, okay, this is our plan, is that we're gonna transition, going to identify the laggards, but also really positive, identifying folks

that are doing things right. At the same time, though, I think that a lot of people might have the sense that we're much further behind than we thought we were, and I say that because of what's happening in Europe right now, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It came into stark relief this year just how reliant the entire world is on fossil fuels. How far behind are we? Because if you were asking me a year ago, I would have painted a picture that we were so much further

ahead when it comes to a transition then we actually are. Well, I mean, I'm someone who also thinks we need to call things out, and the reality is, I mean, you can take things as a risk or an opportunity, and I worry that you know we're gonna say, well, look at what happened, we've got an illegal war um I started by Russia, and so now all bets are off

on climate action. In fact, what we need to do is recognize that by you know perfession the status, but the sounds close like energy security is actually a massive risk to our economy and climate change is having impacts now. So I think you've seen some good moves by Germany, but there has been opportunism by fossil fuel companies in many cases. And Look, I just think we need to just get on with things and racking Ze. Yes, energy poverty is a huge thing, so we have to be smart.

In Canada we did a price on pollution. Give the money back, so people that had less money actually we're better off, and so I think you have to be support about how you do that. But we need to make the quantum of investment now. We need to scale everything and we need to do this fast, and so everything I do is about like how do we find solutions? How do we not just identify problems and just debt on with it? I agree with you right, like there's a lot of talk that goes on. What do we

need to actually do? So what is the role of government and private sector in all of this? Because I do feel like investment money will go where they can make money, right, but and I also do feel like government policy can shape us to do the right thing, whether it's by an electric vehicle, put solar on our roots or what have you. So what are those two components? What do they need to be doing right now? Well, I mean government and and uh, corporate seeds to work

together right. You can't just have government policy up here and then you aren't having a response. And sometimes actually the real economy. You can have a real impact on government. If you support, you know, climate action, that could be really positive. You will be against it. That is very bad. So I think there could be this virtual cycle that everyone needs to scale up investment and we need to deal with problems. So the amount of money we need

is in the trillions, three trillion dollars. So I see that as an opportunity. But to do that we need lended finances. We need that, we need there to be some risk taken so that you then get the you know, the money flowing from the private sector, and then we can do this. I'm like a super realistic optimist, but I think this is a huge opportunity. But people need to see it in that spirit and they have to. We have to fight the status quo all the time. So how do you get the entire world on board?

With this because it's it's one thing for European countries to all be on the same page, and maybe Canada and some cases the US, but what about China? What about India? What about other developing economies? Well, sir, look, everyone needs to be on board and uh, but it's not going to be in here. And that's the thing. Like, if everyone wants perfection, I'm sorry, that's not gonna work. On climate, I've seen it, and you're always gonna have

changes in government. You're gonna have some corporates that are gonna be doing good things and some are gonna be greenwashing, although the fact that they feel like folks, feel the need to say that they're ambitious on climate is a positive signal. But I think, like look in the in what I'm working on, which is, you know, financial institutions, corporates.

How do we hold them accountable? Ultimately we need government regulation. Right, there's a limit of voluntary initiatives and there's a competitiveness issue, right, like we don't want to make it so you're like the good guy coming out there working hard and it's hard. Like we need to reduce some missions, steal money. Um, sounds easy, but obviously you know to do that that's challenging, but you need to bring everyone in. So I think that that that's obviously needs to be leadership at the

national level. Having said that, in countries like China and India, you can see how they are scaling in so many different ways and they're playing a part in the ecosystem, like whether it's electric vehicles or solar. You're getting examples. But if anyone wants us to be orderly, and I often hear this, look I was in the private sector before. Everyone wants to be an orderly transition. I'm sorry, it's

just orderly right this year. Well, what's interesting too, and I think about in the investment space, which we talk so much about, it, E. S G in, particularly the amount of money that was blowing in, and I think we thought that was going to help facilitate that transition to alternative energy in a much more aggressive way. It's

going through a reckoning. So do we need that transparency or labeling so that we really understand initiatives, what they are doing, their impact on the environment, so that people who want to invest in these that really are good for the environment, like? Is that a big deterrent to kind of getting us to a better place. Well, I just feel good radical transparency. It's better to have more

Java than not emparency, like Tolberg. That's like a basic principle, because people need to understand what's going on and then you can make decisions. Let's the whole point of the market. But we do need to better understand risk, like the reality, the risk that people are if you're, if you're a company, you're financials used, doubling down on class and fuels, like, look at where the world is going. We need to

move Um. So and, as I say, like look, you need to be able to follow greenwashing, which requires data and saying like they're gonna be super ambitious and saying much, you know you mean not zero, and you're going the wrong direction. Well, I think people need to know that, um.

But on the flip side, I also think you need to recognize the good players, and that's why getting data out and distinguishing between the people are just saying I'm gonna be amazing, I'm doing nothing or going the wrong way and, to be Allurgin, I'm gonna be amazing and I'm doing the hard work. Is Key. What I want to ask you is there Earth Shot Prize? Right this is innovator's despectors here are there are lots of conversations

as you come to an event like this. What is it that's jumping out for you right now, when we think about what's going on in the in the environment, the climate and changes to it? It's funny because I, you know, sometimes you can get down like I'm like a realistic optist, sometimes an optimistic realist, but ultimately I'm actually a competitive source. I'm kind down to the wall and you're used to just staring at the same thing.

It's actually real, but you can you get disciplined and yet you know, you know that you gotta do the work. So sometimes you can be, you know, disappointed or feel like this government sucks or like whatever. But then I meet these innovators and I was like, this is that, this is the goal, like the zone where we need to be. We need to be rewarding people that have scalable solutions and we need to find its okay before we let you go. Because how did you describe yourself?

A realistic optimist, sometimes I'm an optimist secure list. You know, we understand what the state actors can do, what non state actors can do and what ear shot prize winners can do. But what about Gosh, there's everyday Americans or everyday Canadians. What can we do? Because I think oftentimes it feels like, okay, I'm not using plastic bags and I'm separating my recycling, uh, and I'm taking the subway instead of driving, but doesn't matter at all. But actually

it's weird because all those things matter. And I used to hear this like, you know, I'd see a kid and they'd be, you know, using, uh, they'be using a metal straw, and then people tweet at me. Oh my God, that's so useless. Myself, you know what that kid is saying. I actually believe in the environment. I believe in climate change. You know, all those solutions are really important and like the pups, there are all these like kind of boring things that are actually really critical. The costs of a

lot of these innovations is coming down. But the other thing you can do is you can vote and you can go look for folks that actually share your beliefs. If you care about climate go seeing what people are saying about climate Um. Are they committed to it? Are they actually demonstrating to that with actually, and I saw that. Look, I'm recovering politician and I I'm recovering lay or two, like I'm recovering from a lot of things. I'm still

a mom, so I haven't recovered from teenagers. You know, Um, but I think that it's Um. You know, I saw this in politics, like it really helps if you have regular people who are saying, yeah, you know what, I support you, I'm gonna go up box here, I'm gonna get engaged, or when you have I had when ways put a price on pollution. I know it's harder than the US when you talk about carbon tax, carbom PRICI,

but actually I got support of financial institutions. Once you get to all of the majors came on board, and it really helps when people say, yeah, this is smart policy, like this is actually making it a lot free to pollute, for example. Thank you so much. I loved it. gave us a lot to think about. Good luck with everything and look forward to hearing more. Katheryn McKenna, as she's chair of the UN High Level Expert Group. Former minister of environment climate change of Canada, on site with us

at the Air Shot Prize innovation semi. Thanks for listening to Bloomberg Business Week. Download the podcast on Itunes, soundcloud or Bloomberg Dot Com, and you can also listen to our radio show at two PM Eastern on Bloomberg radio or watch us on Youtube. Sarah to Bloomberg Global News.