Bonang Matheba, Billy Porter, William, Prince of Wales, Robert Irwin, and Nomzamo Mbatha on the green carpet. Picture: Armand Hough / Independent Newspapers
The Earthshot Prize awards ceremony in Cape Town was a star-studded event that saw some of the biggest names in the world and Africa attend.
Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award winner Billy Porter and award-winning television presenter Bonang Matheba, hosted the international awards ceremony.
The Earthshot Prize is a global environmental initiative to discover and support groundbreaking solutions to repair and regenerate the planet.
Matheba and Porter were quite the duo. Upon Prince William’s arrival on the green carpet, he was greeted by Porter who then introduced Matheba to him.
Porter’s kind gestures to Matheba didn’t stop there, after gesturing to her to come to his side for the photo moment, Porter fixed the tail of Matheba’s dress. “I wear those too, I know what’s needed … I wear those too sometimes,” said Porter.
Matheba - Mzansi’s Queen B - wore a Biji La Maison couture gown. She explained to IOL that her dress was inspired by the gold rush in Johannesburg and the rivers and seas.
Earthshot Global ambassador Nomzamo Mbatha wore a dress, the “Solar Citrine” yellow gown, dyed by Colorifix, a 2023 Earthshot Finalist. She shared with IOL how the colour citrine is special to her, being the theme for her 30th birthday.
The Solar Citrine dress was dyed using Colorifix’s groundbreaking technology, where engineered bacteria grow and apply the pigment directly onto the fabric.
This process uses less energy and water and no harmful chemicals, demonstrating that fashion can be both stunning and sustainable. “We thought to say sustainability and glamour do not have to exist in silos,” said Mbatha.
Before his amazing performance, Tanzanian superstar Diamond Platnumz walked the green carpet where he showed off his style, which had items from South Africa, the US and Tanzania. Pity he couldn't share with us who they were by.
All eyes were on co-founder and CEO of the Kolisi Foundation Rachel Kolisi who stepped out in a simple black dress that many online are refering to as her Princess Diana moment. News of Rachel’s divorce from rugby star Siya Kolisi is still fresh news and the talk of the town.
IOL spotted Rachel without her wedding ring but the focus was on her Style Rotate dress, a small-owned business in South Africa which rotates dresses, renting out dresses. “Saving our planet one dress at a time,” Rachel said.
“Material and dresses and outfits are just being made daily and fashion is moving faster and faster. So if we all start making small changes wherever we can, we're gonna have a huge impact on our environment,” she added.
TV presenter and reality star Moshe Ndiki may have not worn the most sustainable material but he did recycle an outfit. Ndiki wore a Somizi Mhlongo creation, yes among his many talents, Mhlongo has dress-making among them.
The green carpet was not only filled with local celebrities but also international names such as Nina Dobrev, Winnie Harlow, Tobe Nwigwe and his wife Fat Nwigwe.
Having covered several local carpets, the organisation of the Earthshot Prize green carpet was a breath of fresh clean air. A clear indication of all that is possible when organisers put in the necessary effort for a well-executed carpet, from talent handlers to public relations teams on standby to help with names. The simple things.
IOL Entertainment