A handful of billionaires have shown the world what they find most important to do when they can afford to do pretty much anything. They want to go to outer space.

Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, and Elon Musk are all spending billions on vehicles and resources to take them and others to outer space. Most recently, “Star Trek” actor William Shatner flew to outer space in a rocket built by Bezos’s company, Blue Origin. That makes him the oldest man who has ever flown to space.

Are these space billionaires wasting their money? Prince William thinks there are more important things they should be focusing their resources and brain power on. Specifically, he wishes they would turn their attention to climate change.

At the inaugural Earthshot environmental prize awards, which took place on Sunday, Prince William spoke about climate change and how this is something his family has cared about for generations. He explained that his grandfather, Prince Philip, and his father, Prince Charles, have both turned their attention to climate change. 

Prince William feels that the next generation is going to inherit an unsafe world if we don’t do something to change it. He explained, “Young people now are growing up where their futures are basically threatened the whole time. It’s very unnerving and it’s very you know, anxiety-making.” As a father of three, he takes this seriously.

Prince William isn’t simply concerned about the world our children are inheriting. He also has an idea about who could fix it – the billionaires spending their money to leave planet Earth. He said, “We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live.”

Watch the video below to hear Prince William’s comments for yourself.

Do you think people like Richard Branson, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos should focus their money and intelligence on reversing climate change instead of building rockets to outer space? Why do you think they aren’t doing that?