Prince William Praises Princess of Wales, Discusses Earthshot Prize in Cape Town

Prince William has stated that the Princess of Wales is “really well” and has been “amazing this whole year.” He made these remarks to broadcasters before presenting his environmental Earthshot Prize later in Cape Town, South Africa. On his wrist, the Prince of Wales wore a bracelet inscribed with “Papa,” which his daughter Princess Charlotte had made for him for a Taylor Swift concert. He mentioned he had promised to wear it during the trip and “try not to lose” it. His wife did not travel to South Africa as she is recovering after cancer treatment and will instead be watching the ceremony from home in Windsor. He commented that Catherine would be “cheering me on,” adding, “I know she’ll be really keen to see tonight be a success.” Princess Charlotte created the bracelet for her father when they attended a Taylor Swift concert at Wembley. Friendship bracelets have become synonymous with the pop star and her sold-out Eras tour, with fans, known as “Swifties,” regularly exchanging them at her concerts. Prince William spoke to the BBC inside the eco “Super Dome,” which was constructed for the awards ceremony taking place this evening in Cape Town. Following the ceremony, the eco dome is scheduled for recycling and subsequent reuse elsewhere. First awarded in 2021, the prize supports sustainable, eco-friendly projects globally, with five winners each receiving £1 million. This year’s event emphasizes ideas originating from Africa, with over 400 African-led projects nominated and an additional 350 linked to the continent. The Prince of Wales expressed his affinity with Africa, having spent time there on his gap year before university, volunteering on wildlife conservation projects in Kenya, Botswana, and Tanzania. He stated, “I love this continent. I spent many a year looking around exploring it and just really thrilled to have the reception and exuberance and the energy that will be in this room tonight.” The ambition of the prince’s Earthshot Prize has been to introduce hope and innovation to the most formidable environmental challenges. When questioned about achieving this in a challenging political climate, the prince maintained a positive outlook. He remarked, “Everyone wants some hope and some optimism and Earthshot comes with urgent optimism.” A significant portion of the prince’s visit to Cape Town this week has focused on young people and their capacity to effect change. He asserted, “Without them the future is looking pretty bleak so these are the game-changers, the innovators, the inventors who are going to make the world a better place for us in future.” He further mentioned that his own children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, were cognizant of this. “Every family tries to do what they can to help with the environment and we go through the basics of recycling and making sure we minimise water use, turning lights off when you leave the house – we’re sensible with what we do around the environment. I think every family has those conversations,” he stated. However, he appended that Earthshot possessed considerably grander ambitions. He elaborated, “We’re trying to do big scale ambition and business. I’ve brought the children along on that journey and I hope they’re proud of what we are trying to do here which is to galvanise that energy and enthusiasm to make real impact.”