Prince William meets young environmentalists and plays rugby on first day in South Africa
Prince William has opened a visit to South Africa by offering words of encouragement to a group of young environmentalists before joining a rugby practice at a local school.
The Prince of Wales will have four days of engagements in Cape Town and the trip will heavily focus on climate change and conservation.
He will see his annual Earthshot Prize award 1 million pounds ($1.97 million) in grants to five organisations for innovative environmental ideas.
The awards ceremony will take place in a 470-foot-long reusable dome that will be packed up and taken away after the event.
The Earthshot awards on Wednesday night are the centrepiece of William’s trip to South Africa’s second-biggest city.
But the 42-year-old heir to the throne will also attend a global wildlife summit, visit a botanical garden on the slopes of Cape Town’s landmark Table Mountain, spend time at a sea rescue base and meet with a local fishing community.
Meeting with young environmentalists
Officials said the prince would use the visit to highlight other issues close to his heart, such as the work of rangers on the front line of conservation efforts.
William’s first engagement was joining more than 100 young environmentalists aged between 18 and 35, who sat in small groups and discussed climate and conservation issues.
William moved from group to group, spending a few minutes talking with each.
“I loved chatting to you today. What you are all doing is incredible,” William said at the end.
“You are the leaders, you are the people that are going to make the difference going forward.
“Your solutions and your impact are so important and so needed right now.”
William formed the Earthshot Prize through his Royal Foundation in 2020 to encourage new ideas to solve environmental problems.
The foundation has a focus on young entrepreneurs and innovators.
It launched in 2021 and the first three awards ceremonies were held in Britain, the United States and Singapore.
Africa has a ‘special place’ in William’s heart
William last visited Africa in 2018 but he has a strong connection to the continent.
He travelled there as a boy after his mother Princess Diana died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
The prince and his wife Kate got engaged at a wildlife conservancy in Kenya in 2010 and he said he came up with the idea for the Earthshot awards while in Namibia in 2018.
“Africa has always held a special place in my heart as somewhere I found comfort as a teenager, where I proposed to my wife, and most recently, as the founding inspiration behind the Earthshot Prize,” William said in a statement ahead of his visit.
Princess of Wales Kate and their three children are not travelling to South Africa.
Kate, 42, only recently returned to some public duties after completing treatment for an undisclosed type of cancer.
William’s visit follows soon after his brother Harry, the Duke of Sussex, visited South Africa and neighbouring Lesotho last month for a youth charity he set up in southern Africa.
The prince plays rugby with students
William briefly broke away from environmental issues to travel to a high school in the underprivileged Ocean View neighbourhood on the fringes of Cape Town on Monday.
Dressed in a dark suit and grey shirt, he joined in at a rugby practice.
He kicked and passed the ball but also became the target of playful tackles from a few of the youngsters.
They yelled: “Let’s tackle the prince!” before two of them grabbed a smiling William.
Rugby is one of South Africa’s favourite sports and its national team is the reigning world champion.
Three former South Africa rugby stars were at the practice session to greet the prince.
Wiliam is also a follower of the game and a spokesperson for Kensington Palace had promised that the prince would play some rugby.
Royals’ finances under scrutiny
The visit also comes as the finances of William and his father, King Charles III, come under scrutiny after an investigation by British media.
The probe found their private estates made millions of pounds by renting properties to government entities, including the armed forces, the National Health Service and public schools.
The two estates, the king’s Duchy of Lancaster and the prince’s Duchy of Cornwall, hold portfolios of commercial, residential and agricultural properties, which provide personal income to the royals.
The Duchy of Lancaster said while the king takes an interest in the estate, day-to-day operations are overseen by an independent council and executives.
The Duchy of Cornwall said the estate operates with a commercial imperative “alongside our commitment to restoring the natural environment and generating positive social impact for our communities”.