The Earth King: From Royal Radical to Respect
The King's Long Journey to Respected Environmentalist
~Continuing our Coronation series on King Charles III~
If you asked a random person what they knew about King Charles, there’s a good chance you’d get one, very common, response: “I know he’s really into the environment”.
Protecting the planet has been a passion of The King’s since he was a young man, but, hard as it may be to believe today, that passion did not always garner respect. In fact, for most of his life, King Charles was ahead of his time, and even mocked for what are now mainstream convictions.
Fortunately, time was on his side.
Decades later, King Charles III has been vindicated on the issues, and now stands as a leading environmental authority.
Never was that more evident than at COP26 (The Conference of the Parties) in Glasgow in 2021.
As Royal reporters observed, despite a sea of celebrities and world leaders, then Prince Charles was the star attraction, and they watched as one high profile figure after another beat a path to his door.
Robert Hardman described the scene:
“Suddenly, a call came through from the White House to see if the Prince might have time for a one-on-one with President Joe Biden.
A TV microphone picked up some of the chat before the two men retreated to a corner… whereupon Biden went into full backslap mode.
‘We need you badly,’ he told the Prince. ‘You kept this whole thing going. That’s how it all started.’”
The President was right. Few people realise that King Charles has not only kept talking about the environment, but the “COPs” began, largely, because of him.
In 1991, then Prince Charles hosted a meeting on the Royal Yacht Britannia, during a visit to Brazil. That priceless Royal convening power brought together Al Gore, representatives of the oil industry, representatives of the green movement, and others, to discuss basic principles they could agree on, and to prepare for an Earth Summit in 1992. They agreed that world leaders should keep meeting on the matter every year, and so it was the birth of the COPs.
As Boris Johnson told the King: ‘l just want to say you’re a prophet without honour and you’ve been right for a very long time.’
The King’s track record is well known by now:
He gave his first speech on the environment when he was barely 21, seven years before the term “global warming” was even coined.
He speaks out about the dangers of plastics and pollution, has worked tirelessly to end the plastic waste in our oceans, he promotes organic food and farming, he installed solar panels on his homes, and buys credits to offset carbon emissions from his households and personal travel.
His Aston Martin runs on wine and cheese whey, he believes in fashion sustainability - his motto is “Buy once, buy well” - he established the International Sustainability Unit and The Prince's Rainforest Project, and has spoken out about the need to protect the coral reefs…
And since 1990, businesses wanting a Royal Warrant from The King, first had to show a responsible approach to environmental and social issues.
That list barely scratches the surface. It’s said even his staff struggle to list all his accomplishments, projects, and charities. Someone could write a book on the work he’s done to end littering in the oceans alone.
“My interest in the ocean is probably from my time in the Royal Navy and has only deepened since then.”
~ King Charles III
National Geographic did a profile on King Charles shortly after his accession, calling him, “the environmental radical” who was a visionary in the field, and has “clearly followed his own principles, converting his farm to organic more than 30 years ago.”
They noted that The King was, “the original influencer, wielding soft power from a palace rather than social media”:
“It may be tempting to think of the new King, with his bespoke Savile Row suits, Edwardian manners and royal retinue, as an icon of a previous age. But his speeches, books and projects do suggest a man ahead of his time.”
In 2010, King Charles wrote a book on the environment and farming, “Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World” and addressed the criticism he received. What he saw as a packed workday, others (the press?) judged as someone who couldn’t make up his mind:
“So many appeared to think – or were told – that I was merely leaping from one subject to another – from architecture one minute to agriculture the next – as if I spent a morning saving the rainforests, then in the afternoon jumping to help young people start new businesses.”
What has motivated The King to protect the earth? It’s simple. He believes it’s a moral duty, and an obligation he has not just to his children and grandchildren, but to every child.
In an essay on the environment for Newsweek in 2022, he wrote, “If we only maintain our rights now without acknowledging our responsibilities to those who come after us, then we would have failed to act morally.”
“It should not scare us but inspire us, with the greatest sense of urgency, to address the most universal challenges of our age. At present, there is none more pressing than putting Nature, people and our singular and fragile planet at the heart of how we live, work and do business to create the brightest possible future for humanity.”
~King Charles III
The King has said he also found motivation as a new grandfather, and wondered how he could face his grandchildren if he did nothing to protect the planet their generation will inherit. He has also said he is “enormously proud” of his sons for sharing his interest and passion, though sadly Harry has now become estranged from his father and, perhaps, his work.
(Prince William has continued to be a campaigner for the planet, launching his own Earthshot Prize - “a global challenge to fix our biggest environmental problems.”)
King Charles is not someone who puts on for the cameras and turns it off when they’re gone. His passion and knowledge are proof of that.
As Hardman personally observed at COP26 in Glasgow, even ‘after celebrities and leaders left in their private jets’, The King stayed, commuting to the conference every day from Dumfries House, to meet as many people as possible and to view and promote their innovations:
“Today, the Prince is championing electric delivery vans. Tomorrow, it’s electric trains. And when he does move on, he may be the only VIP to leave Glasgow by electric car rather than plane (heading for Balmoral, whence he will return to London next week by train).”
Not everyone will agree with everything The King says on the environment. But as one person put it to me on Twitter recently, “I don’t always agree with him, but I do agree that we need to take care of our planet.”
Well said. And I think King Charles would say, it really can be as simple as that.
One of greatest arguments for Monarchy is how the heir apparent uses their time to prepare for the role. Charles is a thoughtful man and has the precious ability to think long term, in a world where sadly the political class is increasingly driven by the 24 hour news cycle. I just hope that we also see him be decisive when action is needed!
What a well-researched article! Excellent reporting, very readable too.