IN HIS FIRST SPEECH AS PRINCE OF WALES, WILLIAM CHAMPIONS WILDLIFE
LONDON — Prince William delivered his first speech as heir to the British throne at a wildlife protection summit last week, signaling that the royal family will continue to champion environmental causes as King Charles III is forced to step back from front-line campaigning.
William delivered the keynote speech Tuesday at the United for Wildlife global summit in London, addressing some 300 representatives of law enforcement agencies, conservation groups and corporations that are working to combat the trade in illegal wildlife products, which is estimated at $20 billion annually.
The prince and his Royal Foundation created United for Wildlife in 2014 to protect endangered species from the illegal trade in goods such as elephant ivory and rhinoceros horn. Working with organizations that target money laundering and other forms of organized crime, the group says it has trained over 100,000 people and contributed to some 250 arrests and 200 seizures of illegal animal products around the world.
The natural world is a gift everyone should protect, William told the gathering.
“It is a lesson I learnt from a young age, from my father and my grandfather, both committed naturalists in their own right, and also from my much-missed grandmother, who cared so much for the natural world,” he said, referring to Charles and the late Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II. “In times of loss, it is a comfort to honor those we miss through the work we do.”
William cited the recent conviction of a 49-year-old man on wildlife trafficking charges as an example of the way agencies are working across borders to tackle the problem.
Moazu Kromah, a citizen of Liberia, conspired with two other men to smuggle about 419 pounds of rhino horns and 10 tons of ivory from various East African nations to buyers in the U.S. and Southeast Asia from 2012 to 2019, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Kromah, 49, was extradited to New York from Uganda in 2019. He pled guilty to three wildlife trafficking charges earlier this year and was sentenced to 63 months in jail.
William’s speech came less than a month after he took on the role of heir to the throne as his father, now King Charles III, became monarch following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. The choice of venue demonstrates that environmental protection will remain a royal priority, even though Charles is likely to step back from an issue he has championed for 50 years.