The Prince of Wales has found echoes of his mother, Diana, during his visit to Rio.
Prince William followed in the late princess’s footsteps as he visited the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer which dominates the city.
The heir to the throne stood beneath the statue for a photo, just as his mother had done when she made an official visit to Brazil in 1991. It became one of the most celebrated images of Diana.
It was a bittersweet moment for Prince William as his successful visit to Brazil continues and it recalled another moment on a previous tour. In 2016, when William and Kate went to India, they sat in front of the Taj Mahal for a photo that recalled Diana’s famous visit there when she posed alone for a picture that was later seen as symbolic of the end of her marriage to the now King Charles.
William’s visit to the Christ the Redeemer statue came on the third day of his trip to Brazil which is focused on environmental issues and which will see him present the 2025 Earthshot awards later on.
On November 5, Prince William will walk the green carpet at Earthshot ahead of a star studded show which will feature performances from Kylie Minogue and Shawn Mendes. He will then hand out this year’s five Earthshot prizes, each worth £1 million for a project that is focused on protecting the environment and increasing sustainability.
The royal visit to Brazil has already seen William put his passion for football at the heart of his green campaigning. One of the first events he attended was the kick off of a leadership programme for 75 young people, hosted in part by Brazilian legend, Cafu, who played in three World Cup finals and won two of them. The scheme aims to build skills and encourage the exchange of ideas between the climate leaders of the future.
The future king was also presented with the keys of the city of Rio de Janeiro by its mayor, Eduardo Paes, almost as soon as he arrived in Brazil.
As we’ve come to expect from the Prince of Wales, this has been an all action trip with William taking to the sand to enjoy a game of beach volleyball at a school run by Olympic star, Carol Solberg, which aims to use sport as a way of transforming the lives of disadvantaged children.
Prince William also took to the waters to visit a project planting mangrove seedlings which aims to protect the natural environment as well as continue local culture.
There have been major meetings as well with the Prince of Wales taking part in the United for Wildlife Global Summit which brought together Indigenous Peoples, leaders from the world of nature conservation and philanthropists as well representatives from the private sector to discuss how to protect natural species and places.
At the summit, Prince William announced a new initiative, the Coordination of Indigenous Organisations of the Brazilian Amazon, which will help indigenous leaders protect their land through delivering emergency funding and legal aid as well as threat tracking systems.
After the Earthshot Prize ceremony, Prince William is set to head to Belem where he will attend the COP30 Heads of State meeting on behalf of King Charles.
