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British RoyalsKing Charles III

The Prince of Wales meets Greta Thunberg at World Economic Forum

The Prince of Wales met with environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

As photographers snapped pictures of their meeting, Thunberg said, “I guess you’re very used to this.”

Prince Charles replied, “Very true. It’s taken me years to get used to this.”

“I’m still not used to it,” she said.

Thunberg has been a prominent voice in climate change awareness, having started a school strike on Fridays, branded #FridaysforFuture, to urge world leaders to take a more active stance against environmental and climate change concerns before it’s too late.

The teenage was named Time’s Person of the Year last year for her success in “turning vague anxieties about the planet into a worldwide movement calling for global change.”

She appeared at the United Nations last fall, having sailed across the ocean in a boat to lower her carbon footprint, and is vocal on Twitter, urging leaders to think of future generations when they’re hesitant to act.

Prince Charles later gave an interview to CNN at the World Economic Forum, telling the interviewer that he’s inspired by Thunberg’s work.

“She’s remarkable, she represents one of the main reasons why I’ve been trying to make all this effort all these years,” he said.

“I’ve always worried about the fact that so often, in terms of humanity, we leave things too late so you have to hit a brick wall and experience a catastrophe before anything happens.”

He continued, “All her generation, almost my grandchildren if you know what I mean, are all desperate because not nearly enough has happened – we’ve left it so late.”

Prince Charles arrived at the World Economic Forum—where he delivered a keynote speech about sustainable markets and the need to work on climate change initiatives—in a fully electric Jaguar I-Pace car.

Prince Charles will travel to Jerusalem next, ahead of Thursday’s World Holocaust Forum and his first official visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestine Territories.

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.