After his recent trip to South Africa it seems Prince William has left feeling inspired to change the world. Meanwhile his wife, Kate Middleton, is showing support for her husband’s pledge in a simple yet effective way.
Earlier this month William made a solo trip to Cape Town for the annual Earthshot Prize – an environmental project set up by the prince which awards 5 winners each year for their contributions to environmentalism. While the trip itself certainly had its ups and downs, with one particular incident seeing the prince heckled by protesters. Despite this, the Earthshot awards went pretty well with the winners receiving £1 million to continue their environmental research. The first award ceremony was held in 2021 and the project is intended to continue until 2030.
The Earthshot Prize represents William’s strong commitment to doing what he can to help tackle environmental issues. It’s clearly something he’s passionate about and supposedly one of the few things that has given him any sense of pleasure during what has been a pretty difficult year for the prince.
The Prince of Wales also shared his vision for what he hopes to achieve with the Earthshot Prize, claiming he wants to “transform the world for good, one solution at a time”. That’s a pretty admirable goal and he’s clearly not alone in his environmental pledge.
Kate Middleton shows her support for William
Kate had a sneaky way of subtly showing her support for her husband at the Remembrance day service last week. While most wouldn’t even notice it, she demonstrated her commitment to sustainable fashion by upcycling a Catherine Walker & Co. coatdress which she first wore four years ago.
The reimagined piece featured a velvet bow collar and velvet buttons and it’s reappearance marks the third time the coatdress has been worn by Kate and the second time it has been modified. Speaking to People, fashion expert, Bethan Holt claimed that Kate has been finding new uses for older clothes lately and noted how it coincided with her husband’s Earthshot tour.
“We’ve seen Kate upcycle more lately and I think it’s a great message to be sending, especially so soon after William’s Earthshot tour.”
Of course, this isn’t the only example of Kate making use of previously worn outfits, it’s something she’s been doing for a while. Her outfit at the Trooping of the Colour earlier this year saw her reuse pieces previously seen in 2023. Having a new outfit for every public appearance is not sustainable, upcycling is the future, “I think she recognises she has lots of beautiful pieces already in her wardrobe, which, with a few small tweaks, can look entirely new.”
While William may have had to make the trip to Cape Town alone, Kate’s fashion choice shows that, although she wasn’t there, she shares her husband’s passion for environmental conservation. The subtle nod to sustainability sent a positive message without overshadowing the Remembrance service which she was attending.