Prince William has paid tribute to his late grandmother the Queen as “one of life's optimists”, as he arrived with wife Kate in the United States ahead of his global environmental project the Earthshot Prize awards.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will spend three days in Boston before the ceremony on Friday, handing out five £1million prizes to incredible winners all aiming to solve the world’s biggest environmental problems.
As the royals touched down in Boston on a commercial British Airways flight this afternoon, William said: “Catherine and I are delighted to be back in the United States and are extremely grateful to Governor Baker and The First Lady of Massachusetts for their warm welcome into Boston.
“On this, our first overseas visit since the death of my grandmother, I would like to thank the people of Massachusetts and particularly of Boston for their many tributes paid to the late Queen.
"She remembered her 1976 bicentennial visit with great fondness.
“My grandmother was one of life's optimists. And so am I.
"That is why last year we launched the Earthshot Prize with the ambition to create a truly global platform to inspire hope and urgent optimism as we look to save the future of our planet.
“To the people of Boston, thank you. I’m so grateful to you for allowing us to host the second year of the Earthshot prize in your great city.
“Catherine and I can’t wait to meet many of you in the days ahead.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales met Boston’s Mayor Michelle Wu at the start of their visit to Boston for the Earthshot Prize awards.
William and Kate were welcomed to City Hall by Ms Wu, the daughter of Taiwanese immigrants and the first Asian American to serve as Boston’s mayor, as their first visit to the US since 2014 risked being overshadowed by a palace race row.
The heir to the throne thanked her and the people of Boston for supporting the awards. “Thank You so much for your help,” he said. “I think people are excited about the awards.”
Kate, 40, was wearing a Burberry dress, a coat by McQueen, and earrings by the sustainable brand Shyla London.
The royal couple also met Ms Wu’s husband Connor Pewarski and their sons Blaise and Cass during a brief audience in the mayor’s office. They appeared to be discussing their own children when the media were briefly allowed into the meeting.
Ms Wu, 37, a Democratic politician and lawyer, is a strong advocate of environmental policies.
She has campaigned for a municipal Green New Deal and signed an ordinance to divest the city council’s investments from companies that derive more than 15 per cent of their revenue from fossil fuels.
She has also announced plans for the city to spend $2 billion on school construction projects as part of the Green New Deal.
More than a dozen Boston landmarks will be lit up green tonight including the City Hall, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in tribute to the event.
William and Kate also took in an NBA game as they sat courtside during the Boston Celtics vs Miami Heat fixture on Wednesday evening.
It is William and Kate’s first official overseas trip since the death of the Queen, with the couple, unfortunately, landing to a shocking racism row involving the heir’s godmother Lady Susan Hussey.
The late Queen's former lady in waiting of more than 60 years was today forced to stand down from her royal role helping the King after making comments to a Buckingham Palace guest about her race and heritage.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are said to be "incredibly excited" about their trip, but have “no plans” to catch up with William’s estranged brother Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle who now reside in California, US.
The Prince and Princess of Wales lit Boston up in green last night as they began the countdown to Friday’s Earthshot Prize Awards Ceremony.
William and Kate pressed a button to light up the rainy evening after joining Mayor of Boston Michelle Wu and Massachusetts Governor-Elect Maura Healey at Speaker’s Corner outside Boston City Hall, which was one of 16 landmarks transformed by lights to kick off the celebration.
Addressing the crowd gathered outside, the Prince thanked "all the hardy Bostonians braving the rain this evening".
He went on: “Catherine and I are absolutely delighted to be with you today, for our first engagement in the great city of Boston, as we start the countdown to The Earthshot Prize Awards this Friday.
“Thank you to Mayor Wu and Reverend White-Hammond,for all your support for The Earthshot Prize.
“There are two reasons why Boston was the obvious choice to be the home of The Earthshot Prize in its second year.
“Sixty years ago, President John F. Kennedy’s “Moonshot” speech laid down a challenge to American innovation and ingenuity. ‘We choose to go to the moon’ he said, ‘not because it is easy but because it is hard.’
“It was that Moonshot speech that inspired me to launch the Earthshot Prize with the aim of doing the same for climate change as President Kennedy did for the space race. And where better to hold this year’s Awards Ceremony than in President Kennedy’s hometown, in partnership with his daughter and the Foundation that continues his legacy.
“Boston was also the obvious choice because your universities, research centres and vibrant start-up scene make you a global leader in science, innovation and boundless ambition.
“Mayor Wu, you have also been a leader in putting climate policies at the heart of your Administration. Thank you.
William went on: “Like President Kennedy, Catherine and I firmly believe that we all have it in ourselves to achieve great things, and that human beings have the ability to lead, innovate and problem-solve.
“We cannot wait to celebrate The Earthshot Prize Finalists later on this week, and we are both looking forward to spending the next few days learning about the innovative ways the people of Massachusetts are tackling climate change.”
There were cheers from the more than 1,000 people gathered to see them in City Hall Plaza as they emerged from the building after a meeting with Mayor Wu.
The Prince and Princess stopped to look at frames photographs of the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh with former Mayor of Boston Kevin White taken during a royal visit to mark the American bicentennial in 1976.
“1976, amazing isn’t it?” said William.
The Mayor was joined by her husband Conor Pewarski and their sons Cass and Blaise.
Mayor Wu’s team have worked closely with the Earthshot Prize ahead of the Ceremony. She was elected mayor in 2021, winning with 64% of the vote, becoming the first woman, first person of colour, and first Asian-American elected to serve as the Mayor of Boston. Her “Green New Deal”, which was a major plank of her election campaign, promises to achieve a "net-zero municipal footprint" by 2024, 100% renewable electricity in Boston by 2030, and carbon neutrality by 2040.
As well as City hall, buildings lit up in green included the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, the skyscraper 100 Federal St, Atlantic Wharf, Government Center and TD Garden, home of the the NBA’s Boston Celtics.
William and Kate were seen smiling as they sat courtside to watch an NBA match between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat on Wednesday evening.
Tonight from Speaker's Corner at Boston City Hall the couple will formally begin the countdown to Earthshot by pressing a giant buzzer to light the city up.
Superstar singer Billie Eilish will lead a stellar line-up for the awards ceremony, founded by William to recognise and scale-up environmental solutions to repair the planet.
Other acts to feature are Annie Lennox, Ellie Goulding and Beyonce proteges Chloe x Halle, performing at the MGM Music Hall in Boston.
A royal source said: "The prize has become the Prince's Superbowl moment of the year, and he looks forward to continuing to use the platform each year to shine a light on some of the most impactful projects doing amazing things around the world to save our planet's future."
The Earthshot Prize is now in its second year, and among the 15 finalists vying for £1 million awarded to each of the five category winners are a cleaner-burning stove initiative in Kenya and a bubble barrier made in the Netherlands to prevent plastics entering oceans.
There are also finalists from the UK for the first time, with two British-based entries being selected.
Notpla Hard Material - a start-up run by Pierre Paslier and Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez in London - makes packaging from seaweed and plants as an alternative to single use plastic, and has already produced more than one million biodegradable takeaway food boxes for the firm Just Eat.
The other UK finalist - Low Carbon Materials, based in County Durham - uses unrecyclable plastic waste to make traditional concrete blocks carbon-zero.
Broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, a supporter of the Earthshot Prize since its inception, will voice the opening of the show while Oscar winning actress and Earthshot judging panel member Cate Blanchett will narrate a lookback at the 2021 winners.
Actor Rami Malek, who played singer Freddie Mercury in the biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, will present an award as will actress Catherine O'Hara, best known for starring in the film Home Alone, and environmental activist and actress Shailene Woodley.
William and Kate are also keen to meet local communities during their visit to Boston, which is famed for its Irish heritage, sports and history.
During their visit William and Kate will visit the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum with Caroline Kennedy, the late president's daughter.
The prince and princess will learn about the work local organisations are doing to mitigate the risk of rising sea levels to Boston, and when they tour the Greentown Labs, in the nearby town of Somerville, they will get an insight into the development of innovative green technologies.
At the premises of Roca, a non-profit organisation supporting disadvantaged young people, they will hear about the issues they face and Kate, who launched the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood in 2021, will visit the Centre on the Developing Child at Harvard University.
