Prince William Just Got a Whole New Set of Royal Duties
Prince William Just Got a Whole New Set of Royal Duties
His royal obligations are going green.
Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, are passing on a few of their responsibilities to Prince William, the guy who happens to be England's future king and is currently Kate Middleton's arm candy. According to Town & Country, William will be taking over the queen's patronage of Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and his grandfather's patronage of the British Trust for Ornithology. That's plants, animals, and birds, in case anyone's wondering what sort of thing William will be handling now that his grandparents are doling out their patronages.
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"Her Majesty has provided stalwart support to FFI and we are extremely grateful for the sterling support and encouragement that she has provided throughout the past seven decades," Mark Rose, Chief Executive Officer of FFI, said in a statement. "We look forward to building on her legacy and taking the relationship forward with her grandson. The Duke of Cambridge is a wonderful ambassador for conservation and there is a great deal of synergy between his own and FFI’s vision for the future of the planet."
The FFI has been one of the queen's patronages for almost 70 years. According to its official website, it's the "world's oldest international wildlife conservation organisation."
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And while it's not 70 years, Prince Philip has been working with the British Trust for Ornithology for more than three decades. It's an organization that "aims to empower communities to protect local bird species and their natural habitats."
"I am delighted that The Duke of Cambridge has become our Patron, following on from his grandfather who worked so tirelessly on our behalf," Dr. Andy Clements, the Chief Executive of BTO, said. "We hope that we will be able to support The Duke’s strong interest in protecting the environment through our evidence-based work around environmental issues in the U.K."
Philip started getting into birds after a tour of the southern Pacific Ocean and the Antarctic that he took in 1956 and '57. One of the most famous snapshots of Philip, taking in 1957, shows him on Penguin Rookery Base W surrounded by penguins.
William and his brother, Prince Harry, are no strangers to conservation. USA Today notes that the two have been involved in wildlife charities and organizations hoping to end poaching through their organization, United for Wildlife. It's actually a partnership between seven different conservation organizations and offers support to groups like Tusk Trust. The paper notes that Philip has hundreds of patronages, so William and other members of the royal family could expect to get even more coming their way.
