Charles speaks to Commonwealth youngsters about environmental issues

The Prince of Wales has spoken passionately about tackling the environmental issues affecting the Commonwealth as reports stated the institution’s member states will agree to Charles succeeding the Queen as their head.

Charles met a group of young environmental activists from across the Commonwealth and chatted about the problems they were each battling in their respective countries.

The meeting took place as Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall attended their first public event of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) week – a Commonwealth Big Lunch – which will see world leaders gather in London on Thursday for a two-day summit.

Downing Street said on Monday that a decision on whether the prince should succeed his mother as Commonwealth head was expected from the presidents and prime ministers on Friday, and reports have stated the mood is Charles will get their backing.

With media interest intensified on the heir to the throne, he appeared at ease talking to the group aged in their twenties who were engaged in finding solutions to problems like plastics in the waters around the Seychelles, nuclear testing in the Pacific or sustainable women’s sanitation products in Singapore.

Speaking at the event held at London’s Queen Elizabeth II conference centre, Charles told the group: “I’ve always felt for years nature holds most of the answers, we just did but rediscover how important she is. There’s no waste, everything is recycled.”

He asked the group if they had heard of biomimetics – where nature’s solution to problems are adapted for human needs – adding: “It is a very interesting way of trying to deal with some of these problems.”

There has been speculation for a number of years about whether the heir to the throne will succeed the Queen, who has been head of the Commonwealth since coming to the throne in 1952.

The position is not automatically held by the British monarch, and the BBC reported earlier this year the topic would be discussed by the world leaders when they go into retreat at Windsor Castle, holding informal discussions without aides or advisers present.

In a lighter note, Charles joked about his experiences of jelly fish clogging the air conditioning of the Royal Yacht Britannia during a visit to Cameroon when introduced to Israel Nyoh, 28, a climate change activist from the country.

He said: “I remember going to Cameroon years ago, I’ve never been so hot in my life – Douala. I’ve never forgotten the old royal yacht Britannia was there… and the whole harbour was full of jelly fish.

“All the jelly fish were sucked into the intakes so all the air conditioning broke down – it was boiling.”