London: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have warned the bushfires sweeping vast swathes of Australia are contributing to a global ‘ecocide’, in a stark message that forms part of a coordinated response by three wings of the royal family to the unfolding disaster.
Amid mounting international criticism of Australia’s climate change policies, the Queen and Prince Philip, Prince William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, issued separate statements on Saturday expressing shock at the death and destruction.
The Queen’s message stuck to the traditional formula of offering “thoughts and prayers to all Australians at this difficult time”.
“My thanks go out to the emergency services, and those who put their own lives in danger to help communities in need,” she said.
“From areas we are personally connected to such as the communities and people we visited in New South Wales in 2018, to the fires in California and parts of Africa, we are struck by the increasingly overlapping presence of these environmental disasters, including of course the destruction of the Amazon which continues,” they said.
“This global environmental crisis has now been described as ecocide. It’s easy to feel helpless, but there’s always a way to help.”
The pair urged their social media followers to donate to the NSW Rural Fire Service or the Australian Red Cross.
Prince Harry later said “nobody is perfect” in terms of their ecological footprint and said the majority of his travel is on commercial planes.
Their ‘Ecocide’ comments are the latest in a series of interventions on the impact of global warming by senior members of the royal family.
Prince William chose the first day of the new year to launch a major prize designed to help bring down carbon emissions, warning the Earth was at a “tipping point”.
In their statement on the Australian bushfires, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge said they were “shocked and saddened” about the loss of “homes, livelihoods and wildlife across much of Australia”.
“We send our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who have tragically lost their lives, and the brave firefighters who continue to risk their own lives to save the lives of others.”
“The challenges many people face today may be different to those once faced by my generation, but I have been struck by how new generations have brought a similar sense of purpose to issues such as protecting our environment and our climate,” she said. SOURCE