Prince William has given an emotional speech revealing his biggest fear about his children’s futures.
In a speech recorded for Chinese television, the Duke of Cambridge said he is terrified his most beloved African animals will have died out by the time Prince George and Princess Charlotte are adults.
“Today, we face an unprecedented surge in the brutal slaughter of iconic animals by poachers,” he said. “In South Africa, for example, one rhino was killed every month until 2005. But last year, three rhinos were killed every single day.
“In the 33 years since I was born we have lost around 70 per cent of Africa’s elephant population. Of those that are left, 20,000 are being killed every year – that is 54 elephants killed every single day.
“At this rate, children born this year – like my daughter Charlotte – will see the last wild elephants and rhinos die before their 25th birthdays.”
William begged the Chinese people to reject ivory and the use of exotic animals in traditional medicine to ensure the beautiful creatures don’t go extinct.
“My rejection of ivory today is not a judgement of past generations,” William said. “It is an acceptance of the world as I find it today and the world I want my children, George and Charlotte, to inherit.
“The greatest inheritance we can pass on to the next generation is a safe and sustainable environment: the priceless endowment of nature. Let us not tell our children the sad tale of how we watched as the last elephants, rhinos and tigers died out, but the inspiring story of how we turned the tide and preserved them for all humanity.
“And in so doing, let us show the world that by working together we can stand up to the great challenges our planet and our families will face in the generations to come.”
